Kanye West

[zeb]

It also kind of blew my mind when I found out Zach Hill was the producer; I'd heard so much hype about them and had no idea he was involved. Crazy.

Have you also worked out that he's the drummer?

[LoathedVermin72]

It also kind of blew my mind when I found out Zach Hill was the producer; I'd heard so much hype about them and had no idea he was involved. Crazy.

Have you also worked out that he's the drummer?

Well, by "producer," I meant "the guy who makes the music."

[The Argonaut]

It also kind of blew my mind when I found out Zach Hill was the producer; I'd heard so much hype about them and had no idea he was involved. Crazy.

Have you also worked out that he's the drummer?

Well, by "producer," I meant "the guy who makes the music."

That's not what a producer does.

[LoathedVermin72]

It also kind of blew my mind when I found out Zach Hill was the producer; I'd heard so much hype about them and had no idea he was involved. Crazy.

Have you also worked out that he's the drummer?

Well, by "producer," I meant "the guy who makes the music."

That's not what a producer does.

shut up, argo

[Orpheus]

So, Nate, I listened to Death Grips, Kendrick Lamar, and Danny Brown. You are out of your mind if you think that shit even approaches MBDTF or Yeezus. Kanye has radicalized the hip-hop aesthetic for me; Lamar and Brown are still stuck in the mire.

I enjoyed XXX for what it was, but I didn't hear anything innovative.

While I appreciate how Lamar is trying to construct a narrative, I found a lot of the ghetto sentiments to be tired and uninsightful. Yes, it's an era-appropriate progression from Straight Outta Compton and The Chronic, but I found Lamar's insertion of Christianity to be annoying; that's not a solution. Kanye ties his faith into his artistry and his own personal needs and doesn't proselytize; Lamar seems to apply it as some kind of answer to social problems. On top of that, holy fuck do I find his voice and sound obnoxious. Like, close to Lil Wayne-level annoying. This was made especially apparent upon hearing Dr. Dre blow him away on the closer. "Swimming Pools" was good, though.

I fully admit this is merely a first impression that may improve upon further listening. But, again, not even close to what Kanye is doing. I mean, even on simply a musical level, I can't imagine anyone trying to argue with a straight face that anything on either XXX or GKMC sounds as luminous, ecstatic, and exciting as "Dark Fantasy", "Power", or "Runaway".

I did like The Money Store quite a bit, but I don't think the comparisons to Yeezus are apt, let alone to point of that album ripping this one off. Sure, both albums have dark, industrial soundscapes, but this album is very dense, busy, raw, and layered sonically, while Yeezus is the complete opposite - totally minimal and polished, stripped of every sound that isn't absolutely necessary, which is what makes its sound so special and unique. Not to mention that you can already hear the roots of that sound taking shape underneath the ornate surface layers of songs like "So Appalled" and "Hell of a Life".

But anyway, I did like it. "I've Seen Footage" is a fucking jam. Not sure why I put off listening to these guys for so long. It also kind of blew my mind when I found out Zach Hill was the producer; I'd heard so much hype about them and had no idea he was involved. Crazy.

I appreciate you trying this stuff out. I'm completely of the opposite opinion in terms of pretty much everything you said (including laughing out loud at a few things, like Dre besting Kendrick. IIRC, Dre still doesn't write any of his lyrics so that's probably Kendrick's verse, but ok). Kanye is just very emperor's new clothes for me. I see you and other people expound at length on his music and then listen to it and I'm just like "really?" Your impression of Danny and Kendrick is mostly how I feel about him. At the end of the day I'm just left a little cold, whereas the other guys totally feed my soul in a major way. But once again, I appreciate the effort. Fuckin art, man.

[Orpheus]

And I'd give another look to songs like "30" and "Good Kid" and if you don't find them absolutely incredible, nothing could really explain the gap in how we see things more. Cause both of those songs are fucking genius and IMO Kanye has never made anything that good. But that's just, like, my opinion, man.

[LoathedVermin72]

For what it's worth, I was listening to the Lamar album again today and I was definitely digging it a lot more (his voice wasn't really bugging me anymore). It might just need some time to grow on me. Again, still no Kanye, but yeah. Opinions and all.

[Kevin Davis]

"Good Kid" is an incredible track.

[i got bugs]

Is there a new kendrick that leaked??

[digster]

It's on sale a week early on itunes. It's also on spotify. It's really good so far.

[Kevin Davis]

I listened to "College Dropout" earlier tonight -- after seeing him make a buffoon of himself at various televised awards shows and marry/sire a child with a high-profile tabloid socialite, Kanye sounds endearingly like a dork rapping about his job at the mall and doing all those dopey skits about college. He has certainly come a long way for the better, but this album felt bold and intelligent when it came out, and in some ways it still does -- if nothing else it's enjoyable to listen back and remember what it was like when a megacelebrity still felt like an underdog.

[E.H. Ruddock]

I wish there was a Boogie Down Productions thread this long.

[Alex]

I wish there was a Boogie Down Productions thread this long.

CHRIS-One

[tommymtcom]

I wish there was a Boogie Down Productions thread this long.

You could just change the title of this thread.

[Alex]

I wish there was a Boogie Down Productions thread this long.

You could just change the title of this thread.

what's your favorite solo krs-one song?

[tommymtcom]

I wish there was a Boogie Down Productions thread this long.

You could just change the title of this thread.

what's your favorite solo krs-one song?

The one with the bongos.

[E.H. Ruddock]

I wish there was a Boogie Down Productions thread this long.

You could just change the title of this thread.

what's your favorite solo krs-one song?

R.E.A.L.I.T.Y.

[E.H. Ruddock]

But really it doesn't get much better than this.

[Alex]

RIP scott la rock

[Orpheus]

Is there a new kendrick that leaked??

There is and it's so fucking good.