Anderson .Paak: Malibu review – breezy blend of R&B, funk, soul and pop

When an album as strong as Malibu fails to dominate the end of year polls, you know it’s been a strong year for R&B, funk, soul, pop and pretty much every other genre elegantly incorporated here. Sunny yet substantive, Anderson .Paak’s second studio album shows he is as at home settling into a breezy club groove over euphoric brass (Am I Wrong, featuring Schoolboy Q) or unleashing James Brown-esque funk yelps as he is waxing autobiographical tales of family hardship, most notably on The Bird (“My mama caught the gambling bug … my papa was behind them bars”) or The Waters (“Word to the liquor that killed my grandpa liver”). Even with Frank Ocean, Beyoncé, Rihanna and Solange stealing the headlines, this year felt like a breakout for the one-time Dre protege. And with two Grammy nominations, 2017 should be bigger still.