Kanye West

808's & Heartbreak

'808' refers to a type of auto tune voice distorter.

'Heartbreak' refers to the recent events of loss in Kanye West's life.

Put them together and you have a record closer to Phil Collins','Face Value' than any other auto tune rap cd.

I mean this as a good thing.There was a reason Phil Collins music was played to death:Everybody liked it.

There is no doubt about it,Mr.West is a unique wordsmith.On,'808' Kanye weaves a tapestry as fine as smoke yet strong as leather;simple yet poignant;brilliant yet open and honest.

While,'Heartless' is the hit it deserves to be,my favorite song is,'Amazing'(with fellow Rap Packer Young Jeezy).What makes this song so amazing is the slight use of Jeezy to just a few 'Humpfs' during the beginning and suddenly it is a rappers delight then back again.Now,something of this song reminds me of The Gorillaz,'Clint Eastwood',but that something 'adds' to the hear jammin' -not subtracts from it.Best lyric of the cd,"I'm the only thing I'm afraid of"...Damn straight.

'Love Lockdown' is a typical pop tune.It shouldn't work,yet it does.

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On a personal note,during the winter,I plow snow for the state.'It's 4am and I can't sleep,' is the story of my life.'If spring can take the snow away...' is also my hope.Yes,I realize this song is about sorrow and lost and,yes,even hope...but,'Coldest Winter',is a prime example how Kanye West's very personal lyrics can be translated onto the clipboard of other people's personal lives quite nicely.

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'Robocop' is a very funny song.With lyrics like,'Turned my life into Stephen Kings..' and ....'You're like the girl from 'Misery'.I just had to laugh...yet...maybe it is just me...but I get the hint that Kanye,perhaps,thinks that he created the monster,and that she is the way she is deservingly so.The coda(many songs on this cd have codas),'You're just an L.A. girl,' seems to be a rebuttal to this type of thinking...yet,I still think it.

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That is what I like about this whole recording,it gets into your mind.It gets you thinking about your own life and set of problems.

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Very entertaining...and more!

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