Released on Jan. 30, Don Toliver’s fifth studio album “OCTANE” has officially dropped. Following the successful release of his previous album, “HARDSTONE PYSCHO,” I was eager to see what the Houston rapper was cooking up. Featuring artists such as Yeat, Travis Scott and Teezo Touchdown, the 18-track album left me wanting more.
Kicking off the album is “E85,” a synth-filled track that samples “Chest Pain (I Love)” by Malcolm Todd. In this song, Toliver sings about driving on the highway with his lover, who is presumed to be Kali Uchis. Toliver continues to joke about getting his lover a brand-new Hummer and laughing all day like it’s “Dumb and Dumber,” relating to Jim Carrey’s 1994 comedy film of the same name. However, the next track provides a different aura.
Produced by BNYX, “Body” is an energetic, fast-paced track that samples “Rock Your Body” by Justin Timberlake. In this song, Toliver expresses his admiration for his lover’s body, therefore crushing on her. Personally, this is one of my favorite songs off the album because of the heavy bass drops throughout. Being a fan of both Timberlake and Toliver, it was interesting to hear this piece come together.
The third track, “Rendezvous,” features none other than Yeat. The track settles down compared to the previous song. The track title, “Rendezvous,” could refer to a meeting place with a chill, drama-free vibe. This is one of my favorite collaborations between the two, aside from the track “GEEKED UP” from Toliver’s “HARDSTONE PSYCHO” album.
The fourth track, “Secondhand,” slows down even more with a relaxed voice repeating the sentence, “How am I supposed to let you go?” Featuring Rema, both artists sing about pleading with their lovers to stay amidst a failing relationship. The fifth track, “Tiramisu,” continues with a calm, groovy mood. The track first dropped as a single on Sep. 5, 2025, before the album’s release. Toliver gently sings about the time spent with his lover. I enjoyed the whimsical energy these songs portrayed.
The sixth track, “ATM,” follows with an upbeat, astro-like ambience with a bumpy bass. Much like “Tiramisu,” this song dropped on Jan. 23, only a week before the album. Sampling “Oración” by Juan Carlos Calderón, Toliver begins the track with an altered version of his voice stating how he went back to his house with his girl. Toliver becomes socially unavailable as fame isolates him; his only escape being becoming intoxicated. I personally felt that this song had a nice melody to it, however the lyrics suggest that Toliver has a long way to go.
The seventh track, “Long Way To Calabasas,” slows down with a mellow beat. This track serves almost as an interlude since Toliver repeats the same single verse throughout the song. Repeating phrases like, “I guess it’s you that I really did care for, hard to get you out of my head.” Toliver is chasing passion, both between a person and artistic purposes. This blends romance and aspirational needs. This track felt to me as a soft plea for help, much like the songs made by XxXTentacion.
Produced by Wheezey, “Rosary” features the longtime friend of Toliver, Travis Scott. Being apart of the same label together, both artists provide a smooth, R&B-like tone. Toliver begins the track by referencing the duos’ previous track together “INSIDE” which was on the album “HARDSTONE PSYCHO”. This could be a representation of Toliver’s faithfulness to his wife, Kali Uchis. This is, once again, one of my favorite collaborations between the two, alongside the tracks “You” and “INSIDE”.
The ninth track, “All The Signs,” features Tezzo Touchdown. This marks the third collaboration between the two as the vibrations continue from the previous song in the album. The next verse that Toliver states is a verse-by-verse interpolation of the song “Naked” by Marques Houston. Although I like this song, my favorite collaboration between the duo has to be “BACKSTREET” from Toliver’s “HARDSTONE PSYCHO” album.
With a similar spirit to Toliver’s “Life of Don” era, “Call Back” is the 10th track on the album. Toliver repeats the phrase, “When you gon’ call back?” referring to his possible obsession with his love interest. This suggests that he can’t get them out of his mind. Toliver continues with having her voice on his ringtone, wanting to hear her more. Due to this song taking me back to Toliver’s 2021 era, it has a special place in my heart.
The 11th track, “Tuition,” gives a beat that is similar to Lil Tecca’s “We Love You Tecca” era. Toliver talks about a girl being at the club and leaves. Aside from the spacey vibe I get from this song, it isn’t my favorite of the album.
The 12th track, “K9,” delivers an impression that is high-energy that once again emphasizes Toliver's signature melodic style. Featuring SahBabii, Toliver reflects on his persona. Again, much like track 11, it’s an enjoyable song just not in my top five.
The 13th track, “Excavator,” follows the same atmosphere as the previous song. Toliver once again talks about how his music is so heavy that he’ll need heavy machinery to pick it up, like an excavator. The beat to this song did make my shoulders bounce so I certainly consider this one in my top 10.
The 14th track, “Gemstone,” samples “Malaguena” by Ernesto Lecuona. This track reminds me of the hardest moments during his previous album, “HARDSTONE PSYCHO.” It is definitely in my top 5 but still not as hard as the next track.
The 15th track, “OPPOSITE,” delivers a crowd bursting, hyped up performance that’ll have moshpits forming in seconds. First performed in Los Angeles on New Year’s Eve, Toliver makes it known that he pulls up in style with fashionable cars. This track tickled a part of my brain that I can’t fully describe. I first heard this as a sample a couple weeks prior to the album release and absolutely fell for it. This is one of the hardest bass drops I’ve heard in a long time.
The 16th track, “TMU,” slows right back down with a pitched up voice stating, “Are we still young? Waiting back for our lovers.” Despite this one verse that I even question, the song still gives the old-school feelings Toliver had throughout his career.
The 17th track, “Pleasure’s Mine,” contains a slow, flowing melody with notable high hats. Rumored to have sampled the popular video game “Friday Night Funkin’,” Toliver sings about how although he has lied to his girl, he wants to look deeper into the root of it. Toliver continues with how he and his girl have always been down for each other, so far as to step on others to get to the top.
The 18th and last track, “Sweet Home,” introduces an R&B, high hat version of a country classic. Toliver is caught between freedom and the desire for genuine connection. Toliver once again does a verse-by-verse interpolation of “All Night Long” by Kid Rock with only the locations changing. He relates the chaos of his romance to the level and obsession people had with Justin Bieber, blurring the lines between what is considered healthy intimacy. Despite his flexes with material goods, Toliver still yearns for honest connection.
Out of all these tracks, my top five favorites have to be “Body,” “OPPOSITE,” “Gemstone,” “ATM” and “Call Back.” As it may already seem, most of these songs have the hardest bassline or catchiest high hats, which do it for me the most. Nonetheless, this album is starting to dig deeper into the emotional side of Toliver with tracks like “All The Signs” and “Sweet Home.” This album isn’t my personal favorite that Toliver has dropped. However, it still stands as a reminder that he can still keep his fans coming back and more, especially when he eventually goes on tour.
Stream Don Toliver’s “OCTANE” on all music streaming platforms.