At the time of this writing, much has already been said of Kanye West’s sixth studio album, Yeezus. Critics marveled at its “dark and sonically experimental” presentation. Writers celebrated its “minimalist” aesthetic and nods to early-00s Southern trap and mid-80s Chicago acid house. Some even construed its songwriting as social commentary while admiring West’s narcissism as a sort of ironic self-reflexivity.
Whatever the interpretation, Yeezus is Kanye’s sixth studio album, the follow-up to 2010’s critically polarizing My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, and the third in a string of highly ambitious releases dating back to 808s & Heartbreak in 2008. More than a dozen collaborators including Mike Dean, Daft Punk and Justin Vernon worked on Yeezus, making it a true “producer’s record.” Behind Kanye’s (still) uninspired raps are unusual samples blended with retro synths and a host of musical themes, new and old, throughout. As hip hop records go, you won’t hear another like this all year.
Unlike Kanye’s lyrics–which shift from painfully specious anti-capitalist jabbering to vacuous claims of holiness–the album carries a consistently aggressive tone. On “Blood on the Leaves,” Kanye distressingly illustrates a collapsing marriage, while on “New Slaves” he posits a fierce polemic of inequality in America. Yeezus will dazzle some with its eccentric production and Kanye’s idiotic yet provocative hubris. For others, it’s discordant chaos of sounds and themes might cause one to wonder what the man is trying to say in the first place. (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam, kanyewest.com) Harrison Samphir