After several closely monitored weeks of leaks, it’s time to take a look at the year’s most anticipated album that doesn’t feature Buckethead. Given Kanye West’s reputation for finding musical inspiration in unlikely places (be they leftfield samples or genre-bending collaborations) it’s surprising to see the superstar rapper/producer embrace such a restrictive palette. As you’ve no doubt gleaned from this and other blogs, every song on this album is built from a blueprint of TR-808 drum machine beats and conspicuous digitally manipulated crooning. It’s a departure that’s especially confounding given the prevalence of Auto-Tune abuse in countless recent hip-hop hits. Kanye knows the pitch-shifting mechanism is played out, he just doesn’t give a shit. It’s still a crutch (a more skilled singer wouldn’t rely on the gimmick) but we won’t harp on it. The absence of samples is one key difference between this concept album and the acclaimed school trilogy. The lack of pop singer guest appearances and co-producers is another (though Jeezy and Weezy make high-profile if totally unnecessary cameos, and No I.D. co-produces two songs with Kanye). Those creative choices coupled with King of Pain (T-Pain?) lyrics help define 808s as a solitary pursuit. Don’t expect any club bangers, this is more like a soundtrack for stalking ex-girlfriends on Facebook.
The album’s first single “Love Lockdown,” premiered live at the Video Music Awards in September, is a fair representation of West’s new minimalist rhythm and blues. Its formula of tweaked vocals plus piano plus retro beats sees little variation from “Amazing” to “Bad News” to the wistful “Street Lights.” In a recent interview the singer credited Phil Collins as the inspiration behind his newfound melodic sensibility, but structural and tonal similarities arise too if you reconsider the pop star’s earliest hits like “Man On The Corner” and “In The Air Tonight.” Likewise, take a look at Kanye now and there’s just an empty space. When they’re not breaking his heart, shorties are snooping on his cell (“Paranoid“) and generally turning his life into a horror movie (“RoboCop“).
Here “Welcome To Heartbreak” improves upon a leaked version that paired Cleveland rapper Kid Cudi with aggressive synths out of an eighties Nintendo game. The updated track’s new beat and more delicate instrumentation fit the sentimental lyrics, which are also sort of goofy: “My friend showed me pictures of his kids / and all I could show him were pictures of my cribs / He said his daughter got a brand new report card / all I got was a brand new sportscar.” It’s lonely at the top, and Kanye’s unfulfilled by The Good Life (he even implies that flying first class makes him feel isolated). In this way “Welcome” hints at the regrets and soul searching that have replaced Louis Vuitton luggage as the driving force behind his songwriting in 2008. Kanye’s staring down his thirties, and the implications of growing up are most clear on the bleak “Coldest Winter,” a tribute to his mother who died last year after botched cosmetic surgery of all things. It’s a smart reworking of Tears For Fears deep cut “Memories Fade” with new lyrics, and closes out 808s on a chilly march.
Less remarkable is opener “Say You Will,” in which a dreaming Kanye sings over a beeping heart monitor because he’s dying of heartbreak. Lil Wayne’s gritty but lowbrow performance in “See You In My Nightmares” is another letdown (“You think your shit don’t stink but you are Mrs. PeeUuu.” Wha?). “RoboCop” has the catchiest and only comic moments, with fat hooks fleshed out by FRESH KID Herbie Hancock and jubilant orchestration that would sound tight on a playlist with these guys. An earlier iteration that dropped the strings from the verses was far superior, though.
Every track on 808s leaked, days apart, in varying levels of clarity, from seemingly different sources. It’s as if someone was orchestrating the most pervasive, drawn out marketing plan imaginable! But Kanye insists he was only responsible for two of those bootlegs, and in linking to presumably non-sanctioned MP3s on his blog, he’s exhibiting his trademark confidence that people will pay for his music no matter what. Granted, muffled YouTube rips with constant DJ drops do not do this album justice. But they do do a fine job of showing how samey it is. While 808s doesn’t match the artistic triumph or sheer thrills of Graduation, it’s inspiring to see an artist stubbornly follow the beat of his own drum machine. Now someone please confiscate the man’s Auto-Tune.
808s & Heartbreak is out 11/24 on Roc-A-Fella / Island Def Jam.
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goddamnit kanye.
you clearly dont have any appreciation towards real music or anything beyond what you hear on the radio
this is bad
puff daddy bad
kanye can do so much better than this
you have no imagination.
You know, they said Pinkerton was a failure too.
GIVE a shit Kanye. Do the right thing.
after reading this and pitchfork’s review (yes, i read pitchfork too) of wayne’s dedication 2, i am staring to feel like some babe just broke my heart.
I say we wait.
Kanye is a perfectionist. I think they’ll be some “improvements” b4 the final album releases… I hope
If he’s still warbling with that stupid autotune, there’s nothing he can do.
just went back and read your Graduation review where you claimed “Graduation seems weaker than Late Registration,” which i hope you’ve changed your mind on, cuz i still think Registration is by far his worst album. i’m kinda nervous bout 808s but even if it turns out shitty we still got a regular album coming in the summer, right?
You guys are all nuts – this album is a completely fresh, out of left-field spin and it sounds great. The Phil Collins influences are strong and welcomed, certainly a more interesting influence than most other pop artists are drawing from these days. It’s good to hear him rap about something besides his ego and martin margiela. Beats are mostly on point, and there are some real standouts – Paranoid, Welcome to Heatbreak, Heartless, Lockdown, Robocop – once again Kanye’s left his previous work behind him and changed his whole sh*t up.
ya changed it up by jumping on the bandwagon with everyone else. what he used to do was what made him unique (and good)
and phil collins sucks, i mean come on
meanwhile other artists such as t-pain have been doing that for the past couple of years now let alone groups like roger back in the day
I got a hold of a copy of the album last night. And I’m not disappointed at all by the songs he wrote. I’m REALLY disappointed by how the finished mastering came out. Songs like Welcome to Heartbreak we’re massively powerful with just the drums and his vocals. Then they add this cheesy crap to it, and now the song loses all of its feeling. Robocop got butchered as well. Streetlights was great when first leaked, but the final version has a really weird raspiness on his voice that really takes away from the song. All in all. I’m kinda glad all these songs were leaked before the finished product came out. Because I now am going to have an 808s & Heartbreak Version 1 and Version 2. I respect what Kanye was trying to do, but sometimes less is more
i don’t think you know what ‘mastering’ means
without any critic-type-thoughts here, I am actually really enjoying this album for what it is, some good heartbreak pop. Street Lights is fantastic, and the album is a good go-along with the snow that just fell outside here.
I doubt it’ll last in listenability for years and years, but right now, I’m loving it.
I was listening to it last nite. I really like actually and Im surprised by this because I was really tired of the usage of vocoders in hip-hop at this point. But I think this is the first cohesive “album” Kanye has made, sticking to one central theme and soundscape, and from my first impression, he pulls it off well. i like it.
First cohesive album? whatever, College Dropout is amazingly cohesive and it was what made it one of the best hip hop albums i’ve ever heard
I’m sorry Stereogum. should we REALLY believe that you have the new Kanye in “Heavy Rotation”?
Roc-A-Fella/Island Def Jam are savvy marketers. And buying prime advertising real estate on indie-oriented sites seems to be a big angle to marketing what (you’re well aware) is a seriously mediocre record.
Kanye’s a huge talent, no doubt. And I’m all for artists taking left turns into different styles. But this record is disappointing and is a throwaway of his creativity.
Guess I just don’t believe that the seemingly relentless hype you’re giving it is genuine.
But nice work, Def Jam. You’ve got the indie scene believing.
Pass. He’s got another one coming out next year, so we’ll see how that pans out.
haven’t listened to any of the leaks, so except for love lockdown, every song was new. and i think this album’s great, not sure about some of the lyrics, but the production is sparse and awesome, compared to some of his overstuffed hits.
808′s & Heartbreak = Kanye’s Kid A? Discuss!
no, fuck that
The album is out 11/24, not 11/21
Everybody wants an excuse to hate Kanye West. He is arguably the most ridiculous mainstream artist working today. So this album is going to have a LOT of haters. So be it. He’ll get their support back in 2009 with his rap album. For now, those with an open mind can enjoy Kanye’s crazy futuristic vision complete with incoherent robot lyrics and pounding, innovative beats. I realize this CD is insane and alienating… and I like it anyway.
god bless auto-tune. without it, we wouldn’t have these sick melodies. you know the man can’t sing.
This is not Kid A, i hate when people make that comparison, I take it for what it is, its just another t-pain type pop album , I wouldn’t be as disappointed with Kanye if he just admitted this instead of saying how creative he is being with this cd, its the same materials that’s been played out for about 3 or 4 years, 5/10 at best.
I hope next year’s album sounds totally different. Paranoid is a good song tho
I love this album.
I honestly believe that everyone should listen to the entire thing before making a judgment. I’ve talked to quite a few people who have done 180s upon listening to the final product.
Also, this album is nothing like T-Pain, excepting the auto-tune. I love T-Pain, but this album has real emotion at it’s core and expands in so many musical directions (despite it’s 808-centered concept) I couldn’t even name them here. What a lazy comparison.
I mean, at least, with the Kid A one, I see where people are coming from- conceptually. It’s an electronic-leaning album that follows up a string of blockbusting successes with unexpected abstractness and obscurity. And it’s also a bleak, angry, deliberate response to those previous successes that threatens to alienate the fan base.
omg! you like the album?!?! i couldn’t tell when you were dropping 500 word essays discussing it’s genius in every single kanye post thus far…
just admit it, you ARE kanye.
OMG, I just youtubed Collins’ “Against All Odds” video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjt0av-GWak&feature=related. I’m gonna be singing that song all day.
Idk if the rumors about an album next summer are true, but I think it would be a mistake to abandon his new sound and go back to rapping over samples so quickly. He should do a companion piece to this a la Amnesiac or Weird Era Cont.
haha, great calls there! back to facebook…
I like it a lot because I just do. It’s not perfect, but it’s something new. And in a world of Williamsburg white-boys ripping off Talking Heads, that has a tendency to set an album apart.
This album is actually really good. I’m quite surprised. Granted, the auto tune crap is a bit annoying, but… besides that, it’s really strong. Hoorah!
I think the album is really enjoyable as well. I actually think the autotune is great for two reasons. 1) Kanye can’t sing that well, and 2) the emotionless robotic electronic vocals are very interesting contrast to the actual lyrics which are full of emotion/regret/misery/etc.
Wish the auto-tune was an auto-song writer instead. Don’t delude yourselves, this thing sucks besides “Paranoid”.
i wish kane would be more inspired by bands like justice than t-pain. not that this is bad, just not amazing i guess
maybe if they didnt steal his video prize
Thought this album was going to suck, but upon listening to it… it’s really fucking good.
it’s kind of a refreshing change from the school trilogy, what with their song/skit/song-featuring-so-and-so/skit predictibility. also has a weird unfamiliar (kanye rap-singing a pop album) meets familiar (vocoder) approach to it. so yeah, pretty good.
Okay. Paranoid, RoboCop, Street Lights. That’s about it. Everything else sounds exactly the same. Though the drums on Love Lockdown are fucking killer. This album is going to bomb, because it’s not what 75% of Kanye’s audience wants from him. But it will go down as a fairly intriguing failed experiment, a document of a superstar artist driven a little mad by his own ego. At least it’s not the fucking Fray.
Its going to piss alot of you off and i am sorry but i went into this advance with an opened mind and expecting something wonderful as Mr. West always delivers. Sadly this record isn’t the brilliant piece of art that we had all been promised and were expecting.
I appreciate his attempt at experimentation and trying to push the envelope, but using a the fuckin vocoder EVERY track and rhyming over beats that sounded like they were constructed by a 12 year old on fruity loops does not constitute art.
I can appreciate the idea and sentiment. As an artist he is more then entitled to push the limits of creativity , but this is not good music.
Sgt Pepper, Ok Computer, Bitches Brew, Pet sounds, Day Dream Nation, Mellon Collie and the infinite sadness, these were amazing bodies of work that would defy convention, fuse genres and raise the bar in terms of popular music,
I always felt Kanye was a mediocre rapper at best, but ignored that because his production was lush and goddamn can the man write a good pop song. The stripped down production really exposes the fact he isn’t a strong lyricist. The vocoder proves hes not a good singer…and the fact that hes pawning this half assed record on us proves that he thinks he is better then he really is and doesn’t respect his audience Please save your money and go buy Q-tips new record. The beats are fresh, the songs bounce, he sings….yes without the vocoder !! What a novel idea!!!
regards,
my only complaint is i the original robocop was much better, i love herbie hancock but those strings are wayyy to over the top for such a lighthearted song
I see the auto-tune as a representation of his broken state. I think it’s bold. He knows auto-tune is WAY overdone. It’s been that way since Cher used it. I totally see it as an artistic device to create the correct tone for the work. This is a late night album, not a club banger. It’s brave and refreshing to see a hip hop star reveal a kink in the armor of their ego. I imagine if you give this a chance it will become one of those go-to albums appropriate whenever you are down or just in a contemplative state, and, honestly, how often can you say that about modern r & b and hip hop?
this feels strangely fresher than his soul sample formula, and a drop in braggadocio doesn’t hurt either
Adam I completely agree with you. The autotone enhances the mood of the album. It seems as if it was used for the mood and not as cover-up of any vocal challenges.
I absolutely love ths album. I like the fact that it is artistic and abstract. So for those of you who don’t like it, maybe you should stop wanting it to be College Dropout, etc and take it for what it is: a new Kanye. His life has been changed by things that some of us have never experienced and I feel this album lets us in to only a portion of the pain he feels.
Definitely an emotion-driven album and those are always the best because of the honesty in them.
this shitty cd is fucky stupid and worthless kanye west can kiss my white ass
i think most people are missing the point. kanye is not lazy or selling out–this is a concept album. songs about heartbreak, set to robotic synths and 808 beats. by stripping down and focusing in, Kanye makes a much bigger statement than if he put out another record full of soul beats and sped-up chipmunk choruses. im sure his next record will have the complex beats and clever rhymes he made his name on, but this is a very intentional departure. he’s the biggest rapper right now and he can do whatever the hell he wants…which is exactly what he did. hat’s off to kanye for not trying to remake any previous hits hes had. this guy is overconfident, which is good news for music fans.
I think every should stop focusing on the auto-tune (because its hardly even makes a difference) and focus on the mad beats
seriously after listenimng this for a while i dont know why everyones complaining about the auto tune. It just makes his voice sound a little warbled. Its not annoying like when wayne and tpain use it…. plus all the beats are dope and paranoid and street lights are crazy
I’ve been listening to this album the whole weekend and I think it’s incredible. It should have been a rock album and not hip-hop or pop. Amazing reminds me of a electronic version of “Mama” by My Chem. Street Lights is breathtaking and somber. He should have taken more time to work on it. It’s not gonna please the mainstream but it shouldn’t either. Every artists needs their Pauls Boutique. He should really explore this new sound. It would be so easy to go back to regular Kanye but again thats not fun!!!
I prefer metal machine music to this.
He said he wanted to be Elvis. This is more like Fat Elvis. Glitz not substance.
Listened to it like four times – Paranoid is great, I don’t remember any of the other songs.
let me preface this by saying that i love kanye as an artist and think he is hilarious as a person. i avoided listening to any of the leaks from this album, watching any of the videos, or reading any blog posts because i didn’t want to spoil this one for myself.
when the opportunity finally arose, i turned everything else off, locked myself in a room, and blasted the album from start to finish. and all i came away with was the fact that this album is absolutely horrible. i appreciate him trying to push boundaries, but this is not going to get it done. this is garbage.
For those of you who bought the album, you’ll know what I’m talking about: inside there’s a foldout poster, one side is of Kanye in his grey suit, the other side is of him kissing his mother. I don’t really think this project has much to with EGO at all.
This album is sick. people are overlooking what kanyes really trying to accomplish with this album. The lyrics actually have good meaning if you listen to them. and the beats are sick as hell. overall, i love this album.
Anyone under 30 shouldn’t be allowed to listen to this album.
It’s ours. now get off my lawn.
Heard this Album last night with much reluctance. Many of the tracks seem like things that someone with a lot of equipment and no imagination does. Over produced & over worked, all the tracks feel exhausting to listen to. Hence why classic albums put out with little to no equipment have more soul. People will buy it because its Kanye West but that doesn’t mean its good. Auto-tune is killing Hip Hop!
Take a good look at me now-how-how-ow!! Their-air-air’s just an empty space!!!
No, everybody needs to see this album in a different light. Don’t look at it like a hip-hop album as much as it is like old school 1980s synthpop. If you can do that, you’ll find it’s actually pretty good. However, if you insist on measuring it against rap releases, even Kanye’s own, you’ll be disappointed.
I wish it would rai-ai-ai-ain down! I wish it would ra-ai-ai-ain down down down!!