In a musical landscape dominated by trap rap and pop hits, R&B offers new opportunities for growth and experimentation. “Beach House 3” by Ty Dolla $ign attempts to explore a fresh take on this tried-and-true genre. Along the way, it traverses elegant beats and interesting interludes, but somewhat falls short of achieving a fresh definition of R&B.

“Beach House 3” deals with your typical loves, lost loves, “main chicks” and the like. There are pockets of interesting production and lyrics scattered through passable beats and songs. The album falls short on repetitive songs like “Don’t Judge Me” and “Dawsin’s Breek.” The lyrics are plain, and the production leaves much to be desired. Not even a feature from Future was enough to save “Don’t Judge Me” from being an incredibly boring track. “Lil Favorite” straddles the line between interesting and bland with its hooking, chiming melody and plain lyrics.

Some of the best moments from the album are the interludes. They are all at most a minute long, and tie each song together nicely. They don’t contain many lyrics, which plays to their benefit; however, the production is interesting enough to keep me listening throughout. Each interlude title begins with the word “Famous,” which is the opening track of the album. The smooth guitar creates a really elegant backing track for Ty’s singing. The track later develops tightly knit harmonies. “Famous Lies,” “Famous Excuses,” and “Famous Friends” have these beautifully twisted and interwoven production. To be honest, I could listen to an entire album, or even a short EP comprised of just the interludes found on “Beach House 3.”

The best tracks from this album were released as singles before the album release. “So Am I” features both Damian Marley and Skrillex and sounds about how you would expect it to sound. The EDM beat is quite present throughout while maintaining the guitar riffs typical of reggae. Thankfully, the beat does not drop and the track is able to maintain a chill and grooving tone.

Another single, “Love U Better,” boasts the likes of Lil Wayne with everything the song needs to be a hit. This track has the absolute best production of any other song from “Beach House 3.” The screaming sample is reminiscent of early soul-sampling Kanye with modern bass and drums. However, the message of the songs comes straight from the Shawn Mendes book of relationships. The song’s entire message is a short-sighted view on relationships. It kills me that such a beautiful beat is accompanied by lyrics with such an awful message.

“Beach House 3” is certainly a modern take on R&B with multiple highs and lows. It has moments of pure lust and sex like “Droptop in the Rain” and “All The Time.” Most songs fall flat, while others experiment. These experiments pay off as the best songs from the entire album.

Unfortunately, these moments are a little too few and far between to make this album truly notable.

Album: Beach House 3

Artist: Ty Dolla $ign

Release Date: Oct. 27, 2017

Rating: 3/5