On his seventh studio album, “Chromakopia,” the multi-hyphenate Tyler, the Creator pulls back the curtain. The rapper born Tyler Okonma interrogates the anxieties that come with age and fame across 14 tracks.

The record starts off strong with “St. Chroma” — an introduction to the masked persona on the album cover — with forceful military cadences in the background of both Tyler and R&B singer Daniel Caesar’s vocals. A reassuring voice is heard at the beginning: “You are the light. It’s not on you. It’s in you.”

“I ain’t never had a doubt inside me,” Tyler raps. “And if I ever told you that I did, I’m (expletive) lyin’.”

As a whole, the album represents the two-time Grammy-winning artist as he delves into his 30s. Tyler seeks to understand himself, like on the track “Like Him,” where he explores similarities to an estranged father.

“Give me love and affection/ Attention, protection (go),” he sings. “How could I ever miss a chance (go)/ That I never had?”

“Oh, I’m not the guy I was at 20,” the artist said in September at a listening party for the album. “I’ve got a gray hair on my chest. Life is life-ing. I just wanted to write about stuff I think about when I’m (by myself).”

He’s thinking about a lot: “Hey Jane” details a pregnancy scare atop dreamy production, and “Take Your Mask Off” tells the story of various characters afraid to live in their truth. It’s as much about Tyler, the Creator himself as it is about them. “I hope you find yourself,” he sings. “I hope you take your mask off.” Lead single “Noid” targets celebrity, touching on the parasocial relationships that come with fame in a claustrophobic, transgressive package.

But the album isn’t all deep introspection. Tyler is as brash as ever on “Thought I Was Dead” and “Rah Tah Tah,” rapping atop deep, reverberating bass. His lighthearted personality shines through on tracks like the cheerful “Sticky,” featuring Lil Wayne, GloRilla and Sexyy Red, and “Balloon,” featuring Doechii.

“Chromakopia” is a too-early midlife memoir, one many 30-somethings will relate to: It’s a record that considers all he has accomplished, and his fears and hopes for the future. — Leslie Ambriz, Associated Press

Blitz Vega — the band helmed by the Smiths bassist Andy Rourke and Kav Sandhu of Happy Mondays — formed in 2016 and ended when Rourke died from cancer in 2023. He was 59. The band’s lone album, “Northern Gentleman,” has finally been released — 10 tracks largely written and recorded before Rourke’s death, the swan song to his impressive career.

For all of the duo’s efforts, however, this is staid stuff. It borrows some elements from each man’s musical heyday but breathes no new life into their craft. These are arid, rock-by-numbers songs with little personal illumination to fuel them.

The first three tracks have the zeal of an album that could come pre- installed on the latest iPhone. A non-threatening, formless wall of guitar is delivered as Sandhu sings, “I wanna spend my time with you/ Oh baby, oh baby,” on the song “Disconnected.” It’s undemanding soft rock.

It doesn’t get good until “Love City.” For all its repetitiveness, the song quickens the pulse and introduces a rhythmic intensity as Sandhu sings of the desire for love and Rourke tears through bass lines. “Pass the Gun” throws in a few retro vinyl scratches to kick things off, but sputters from there.

In a news release for the album, Sandhu remembers Rourke fondly. “Every song tells a story and personally takes me back to a memory recording that song, the drive to the studio. That conversation or whatever happened surrounding the recording session,” the singer wrote. “I hear his voice in my head, replaying everything we talked about when we were recording the song. I see his face smiling at me.”

The duo was technically capable of an album far more compelling than “Northern Gentleman.” The mix is on point, and the sonic power is obvious. Rourke may be remembered fondly for his work with the Smiths, but hardly at all for this posthumous release. — Ron Harris, Associated Press