This is a biased review, straight up. To think otherwise would be foolish. The fact is, I really like Kanye West. Personal dickheadedness aside (though if you heard Taylor Swift attempt that duet with the great Stevie Nicks you would have stood up and applauded his award show outburst), Ye writes amazing music. People, probably the same hating on Tiger Woods for things completely unrelated to the reason they loved him in the first place, front about how Kanye is whack and rocks polos and samples other people’s music and you are more than welcome to argue the merits and drawbacks to his personal choices but one fact remains: Kanye makes jams.
Irrespective of personal feelings on the subject, as alluded to above, this is in fact a review. To call an album “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” is making a statement. To do so and drop an album that is exactly that, a trip into the mind of a maven, exploring what exactly makes Kanye tick, is a match to the powder keg of popular music. Some will scoff that this album represents another egotistical expedition through the contents of Kanye’s mind, but honestly, what else could you possibly want from a man so obviously invested in his own mental world? The guy is an expert at being himself, what better than letting him run around the scarier parts of his mind for an hour and nine minutes? Let the experts do what they’re good at. In Mr. West’s case that means being Ye at all costs.
At first listen the album represents a sonic departure from his previous efforts. I know there are some of you who immediately recall the sparce and somewhat psychedelic autotuned atmosphere of 808’s and Heartbreaks, but let me assure you, this record is nothing like 808’s. MBDTF is a Zeppelin meets Queen meets pure Kanye hip hop epic. This album is made to sound as huge as possible, and not huge in the overhyped bass and lower midrange that most hip hop albums rely on to sound big—this album is operatic. Large scale orchestrations, stacked vocal harmonies, and emotional fire create what feels like a fist in the teeth of the Hot 100. In MBDTF he explores the contents of the darker parts of his psyche in such an organic and fluid manner that people may fail to realize the gravity of his memes. Mining material from his much publicized personal life, analysis of his self-image, and the usual fascination with fat booties, Kanye merges the three seamlessly, hopping between lines with a deftness hinted at on his previous releases, but perfected on MBDTF.
Sonically, the album is a lot dirtier than anything Kanye has put out. I’m not talking about x-rated lyricism (though there is no shortage, “Have you ever had sex with a Pharaoh? I’ll put the pussy in a sarcophagus.”) but instead, Ye’s use of distortion. Though his former albums all possessed the typical scratches and pops of sampled vinyl, this album is laced with harmonic overtones as a vast majority of the tracks are saturated in buttery distortion. In stark contrast to the relatively clean production of 808’s, MBDTF sounds like a classic rock record. The distortion provides a cohesion reminiscent of the days of records recorded entirely on 2″ tape, allowing tracks an amount of bleed and sonic overlap that only adds to the album’s epic feel. It sounds like the album was recorded with all the instruments in one room, with little attention paid to sound isolation, giving it a classic and almost live feel that is literally unheard in hip hop.
The best part about MBDTF, though, is the fact that Kanye shows no signs of resting on his laurels. He could have easily taken the criticism he received for 808’s and churned out another Graduation album, but thankfully he isn’t that kind of artist. Instead, he pushed things even further, exploring new territory for himself as well as hip hop as a genre. There has never been an album that sounds quite like MBDTF, and there won’t be again, because Kanye will take things in another direction, driving his music and himself toward the creation of a new sound. As Ye himself said, “I’m not saying I’m the best, I’m just saying it’s a goal of mine, and anybody who tries to knock my goals can eat shit.” The guy isn’t going to stop pushing, and even if you can’t appreciate the music on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, you can’t knock the hustle.
therealkfish 