Working as a ghostwrite for a long time before this mixtape, it’s clear he knows how to write a hit or make a catchy chorus. The middle part of the album is where Frank dives more into pop stylings. (Though, granted, Christ Martin is good for the outro here.) It’s a loss of childhood and those halcyon years, and such a start is a really bold statement for your first official artistic work. No disrespect to Chris Martin or the the band, this rendition just adds so much more drama to the mix, and by the end with the alarm clock waking Frank out of his ethereal dream, we too mourn his loss. The first full song off the tape, “Strawberry Swing,” is an immediate highlight. Even today, it’s without a doubt one of my favorite mixtapes. Barely into his twenties, it’s hard to think of artists that sound this confident on their debut mixtape other than the brightest stars of today. The download I have, likely off the Odd Future website or something, cuts off in the middle of the last song, a riff on MGMT’s “Electric Feel” called “Nature Feels.” Listening to the mixtape now, it’s incredible seeing now how direct some of Frank Ocean’s ideas were even this early in his career. The amazing thing about Nostalgia, ULTRA to me is that I haven’t even heard all of it.
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