Elite Vessel: honey's Review
- honey
- Jan 31
- 10 min read
Remember the scene in Scary Movie 2 when Cindy is singing along with the radio and Vitamin C stops singing to tell her to shut up and let her sing?
Well, if you don’t know, [I won’t say don’t remember because if you’ve seen the movie, you'd remember the scene. It’s impossible not to] here's a clip. Anyways, that’s how I think Lexa Gates would talk to me if she heard me singing Angel on repeat. Not saying she's mean, I don't know her, but the aura of her music is so confidently spirited, yet laidback.
Today's review will focus on Elite Vessel, an album by Lexa Gates. When I first heard Gates' singing and style of rap, my first thought was literally, "This girl has to be from New York, or at least lives there." We'll get more into that later, but for now here's a bit of background on the girl with an unmatched aesthetic who absolutely dominates the sharpest, Egyptian winged eyeliner look.
Gates' mother got a piano when she was younger, adding another musical notation to her palette next to singing. She had no idea that her daughter was fascinated with the sleek keys as well, but when she did find out, she was put into piano classes. This is the beginning of Gates' story.
I spent my preteen and much of my teenage years growing up on SoundCloud. SoundCloud was the place to stream music before streaming really took off and everyone was using Spotify. It was from this Gates eventually developed her debut album, Order of Events, released in 2020. Delirium, Universe Wrapped in Flesh, and her most recent album, Elite Vessel, are just a few of the works she has released since then.
Gates' song "Rotten to the Core" from her album Universe Wrapped in Flesh was the first song I heard from her. This song appeared in my Discover Weekly. You know how you hear a song and you like the song, but you don't go deep enough into a discography rabbit hole until you hear another song by them? No? Just me?
Okay, well that happens to me a lot and it happened with Gates. Last year around the beginning of October, Angel appeared in my Discover Weekly and I just.. completely fell in love with the song. Listening to it everyday, multiple times a day, realizing new things she says with each new listen. My favorite lyrics being,
"Feeling like I got shot with a glock by Cupid
Feeling like I'm in a dream but awake, I'm lucid"
Like do you hear this artistry? The authenticity of who she is, mixed with the vulnerability of her feelings? Come awn!
This is the song that made me look up where she was from. Little did I know, she grew up in New York and after a Google search, she's also an Aries! No wonder why the delivery is so assertive and why her approach to music sounds incredibly innovative.
Anyways, that's my background for Gates. Of course there'll probably be a bit more tidbits dropped throughout this post, but as always feel free to check out the links at the bottom that allowed me to learn more about her as well. Now let's get into Elite Vessel.
One thing about me is I love a good album rollout, especially if they are unconventional and innovative, it's the advertising major within me.
Gates did a promotional rollout for this album that was all over my TikTok [shout out to @lexagatesangels] where she sat in a box for 10 hours promoting and listening to her album, giving people the opportunity to listen before official release.
She didn't have a phone, a book, or anything to entertain her besides the music and a pineapple. People brought her gifts like flowers and letters. At times, you can just see her vibing out to the music or engaging with supporters. Other times she's just sitting with the music, letting it speak to her and for her.
The rollout of her being alone in the box is a perfect segue into the first track of "Elite Vessel."
The album opens with Alone, a tempered beat and piano accompanying Gates with a lot of static enveloping her voice. We get to a point where the static stops and its more of an echo of Lexa's voice as if she's far away, with only the piano and her lone voice on the track. This symbolizes how it is just her — ultimately alone. This sounds so dumb, but hear me out.
Most people aren't really fond of being alone because when we're alone, we have to sit with ourselves. Sit with thoughts that can either be beautiful or wreak havoc on our minds. We typically feel disconnected from everyone, like we can't be reached even though we may yearn for connection. To me, Alone is a song you sit with. Reflection is in itself a beautiful thing, helping us to grow, but it can trigger a number of healing processes within us that aren't always as beautiful as the growth we achieve.
The second track, Lately Nothing, featuring Alé Araya sounds so divine. This song was released as a single earlier in the year leading up to her upcoming album. Gates reflects on growing up, but still not feeling like a complete grown up. Having those things that really make you feel like an adult, like your own place and your own money, but not having anyone to share those things with.
Sometimes, it's like we work so hard for those things in life that give us stability and an overall guise of comfort, but we miss out or don't quite maintain the connections that enhance those experiences. Having those experiences with people, whether it be a significant other, family or friends, makes life just a little bit sweeter.
Thinking of you gives me a feeling of growing. Being disinterested in everything and everyone at the moment, but still having a craving for the love you've been seeking in the right person. Here's a couple verses that give a bit of insight into this song:
"He says that he's in love, I could pretend too
It's some things that happened that I wouldn't tell you / It's some places that I shouldn't bring you down to
But if you insist, I guess that we could take it there
You don't deserve that / I know you're better than the ones I f***** with way back
In my defense, you showed up while I was getting over it"
Gates is extremely honest here showing her emotional complexity throughout these lines. What sticks out to me about this song is her self-awareness of not only herself, but how the situation has impacted her prior to this person coming into her life as well as now.
She is [or was] still getting over that person in her life she had mad chemistry and love for.. but having someone come into your life during that time while you're still vulnerable, who checks all the boxes and has a strong sense of love for you is hard to resist. You know you don't deserve them, but you like the feeling of love that comes with it. After all, it's better than being alone. We all have to deal with emotional baggage and past trauma at some point in our lives. Gates just gives us a glimpse into her experience here.
Then there are tracks like Stupid, where I just have to mention off of the pure fact that it's top tier. Let's appreciate one of my favorite verses for this song,
"B****, I'm a demon, I'm Lucifer
They all like, 'What can I do for her?'
When I walk, I pull up with the suits, Ima get deep in your tissue, masseuse
Watch how you speaking, I'm speaking the"
With her low tone and commanding writing over this incredibly angelic beat she smoothly rides with no issue, she truly brings this song to life. Another favorite verse of mine is,
"I was at the Freaknik where the freaks at
I don't even really know what that means"
I have to appreciate her blunt honesty, always. Freaknik, at one point, was an incredibly huge part of Black culture and as we can see in Gates' music, she pays a lot of homage to hip hop culture with her bars and different samples in songs. From her Rolling Stone interview, Gates is focused on "world-building a vintage style to match the nostalgic and somber essence of her laidback music, often described as being reminiscent of artists she considers her influences: Mac Miller, Amy Winehouse, and Tyler, the Creator."
Her music and style, in my opinion, undeniably reflect her influences. Her bars are incredibly transparent and discuss a wide range of tough topics she either deals with or has experienced. In addition to writing brilliant raps, Mac Miller was an amazing artist who addressed many of the intense subjects we often avoid in real life. In Gates' music, you can sense some of that similar energy. Watching Gates' music videos gives you a sense of her fabulously sultry aesthetic, which is somewhat reminiscent of Amy Winehouse, but has more of a retro, tumblr-esque feel.
The piano accompaniment for What You Wish For is a bit more saturnine and stands out throughout the entire song. I find the song's general vibe to be nostalgic of hip hop from the 90s. Her flow near the finish of the song makes me think of fast rap, rapping in which the singer actively stays on top of the beat with rhyme play that slices through the background noise.
Sweet.. Time is my favorite song off the album. Like, restart the song before it even fully plays through type favorite. With the saxophone in the background and R&B lulls encapsulating Gates' rapping and singing style, the beat is highly sensual and evocative of jazz. And the song features Zelooperz? Who, to me, is one of the most talented, upcoming rappers out right now? Yeah. She knew exactly what she was doing having him as a feature. She saw the vision. It's a perfect combination, two artists with an extremely unique sound coming together to make something powerfully divine.
One of my favorite R&B-like samples from the album is found on The Earth It Works in Funny Ways. In my opinion, the song serves as a sort of freestyle intermission in which she considers the most important aspects of her life, such as her album and making money, while also still reflecting on the grief from that person that is no longer in her life.
When I first heard Stacy's Chips, I was trying to figure out why would you eat that girls chips knowing they weren't yours? Then I saw in Gates' music video that they're literal chips. So, then I had to see if the person who founded Stacy's Chips was named Stacy [confirmed the founder is definitely named Stacy].
The song has a retro, groovy feel to it that reminds me of music from the 70s, kind of like Funkadelic. There is an instrument in the back making a klink noise, disruptive to the song but in a syncopative way, allowing the song to still flow freely. Even while viewing the music video, you can definitely see more of those vintage attributes, particularly the impact of Tumblr and how it ties into Gates' aesthetic.
Gates' reflects on all the things she does for her mental such as taking walks, working out, eating good and doing breath work. She plasters on a smile, grateful for the opportunities she's getting but the sheer anxiety and stress she has from keeping that smile is enough to make her clench her fists. This song seems to reflect on getting up everyday, doing everything "right," yet still trying to find the motivation to keep going when progress isn't imminent. A smile can only brighten up so much when you're fighting inner battles that smile doesn't reach.
With the Gene & Eddie sample You've Got To Love Me Sometimes, Gates' song Yourself is a bit slower and gets to the heart of rhythm and blues. Her voice is perfectly accompanied by the sample, which provides us more insight into the narrative. Gates considers everything she has accomplished and how far she has come, yet she still feels as though she is waiting for the other shoe to drop. It's no secret that life can change in the blink of an eye, so how does she make these things last when she has never experienced them before and doesn't know how to properly handle them?
With a sample from The Green Berets (Lord) Send Me Somebody, I Just Can't Be Alone, seems to be more of a continuation of her album's opening track, highlighting the aspects of her relationship with and dependence on the other person. This song kind of reminds me a bit of Mac Miller's music as well and I think it's really cool when artists let their influences show.
The beginning of Dirt is something I frequently find myself saying becuase what do I do? It sounds like there are many instruments underneath Gates voice, along with a sample. It really complements her voice and sounds like beautiful chaos. Gates lists all the things she could do to make the time pass, but realizes all the things that she could do aren't enough. She sees her former vices as nothing more than dirt, which is necessary for her roots to spread and grow properly.
The keys and accompanying twinkles make the beginning of Lover sound incredibly elysian. Gates is at war with her mind, constantly ruminating on the complicated thoughts within her head. To me, this is Gates' most exposed song on the album. Or one of. However, it feels completely raw, reflecting on the longing of the person she was with and feeling alone because the person that understood her is no longer there.
Overall, I loved this album. On my first listen, I was just struck by how incredible it was. And one of the reasons why I feel it is so incredible is because of how open Gates' is in her music. After everything is said and done, she isn't scared to express her feelings and shares many of the thoughts we struggle to say aloud. If you've never listened to Lexa Gates before, I hope this blog gets you to take a listen.
Favorite songs, no specific order: Alone, Sweet.. Time, Stupid, I Just Can't Be Alone.
And I always cite my sources. Period.
Brisco, E. (2024, November 18). Meet Lexa Gates, the singer/rapper embracing solitude. Rolling Stone.
Daniels, M. (2024, June 3). Introducing: Lexa Gates. fword.
On The Radar Radio. (2024a, January 23). Lexa Gates On Growing Up In Queens, Approach To Music, “Angel”, “Universe Wrapped In Flesh” + More! YouTube.
XPERIMENT TV, Bodega Talks. (2024, February 15). Lexa Gates talks Growing Up In Queens, Dropping out of High School, Music Style, Drake & much more!. YouTube.
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