The Internet’s Hive Mind Reestablishes Why They’re a Force to be Reckoned With
Hive Mind is both a recorded antithesis to a potential career of following groupthought and a titular nod to the increasing sonic cohesion the collective has formed in their almost decade tenure of producing full-length projects for public consumption; The Internet has proven in the extent of that time to have moved immeasurable strides away from being the Los Angeles-based outfit known for its tangentiality to Odd Future. Syd Bennett remains the primary vocalist, lulling the 13-track LP into a melodic, neo-soul fantasy replete with Steve Lacy’s funk-oriented bass, backup vocals, Martians’ contributing synths and drums, in addition to Paige and Smith serving as multi-instrumentalists; this is by no means an exhaustive list of the sum of all their parts flowing together on this album.
The album sets off with “Come Together,” Syd stating, “They gon’ get us to come together / I forgot my pride / Stronger than your lies / Wanna get so high / Wanna live my life.” This could be an ode to the perservance warranted in many existential crises, but most obviously is an anthemic proclamation to the band’s return from a 3-year hiatus, each member taking time to release solo material in between their departure and Hive Mind. The return is polished, confident and reaffirming of their 2016 Grammy-nod for best Urban Contemporary album; and, in contrast with their respectively nominated, Ego Death, Hive Mind is stripped of the plentiful, attention-drawing features, the group holding itself together as a primarily self-sustaining project with the support of rapper Kauri Faux on percussion for “Hold On,” and Atlanta-native Big Rube providing spoken-word on “It Gets Better (With Time).”
The Internet still impressively stitches a multi-genre sound together of jazz, funk, hip-hop and more that pleases the heart and soul without necessarily needing to reinvent their own wheel; the collective has found a model that serves them perfectly and has spent time fine-tuning that sound over the years, through losing and gaining membership, that offers a maturation in structure that long and first time supporters can appreciate in unison.
Hive Mind’s second single, “Come Over” is a measured response to the trepidatious, modern-day, “Will they or won’t they?” led by Bennett in the first act, ushering Lacy into the second. Syd croons to a disaffected love interest, “I’ll bring the champagne / Don’t turn me down, babe / We can play Simon Says / Or watch TV in bed / Wake with the sunrise / Sleep in it’s all right / We ain’t even gotta sex.” This laidback single is interspered between songs like their third single “La Di Da,” which gives Lacy the driverseat and dives further into Funk, establishing a tracklist of high and low energy appropriate for any setting you find yourself listening to this project.