Track Reacts - Ungodly Hour//Chloe x Halle

If you attempt to call me in the ungodly hours, trust that I will not pick up the phone because this album will be blasting from every available speaker in my home

    Hi there, and welcome to another installment of the critically-acclaimed online series Track Reacts. 

First and foremost, I would like to apologize for the estate of Chloe and Halle for not completing this chapter sooner. I know they almost definitely don't care but it makes me feel good to be a part of things. My world has sort of been consumed by other things but that is no excuse to not deliver the hard-hitting journalism my audience of two people have come to expect from me. (I checked my metrics and I would just like to say thank you to both of you 🥺)

Now this is the part where you may be asking yourself, what credibility do you, Mannifred Quinnzelle, have to critique music that's been labored on by people vastly more talented than yourself? 

None. None at fucking all. But here we go anyway my love muffins.

Intro (0:28)

If there was any doubt in your mind that this album was going to be anything less than an absolute serve, the harmonies and vocalizations of this opening track should quickly lay them to rest. Reminiscent of Beyoncé (I mean duh, they're signed to her label), a simple ooo can convey so much drama with so little effort. Also, you know that I'm a bitch that loves when an artist just speaks over a track and that itch was scratched.

Forgive Me (2:38)

I sincerely love when an album bleeds into each next track seamlessly (because I want to feel like I'm getting the most out of my Apple Music subscription) and that's exactly what's done here. The tantalizing melody of the intro become the backbone for this track and pulls you along before you realize it has you. My head conjures imagery of aerial artists pushing and pulling you into their space, destroying any sense of fear and captivating you completely with a show of artistry, grace, and beauty.

Baby Girl (3:32)

And then with a splash of cold water, we go under into a dreamy lullaby that sounds like it belongs on the soundtrack of a dream I wish I could've had. I think my favorite part of the duo of these two goddesses is how they have no issue dropping a little depth/spice/flavor into the middle of their tracks to keep you on your toes.

Do It (2:57)

This song starts in a great place, securely in 'bad bitch vibez' territory but the immediate change in tempo to their smooth, buttery crooning pushes it immediately into stellar. Also, these ladies need to be applauded for knowing how to craft a hook. To me, the best hooks are super catchy or very easy to dance to when it comes on at the club - or any function. This song accomplishes both with how simply yet elegantly it completes the formula.

Tipsy (2:33)

Its at this point in the album where I realize that these girls don't want me to have solid footing, ever. What you think is gonna be a somber, haunting track evolves into an irreverent, percussion-driven track that for sure belongs as the backing track to a queen blowing up her ex's car. And just when you think you understand the structure, they hit you with yet another left hook. Luckily, this one's more of a warning.

Ungodly Hour (4:16)

This right here, this is the holy grail. In what I think is the longest song on this album, this track is wholly deserving of being the title track for this album. Both moods of this track complement each other so splendidly (like Chloe and Halle 👀I smell a conspiracy). I feel a full disco boogie enter my soul when that breakdown hits and I'm overcome with the need to tell the leagues of men that don't hit me up to go find another toy to play with. This is the anthem for the 3am booty call (which nobody better be doing during quarantine) and I could not be prouder of them for it. 

Busy Boy (3:10)

Going immediately into this track from the last, there's a noted shift in the energy as the transition isn't as smooth and seamless as some of the earlier moments. But I can excuse it because they do that wonderful thing where it feels as though I'm listening to them sing over a radio in the roaring 20's as they launch into a staple R&B beat thats evocative of Mary J. Blige. I must say that this track feels like they're both having a lot more fun with it, dragging this man for having the audacity to attempt to double dip in different pots.

Catch Up (ft. Swae Lee & Mike WiLL Made-It (3:05)

The quintessential mellow, trap-inspired track that seems to have to exist on any modern album, this track is *Controversial Yet Brave Alert* made worse by what they had Swae Lee do. Now this is no tea no shade no pink lemonade to Swae who I've enjoyed on every feature I've heard him on thus far. I just enjoyed how they played with the track much more by themselves and would've preferred to have more of that shine through. But as is the nature of all collaborations, sometimes they hit and sometimes they miss. This wasn't a miss, but my vital organs weren't hit.

Overwhelmed (0:52)

Even though the transition on this one is stark as well, it works well here I feel because they immediately jump into the deep end of the song without their usual serene vocalizing lead-in. This interim piece hits fast and slows down just enough for you to get on the ride for a second before blasting right back off.

Lonely (3:15)

Listen to this one after a hard day in the ungodly hours (see what I did there 🥴) with good headphones on so you can really appreciate the individual vocal stylings of these queens as well as how the melody they craft will strip your soul from you. The production on this song is amazing but there's a part of me that cannot wait for them to perform this live with perhaps a little less accompaniment so I can let the tears flow more freely.  

Don't Make It Harder On Me (3:35)

On my first go around, I fully thought that the album was going to end with this one. It just feels like such a good finale to this album with how feel-good the production plays on it. I mean I'm very happy it doesn't but I simply cannot shake the feeling that this song would sit at the end of a movie right as the camera pans up from the protagonists with their happy ending. It even finishes dramatically to really drive the point home.

Wonder What She Thinks of Me (3:32)

Ah yes. To be the other woman. The sultry sadness and scars of forsaken lovers. The somberness peels away slowly like a very fine onion but now I'm the one stuck crying because of how resigned and at peace these two are with how things ended between them and the subject in question. The violin in the background seems to be solely there to use my heartstrings as its personal wiring. And then the beauty of their absolutely haunting and enrapturing harmony at the backend just lets me know they have shed the same tears I can imagine they have. 

ROYL (3:25)

What I'm sure is meant to be a fun and uplifting finale to an amazing collection of work is indeed fun but I keep feeling like it would benefit from being pushed harder into one of the routes it plays with. I would like to see a version of this song where they lean harder into the backing chorus and have it be fueled by a more gospel approach or even sticking with the playground chant perspective and go from there. On the other hand, I would love to see a version of this where they go hard and pick that beat up and sprint it across the finish line to a more exciting victory. That. being said, they crossed that line perfectly and I'm very proud of them for the effort they showed with this body of work. 

Top Tracks

🥇 Ungodly Hour

🥈 Forgive Me

🥉 Do It

Final Thoughts

This album showcased to the world the immense wealth of talent resting within these two and for that I am incredibly happy and grateful. With this album, I feel as though I understand the two of them and their music perspective much more clearly. The DNA of who they are as artists resides all over this album and they make it apparent on every sensual harmony. I honestly was a very big fan of this album, I would just like to say that I noticed that many of the tracks that I considered to be their bangers were placed near the top of the album. Now as a collective work as a sum of all of its parts, I feel that the album all meshed together very well but did not really contain or deliver on a fantasy or narrative. All of the tracks are amazing but I can't help but shake the feeling that the threads could have been knit together just a smidge tighter. But perhaps that's my own bias. Either way, Ursala is going to have an amazing time after she steals Halle's voice and if I were Prince Eric I would be very berry careful.

Do you agree or disagree with anything I came up with? Let me know in the comment and if you think I should do any of the amazing albums that came out before the series started. :D

-xoxo

M Quinn🌹🌈