Tyler, The Creator - Goblin

The opening therapy session sets the frame: Tyler talking to Dr. TC about his sudden fame, his fears, his anger, the violent fantasies that made him famous. The beat is minimal, letting the spoken-word sections breathe, and the track works as a prologue. The problem is that the album never fully commits to the conceit; the therapy frame reappears sporadically rather than structuring the whole runtime. As an opener it establishes mood and ambition, but it promises more coherence than the album delivers.

The track that made Tyler famous, and it still hits. The beat is stark, just bass throb and minimal drums, built in eight minutes as a parody of RZA production but effective on its own terms. Tyler's gruff monotone locks into the pocket, and the imagery, while gross, is specific enough to land: the cockroach-eating video, the casual nihilism, the tossed-off threats. The shock value fades on repeat, but the atmosphere remains, and the track's importance to Odd Future's rise is undeniable. It is the best thing here, and the album never reaches this level of focus again.

Seven minutes of provocation framed as a youth rebellion anthem, opening with a spoken disclaimer that the violent content is fictional. The chanted hook, "Kill people, burn shit, fuck school," borrowed from Earl Sweatshirt's Pigions, is designed to provoke, and it does, but the track meanders without building tension or offering imagery sharp enough to justify the length. The beat is hypnotic but one-note, and Tyler's delivery lacks the energy to sustain the runtime. It works better as a statement of intent than as a song.

The first melodic reprieve, and one of the album's clear highlights. Tyler's production layers synths and reverb into something close to alternative R&B, subdued and atmospheric, and Frank Ocean floats a hook that belongs on a completely different record. Tyler's verse is restrained by his standards, focusing on obsession and awkwardness rather than violence, and the contrast with the horrorcore elsewhere gives the track weight. Ocean's presence is the key; he brings melody and dynamics that Tyler cannot match, and the track suffers when he exits. Still, this is one of the seven Tyler said he would keep, and the choice is easy to understand.

The one track Tyler did not produce, handled instead by Left Brain. It is a sparse gothic loop, bass-heavy and minimal, fitting the album's mood without standing out. Tyler delivers another horrorcore verse, and without Frank Ocean or Hodgy to provide contrast, the track blends into the middle stretch. It works as a palate cleanser, brief enough not to overstay, but it is not memorable.

One of the album's stronger tracks, dealing with the anxiety of sudden fame and the fear of losing it. The paranoia feels genuine rather than performed, and Tyler's delivery sharpens when he is rapping about something specific. The beat is creeping and off-kilter, using echo and space to build unease, and the track benefits from a tighter structure than the longer songs around it. The hook is weak, but the verses carry enough detail to make the five minutes feel earned. This is one of the seven Tyler kept, and it is easy to see why.

Four minutes of rape fantasies and murder scenarios delivered in a bored monotone over a minimal beat. The shock value is the point, but the imagery is neither specific enough to land as horror nor absurd enough to function as satire. Tyler's delivery sounds checked out, as if he is reading lines he wrote to provoke rather than performing them, and the track offers no variation or build. It is one of the seven Tyler said he would keep, which suggests he values the rawness, but it has not aged well.

A subdued, introspective track about romantic obsession, built over muted synths and minimal drums. Tyler's delivery is softer here, almost vulnerable, and the restraint works. The beat uses echo and negative space effectively, creating an atmosphere that suits the subject matter. The track is short, under four minutes, and does not overstay. It is a rare moment where Tyler prioritizes mood over provocation, and the album benefits from the break. Not a standout, but solid and necessary in the sequencing.

The first single, a collaboration with Hodgy Beats that showcases the Odd Future posse energy better than most of the album. Hodgy's verse is sharper than Tyler's, his flow more varied, and the interplay between the two keeps the track moving. The beat is simple but effective, a head-nodding loop that serves the rapping rather than overwhelming it. The track was performed on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Odd Future's first television appearance, and the live energy translates. It is filler in the context of the album's stated ambitions, but it works as a straightforward rap song, which much of Goblin does not.

Fish is a six-minute track that drifts between moods without committing to any of them, eventually dissolving into a hidden track called Boppin Bitch that breaks the album's atmosphere entirely. The first half is aimless, Tyler rapping without a clear subject or structure, and the beat meanders. The hidden track is a party song, upbeat and tongue-in-cheek, and the tonal whiplash is jarring. Tyler kept Fish in his 2018 list of salvageable tracks, but the inclusion feels generous; this is where the album starts to feel overstuffed.

A two-minute collaboration with Hodgy Beats over a hypnotic, looping beat. The brevity is a strength; the track does not overstay, and Hodgy's verse provides a melodic contrast to Tyler's gruff monotone. The production is subdued and textured, one of the clearer examples of Tyler's ear for atmosphere. It is a minor track, but it works, and it is one of the seven Tyler kept. The placement is poor, arriving after Bitch Suck Dick has already broken the mood, but the track itself is solid.

An intentional parody of trap misogyny, featuring Jasper Dolphin and Taco delivering stereotypical lines over a beat that mocks the formula. The joke is obvious, and it does not justify three and a half minutes. Jasper and Taco are not rappers, and their performances are deliberately amateurish, which is the point, but the satire is too broad to land. Tyler included similar tracks on Bastard and Wolf, and they are consistently the weakest moments on each album. This one is skippable.

An eight-minute posse cut featuring Domo Genesis, Frank Ocean, Hodgy Beats and Mike G, and it is one of the album's better tracks despite its length. The guests carry the melody, each delivering verses that vary the tone and provide relief from Tyler's monotone. Frank Ocean's hook is understated and effective, and the production is spacious, giving each rapper room to work. The track sags in the middle, and the length is not fully earned, but the variety keeps it from collapsing. The placement is poor, arriving too late in the runtime to reset the momentum, but as a standalone song it works.

An instrumental interlude, nearly four minutes of textured production with no rapping. The beat is atmospheric, using synths and reverb to build mood, and it confirms Tyler's ability to craft soundscapes that work on their own terms. The placement is strange, arriving near the end of the album where it pads the runtime rather than providing a necessary break. Tyler kept this in his list of seven tracks worth saving, and the production justifies the choice, but it would have been more useful earlier in the sequencing.

The closing track, where the therapy conceit pays off: Dr. TC is revealed to be Tyler's conscience, and the album is reframed as a dialogue with himself. The twist is clever, and the track builds to a quiet, reflective ending, but the reveal lands with less impact than it should because the therapy sessions were never strong enough to structure the full runtime. The production is subdued, letting Tyler's voice carry the final moments, and the track works as an epilogue. It does not redeem the weaker stretches, but it provides closure.

A deluxe edition bonus track featuring Hodgy Beats, and it adds nothing the album needed. The beat is serviceable, the verses are filler, and the track rehashes ideas already covered better elsewhere. Odd Future completists will find it mildly interesting as a document of the Goblin sessions, but it is not worth seeking out.

A one-minute instrumental that serves no purpose on an already-overstuffed album. Skip it.

A solo Tyler track on the deluxe edition, and it is more of the same: horrorcore provocation over a minimal beat, delivered in a monotone that sounds bored. Three minutes of filler.