More pop than bang

For Rye Rye fans, “Go! Pop! Bang!” has been a long time coming since her debut in 2007 at 17. When Rye Rye released her first singles, artists like M.I.A. and Santigold were just breaking into the music scene with a similarly eclectic, electronic-influenced sound.

The album’s energetic genre-hopping has been evolving through the years, but its sequencing lacks the clarity and distinction of a fully-developed record. You can hear the transition from Rye Rye’s first releases “Shake It to the Ground” and “Bang” — in which she spits over minimal percussion with a flow reminiscent of early Missy Elliott — to her more recent releases, where she pairs her rapid rhymes with club beats and poppy guest vocals.

With help from M.I.A., tracks like “Better Than You” and “Sunshine” have catchy hooks, but songs like “Crazy Bitch” and “DNA” are forgettable at best. When Rye Rye’s poppier tracks hit, they hit “Super Bass”-hard, but like Nicki’s uneven foray into pop, most of them teeter between boring and bubblegum.

By Allison Stone