Within a year-and-a-half of nearly topping the Billboard 200 with
Life of a DON,
Don Toliver returned with
Love Sick, an aptly titled set that's more engrossing and intimate despite its much longer procession of guest collaborators. At times,
Toliver came across as listless on
Life of a DON, but here he sounds involuntarily immersed in the material, dazed if lucid instead of adrift. Preview tracks such as the
S.O.S. Band-quoting "Do It Right,"
Kali Uchis duet "4 Me," and impulsive slow jam "Leave the Club" (toughened by an appearance from
GloRilla) didn't make the album's arrival anticlimactic. If anything, they undersold the LP, barely hinting at what was in store. Among the highlights are shrewd collaborations with
James Blake,
Charlie Wilson, and
Brent Faiyaz, and unassisted gems such as "Time Heals All," "Leather Coat," and "Company, Pt. 3." ~ Andy Kellman