Album Review: Kanye West - Yeezus

Kanye West
Yeezus
Rating: Grrrr

Despite Kanye West being one of the most controversial and egotistical artists of his generation, there truly is no denying that he is also one of the most brilliant producers out there, backing up his boldest statements and eccentricities with jaw-dropping backing tracks, never satisfied to do the expected. Following up his masterpiece My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy would be no easy task, and instead of repeating the maximalist tendencies of that record, he has changed directions entirely, moving back to the rigid structures of 808's & Heartbreak, making his harshest, most in your face record yet. It sounds like Kanye has been listening to acts like Death Grips, Nine Inch Nails, and Marilyn Manson for inspiration, and has practically made a proto-punk/industrial record. Beats are harsh and unforgiving while synths frequently are used aggressively and atonally. And once again, Kanye is definitely on his soapbox again, both politically and personally. It seems even being married and having a child has not tempered his views on relationships, seeing them as still rife with betrayal and negativity. While My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy kept to a consistent thematic conceit, here, Yeezus' whiplash changes in tone and viewpoint are frequently jarring which keeps it from reaching the high that was achieved with that landmark record.

With that said, however, Yeezus is still a breathtaking record. Opening with the Daft Punk assisted "On Sight," the album blazes forth with clattering drum programming and acid house synths that are a far cry from Daft Punk's Steely Dan-tinged new record, showing an edge that has been missing from them for awhile. Kanye spits his verses out with as much venom as possible.



Yeezus contains his harshest backing tracks ever, frequently going into speaker damaging territory, not afraid to be ugly or confrontational. From the air raid siren cacophony of "Send It Up,"



the dark electro of "I Am A God,"



or the rumbling, trap influenced "I'm In It," these tracks are fearless and intense.

Often, Kanye's vitriol meets up perfectly with his all out sonic assault. "Black Skinhead," which appears to draw influence from both Marilyn Manson and The Timelords, is another Daft Punk assisted track that bangs and clatters with breathless percussion, low synth rumbles, and Kanye commenting on race and modern culture, spitting out verses like "They see a black man with a white woman/At the top floor they gone come to kill King Kong."



"New Slaves" attacks racism, corporate consumerism, and the prison system with bile and venom, as the backing track moves from stark electronic dissonance into an outlandish, over-the-top finale.



There are a couple of missteps on Yeezus that keep it out of the running for another Kanye masterpiece. His puzzling use of Nina Simone's anti-lynching poem "Strange Fruit" to back his divorce tale "Blood On The Leaves" is out of place, and quite frankly insulting,



while closing track "Bound 2" appears to be his one concession at a radio-friendly hit that just feels completely out of place within the confines of this dark and haunted record.



Sonically, Yeezus is a marvel of aggression and harshness, perhaps one of the most anti-pop records ever released from a major artist. While on person level I find a lot of what Kanye does and says abhorrent, I have to give him respect for never doing the same thing twice and always going for broke with his music. I don't think you can ever say Kanye phones it in. While I can't put it on the same shelf as My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, a couple of rungs below it is still high praise.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and piques one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.

Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Kanye West
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Rating: Chilfos

Yes, Kanye West is a world class douchebag and jackass, as he seems to prove over and over again, and yet, as much as I want to dislike him and discard him, he keeps putting out amazing music. His latest album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, is no exception. Taking it's emotional cue from his previous album 808s and Heartbreaks, the album still finds West mired in his own fragile mental state, but instead of the limited auto-tuned palatte of 808s, he broadens the canvas to extreme widescreen, putting all of his baggage out for the world to sift through.

After a year of troubles following his ridiculous outburst during Taylor Swift's acceptance speech at the VMAs, West retreated within the studio trying to figure out why he was universally despised after his actions. Most mainstream artists would have gone on a public relations offensive in an attempt to salvage their reputations and get back within the public's good graces. Kanye, however, used the experience to confront his demons and to reveal those inner workings in his music. Dark's 13 tracks are an amazing portal into the creative process.

First song, "Dark Fantasy," sets the tone quickly with a wicked intro from Nicki Minaj, and jumps deep within Kanye's head:

"Sorry for the night demons that still visit me
The plan was to drink until the pain over
But what's worse, the pain or the hangover?"



Throughout Dark, Kanye keeps returning to his perception in the music industry and his attempts to control his image, and his final realization that it's not up for him to control, and that he has to be who he is, whether that is popular or not. In "Power" he raps

"Now I embody every characteristic of the egotistic
He know, he so, fucking gifted
I just needed time alone, with my own thoughts
Got treasures in my mind, but couldn't open up my own vault
My childlike creativity, purity and honesty
Is honestly being prodded by these grown thoughts
Reality is catchin up with me
Takin my inner child, I'm fighting for custody
With these responsibilities that they entrusted me"



In one of the centerpieces of the album, "All of the Lights," West puts all of his deficiences under the microscope:

"Turn up the lights in here, baby
Extra bright, I want y'all to see this
Turn up the lights in here, baby
You know what I need, want you to see everything
Want you to see all of the lights"



Featuring almost 42 people backing him on the track, it never feels overstuffed, even with the martial drumming and horns, everything is perfectly in sync, showing West is still one of the most in control producers in the industry today. He creates a slamming bass track in "Monster," featuring Bon Iver, Rick Ross, Jay-Z, and and almost track stealing rap from Nicki Minaj, who could have used more tracks like this on her own debut.



The production throughout is just jaw-dropping in its complexity and ability to perfectly fit the mood and emotion of each track, and also to fit the breadth and mood of the album as a whole. From the haunted strings of "So Appalled" where he ends up relishing his perception as villan:

"All of y'all can suck my balls through my draws
Dark Knight feeling, die you be a hero
Or live long enough to see yourself become a villain
I went from the favorite to the most-hated
But would you rather be underpaid or overrated?"



or "Runaway" which begins with the loneliest piano notes and ends with a dense, almost Robert Frippian vocoder solo, with Kanye taking his own shortcomings and turning it into a universal call for understanding:



to "Blame Game," with the beautiful piano sample of Aphex Twin providing a suitable frame for this lament to relationships gone bad:



Dark is the sound of a major artist wrestling with his demons and letting the world watch. Each track is a window into West's head, seeing the good and the bad, and him arranging the mess into art. In this age of artists trying to be so in control of how they are seen and perceived, it is refreshing to see someone let down those walls, saying take me for what I am, warts and all. True art is always about naked, raw emotion. You can't get that from having your music made by committee. As far as I am concerned, Kanye can remain being the jackass he is, as long as he continues to make music as brilliant as this.

Rating Guide

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top albums of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and peaks one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been trimmed or polished.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.