Ego Death — 2015

Background

Ego Death was released in 2015 as the third album by The Internet, a band that grew out of the Odd Future collective, marking the point where the group's sound coalesced into a distinctive, live-band-driven neo-soul style distinct from the more hip-hop-adjacent sound of their earlier work. The record features an unusually deep bench of collaborators and guest contributions while still sounding like a cohesive, singular vision led by Syd's vocals and Steve Lacy's increasingly prominent guitar and production work.

Sound

'Special Affair' opens the album with a slinky, laid-back groove built on live bass and guitar interplay rather than programmed beats, immediately setting the record's warm, organic tone. 'Girl' pairs a relaxed, understated arrangement with one of the album's most direct vocal performances from Syd, while 'Get Away' builds a slow-burning, hypnotic groove that stretches out rather than rushing toward a conventional pop structure.

Musicianship

The album's defining quality is its sense of a genuine band playing together in a room rather than a producer-assembled collage of parts — the interplay between the group's musicians gives the record a loose, confident groove that stands apart from much of the more digitally constructed R&B being released at the same time. Steve Lacy's guitar work throughout hints at the more overtly guitar-forward direction he'd pursue in his own solo career shortly after.

Legacy

Ego Death received a Grammy nomination and is widely regarded as the moment The Internet fully established their own identity distinct from their Odd Future origins, offering a smoother, more musically sophisticated alternative within the broader neo-soul and alternative R&B landscape of the mid-2010s. It remains the group's most critically celebrated album and a key document of the era's wider live-band resurgence within R&B production.