'Which Kanye are we going to get', pretty much what every fan has been saying. But he is someone who blows my mind every time he is mentioned, always got something to say and doesn't mind being in the spotlight one bit; Kanye West, with Jesus Is King. Only just under a year since his last 2 records which were phenomenal and some of his best piece of music. He seems to have found his feet and i felt this way 10 years ago but he always finds a way to expand his creativity. Forever looking for something different and that is something I have to respect.
This
gospel album is a different direction in his career. Definitely not what we
expected as he never spoke about these topics in depth before and as a person
who isn't very educated in this subject it was interesting to see what he had
to say. However, he didn't say much. Like I said before we don't know which one
we are going to get, the lyrical Ye or the one who has catchy auto tune hooks
but innovative instrumentals. To be honest it is a bit of both. Some of these
tracks felt like a Graduation song but some sounded like something new. For
example, I love 'Follow God' which is sampling Whole Truth’s 1974 track, “Can
You Lose By Following God" and is reminiscent of a previous track by Kanye
West and Kid Cudi "Father Stretch My Hands, Pt. 1" in which he
describes an argument he had with a girl he loves but eventually realises all
that does matter is waking up next to her every morning and he is also
expressing a desire to submit to God’s will despite his own pride. But the
sample is produced in a Kanye fashion where he repeats it after every bar. It
creates a fast pace track along with the bass.
The first
2 tracks on this record uses a choir which once again is creative and also ties
to the gospel theme very well. Aiming to give a sense of chills. He also
incorporates very hard hitting drums to show he's trying to express his
feelings to god. In terms of production he isn't disappointing at all across
this record. But I’m struggling to find his other side, the lyrical side. Lupe
Fiasco for example has expressed similar emotions across some of his piece of
work and the detail he describes, squeezing in double entendre and not just
simple corny techniques and wordplay which Kanye uses in this album, for
example he says 'push your buttons like typewrite' which plays on the
expression of pushing someone’s buttons (annoyance) and in my eyes it's very
simple and lame. He also has a lack of lyrics across his songs and for a person
who is known for his interesting lyrics, it’s just not enough especially for a
small album and a gospel album.
Although
he makes up for some of the bad choices with good features such as the
legendary ‘Clipse’ and he could've just got one of the rappers but decided to
bring them back together on the track and they stole the show, they shown Kanye
how to say little but with a big mouth. Although this doesn’t shadow away from
the exceptional chorus which does sound like classic YE with his melody riding
the beat so well and the mixing is just perfect.
After
several listens to the album there were some songs which never grew on me and I
actually began to dislike them even more. But there were a small bunch which
were playlist worthy and if they are that good then he has done something
right, right? This isn't his best piece of work and I am a little disappointed
to not come away from and thinking about will it be in the conversation of his
classics. It's far from that but it was worth the listen and I’m excited as
always to listen to whatever he has next to release.
Rating: 5/10
Fav Tracks: Follow God, Use This Gospel
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