While My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy itself is not as untraditionally hip-hop as Kanye’s last album, 808s and Heartbreaks, it is still unconventional. Genres are interlaced within songs, ranging from operatic-like vocal melodies to dingy guitar rock to West’s familiar use of song-sampling. His rhymes are still fierce, and he knows it; at one point he calls himself the “Lebron of rap” (which can be construed several ways). In that regard, it is an escalation of what listeners have come to expect since Graduation. But enough of the analysis, let’s get to the meat of the album.
From the beginning, Kanye takes more control as a composer rather than a central actor in his own album, evidenced by the sheer number of guest artists. Alicia Keys, Rihanna, Jay-Z, Kid Cudi, Nicki Minaj and Bon Iver are all featured in at least one track each, with some appearing in up to three. It is this collaborative effort that makes the album shine, as each new voice adds to the experience rather than distracts; Nicki Minaj in particular does a great job adding a verse to the track “Monster.” It is a nice contrast with 808s, where Kanye’s voice was, for better or worse, the predominant presence throughout each track. That is not to say that Kanye lacks a voice on Fantasy; if anything, his limited presence draws the listener in even closer.
By now, everyone is aware of the impact Hurricane West has had on the media in the past few years; he called President Bush a racist, interrupted several music award shows to rant about one thing or another and started a tremendously popular Twitter account. These moments have not been lost on West, as this album seems to be his most self-conscious one yet. He laments past relationships (“Blame Game”, “Runaway”), acknowledges his status as an asshole (“Monster”) and expresses a need to change something in his life (“Hell of a Life”, “Lost in the World”). But what the hell? Part of Kanye’s appeal has always been his habit of being arrogant and brazen, doing and saying whatever he wanted and then apologizing in an all caps letter later on. Following this pattern, it may be that this album is his apology letter; he’s already spent enough time hating and complaining on his past albums, and now he’s taking an opportunity to think and reflect.
That is not to say that Kanye is insecure after years of backlash and insults. The musical composition of the album shows he’s at the highest level of creativity and confidence in his career. Each track is a sweeping epic, creating unique landscapes that build and change. This shows in the length of the tracks; eight of the thirteen tracks are over five minutes long, and not a minute is repetitious. One of the stand-out moments is in the nine minute “Runaway,” in which an auto-tuned vocal solo takes up the last few minutes of the song. I dare you to find another song that manages to even attempt that, let alone succeed as West does.
Overall, Fantasy is an ambitious continuation of Kanye’s tried and true sound, pushing him from a rapper to a bonafide artist. Hell of a life, Mr. West. •
Stand-out tracks:
-”All of the Lights”
-”Monster”
-”Devil in a New Dress”
