Kanye West - "ye"

Love him.  Hate him.  Worship him.  Puzzled by him.  You know who the hell Kanye West is.  Ever since the early 2000's, Kanye has been one of Rap's most polarizing figures.  Kanye took off with the mammoth success of 2004's "The College Dropout".  Tracks like "Through the Wire", "All Falls Down" and "Jesus Walks" were all smash hits, making Kanye a household name quickly.  Now, I grew up with this album, but it's not exactly my favorite of Kanye's work.  I appreciate the continuity of the album, Kanye's production, and the killer features.  But for me, I'm so much more interested in Kanye's later, more forward-thinking work. Kanye returned in 2005 with his absolute blockbuster "Late Registration".  Personally, I'm more into this album as far as the early years of Kanye goes.  This album had some really fantastic features, gargantuan singles, and an overall polished sound that I couldn't say no to.  Now, I still think this album was a little long-winded, and Kanye had still to really figure out just how far he could push himself.  But still, this was a big album, and it totally does deserve all the acclaim it's gotten. But with Kanye's 2007 "Graduation", he created his first real masterpiece.  Colorful blends of aggressive tracks like "Can't Tell Me Nothing" and more anthemic tracks like "Good Morning" and "Champion".  The production on this album was incredible, and for the first time I actually felt like I was in the presence of an absolute genius.  But it was around this time that Kanye went through some major changes.  No more was the Polo-wearing sweetheart we'd met years ago.  Kanye was a damn artist now, one whose ego and truly incredible songs were growing by the second.  However, 2008's "808s & Heartbreak" was one of the most radical departures in recent memory.  Tormented by his mother's death and other events, Kanye released a truly heartbreaking Synth Pop album.  There is almost no Rap or Hip-Hop influences to be found here, and in return we get minimal beats and Kanye mostly singing.  It's a sucker punch of an album, and something no one could have expected.  But it's also incredibly emotional and depressive, and reminds us for about an hour that Kanye is just as human as all of us deep down.  The guest spots were minimal, but powerful.  With topics such as depression, death, loneliness and fame, this was a surprisingly visceral album, one that's criminally underrated.  It's an album that you can chat about for hours, and it's impact is still being felt today.  Love it or hate it, this album marked the death of "The Old Kanye".  But if "808's" wasn't your cup of tea, 2010 had something special for you.  Oh what's that you ask?  Well it's only the most pristine, adventurous, over-the-top and remarkable Rap album of the decade.  Some call it 2010's "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy".  The title says it all, it's Kanye at his most egotistical and completely bonkers, but it's also incredibly well written and fearless.  On top of that, this is one of the most well produced album's you're ever going to hear, of any genre, quote me on it.  Between massive hits like "POWER" and "All Of The Lights", and hidden gems like "Gorgeous" and "So Appalled" this album has something for everyone.  Also, the guest spots here are gigantic.  Raekwon absolutely steals the show on "Gorgeous", Nicki Minaj sounds out of control on "Monster", Rick Ross drops his greatest performance probably ever on "Devil In A New Dress", and Bon Iver gives this album the human touch it needed on "Lost In The World".  Needless to say, this is my favorite Kanye album, and an album that in every way changed how I listen to Rap. Which brings me to 2013's "Yeezus". This was once again, a vast departure from everything Kanye was doing at this time.  If you haven't figured it out, Kanye loves reinventing himself.  Here, he ditched the glamorous production and solid features for an abrasive Industrial Hip-Hop album.  Now, you can argue until the cows come home on whether or not this album is more than anything a shallow attempt to sound edgy.  Which if you feel that way, trust me I get it.  But you can't deny that when this album is on, it's ON.  Whether it be the intensity of "On Sight", the hazy goodness of "Hold My Liquor", or "Blood On The Leaves" which is literally one of the best Kanye songs of ANY of his phases.  It's an intense listen that's a go-to for any work out playlist.  But Kanye was far from done.  In 2016 he released the artsy and bizarre "The Life of Pablo".  This was a truly strange album, but I couldn't get enough of it.  The days leading up to it felt like a Yeezy-Fever dream, between constantly changing the tracklist and that fashion show which still puzzles me to this day.   But the album itself was truly out there.  I mean, if anyone thought "Yeezus" was a shallow attempt to sound edgy, "The Life Of Pablo" had some truly freakish moments.  From the "Ghetto Oprah" skit, to the intense "Wolves", to the jazzy and upbeat "No More Parties in L.A.", or the absolute banger that was "Famous", this album was all over the place.  From gorgeous ballads to manic freestyles, Kanye was never once afraid to change his sound on a dime.  It's a polarizing album, but not once in 2016 could I say no to it, and it became my album of the year that year.  Well my friends, it's Yeezy season once again.  And to be honest, we really don't know anything about this new album.  And no, I'm not even addressing "Lift Yourself", we're just diving into it head on friends.

(A personal favorite of mine!)

This album starts off with “I Thought About Killing You”.  And right off the bat, let’s state the obvious.  I think I speak for literally everyone when I say that this is absolutely not what I was expecting to hear.  Kanye here is barely rapping, and for the most par is going off on rants of self hatred, suicide, and murder.  And yes, that sure does sound a whole lot like Kid Cudi’s “Speedin Bullet To Heaven”, thankfully, this is better.  And yes, this track is absolutely bizarre, but it’s also completely hypnotizing.  I mean, this is borderline career suicide.  Like, if we thought “Yeezus” and “Life of Pablo” were genuinely strange recordings, this is absolutely fucking bonkers.  But let’s get down to the nitty-gritty.  Kanye brings up a lot of really horrific thoughts that a LOT of people have had probably at one point or another.  Kanye may have made a career of saying things that no one else will, but is next level.  The production on this track is stunning, and the beat switch is actually really classy.  Whatever you thought going into this project, trust me, it’s far from that.  But it undoubtedly reels you in.  Now, of all of the tracks here, “Yikes” is the most authentic Rap tune.  Here, Kanye sounds absolutely grizzly, especially among this very nocturnal beat.  There are a lot of very current bars here, with everything from more broad bars about Russel Simmons to more personal themes like fame, friends and paparazzi.  This really is the exact opposite of what everyone was expecting.  “Yikes” is chilly, not accessible at all, and very personal.  Then we get this rant about being Bipolar at the end, with complete freakout included.  It’s bizarre, but it’s one of the most Kanye things I’ve ever heard.  But then I hear “All Mine” which features Valee and Ty Dolla $ign, and neither of them sound good.  The beat here is way too minimal for my liking, and Kanye here is at his absolute cringiest.  In cases like this, this doesn’t sound fresh or new.  This literally sounds like rejected “Life of Pablo" ideas.  It’s not edgy or artsy or wild, it’s just obnoxious.  Even some of Kanye’s more ballsy lines here don’t come off nearly as wild as he believes they are.  I’m down for Kanye at his weirdest, but this is just too much.  In general, a lot of these feature here in general do little to nothing for me.  “Wouldn’t Leave” is up next, and between Jeremih, PartyNextDoor and Ty Dolla $ign, no one adds anything.  And most importantly, none of them really sound like they belong in this atmosphere.  As far as Kanye goes, his verse here is once again very current and personal.  I mean, if you want to hear Kanye in the raw, this is him at it’s fullest.  Almost to the point where I feel like we’ve reached a new level entirely.  Here he goes into a lot of his thoughts on fame once again, and they are pretty spot on.  But while this album has seemingly endless great ideas, the presentation of this album is ghastly.  Kanye’s rants are often interesting and hypnotizing at points, but could have been presented so much better.  Not to mention, why does this sound like it was recorded last week? 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUinAyZXZA8

 Up next is “No Mistakes”, and one thing is for sure, you have to give it to the production on this album.  I can’t even begin to describe how lonely this album sounds.  It just sounds so distant constantly.  But as far as Kanye goes he sounds incredibly focused.  You have to remember this is another very short album, which seems to be a trend lately.  But it’s causing a lot of these artists to step it up, and bring their A-Game.  Which I wouldn’t say this track is per say, there’s a whole lot better tracks here.  But I think there’s still material to dig on this one.  Charlie Wilson and Kid Cudi on that hook to make this one come off so haunting and cold, and everything about this album is so surreal.  It’s hard to put in words often.  On the other hand, “Ghost Town” is an honest to God classy Hip Hop tune that sounds like a freakish alternate take of something from his “College Dropout” days.  I love the wailing guitars to this one and just how heavy and gritty everything comes off.  Kid Cudi on guest vocals here actually comes off at his most triumphant, and Kanye’s verse here is just so different.  Here, he sounds like his thoughts are legitimately clear for a few minutes, who the fuck saw that coming?  And he’s barely even rapping, he’s singing more than anything, and honestly sounding great.  And 070 Shake on that hook absolutely sounds awesome.  There’s little about this track that’s not perfect, even if this does still have that gritty demo quality.  And for a finale, “Violent Crimes” is actually much warmer and easier to take in.  We have some smooth synths and some feature vocals from John Legend and 070 Shake.   But this is also the deepest and most personal we’ve heard Kanye in years.  Like, we’ve never actually seen him or heard him so loving towards his children to be exact.  And it’s actually refreshingly sweet.  It’s got a low-key beat that doesn’t need to be flashy, and Kanye sounds laser focused once again.  It’s one of the most straightforward and easily accessible tracks here, and all around a great Kanye tune. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bywWYOzZdY

Rating: 7.3/10




Give A Listen To:  "I Thought About Killing You", "Yikes", "Ghost Town"




Least Favorite Track: "All Mine"




Genre: Hip Hop / Experimental Hip Hop / Art Rap / Minimal Hip Hop




Overall Thoughts:  Let's get a few things straight.  First off, going into this album whatever you were expecting, you're not going to find it here.  This is Kanye's most truly bizarre and seriously far out work to date.  So much so that for days I've returned to this project with no words to speak about it.  Now, 5 years from now we're not going to be talking about this album.  It's not accessible, not catchy, and is so rough around the edges it's not even funny.  The beats are minimal, and Kanye's verses often walk the line between his most personal raps to date and honest to God rants.  But 10 years from now, we may just look back at this and realize Kanye was certainly on to something.  It's not flashy, it's not pretty, it's absolutely gritty and vicious,  and incredibly hard to place.   My final thoughts are this.  There are some moments here that are incredibly introspective, and you have to give credit to Kanye for constantly speaking his mind, even though there are plenty of times where he shouldn't.  That alone warrants this a listen.  But if you're looking for a flashy, banger filled Rap album I would just pass this entirely.  But there are some certainly intriguing and genuinely freakish moments here.