The only thing Kanye West does better than building musical bridges is burning non-musical ones. No rap artist has intrigued me more over the past decade by so cannily blending styles and sounds in the service of hip-hop than Kanye. And no person has repulsed me so much by their incredibly high-profile temper tantrums.
"Late Registration" was the first Kanye album I anticipated prior to release. I have always wanted to love hip-hop, and Kanye was touted as a genre-bending artist of highest caliber. My interest was piqued, and the album delivered. The unstoppable Ray Charles/Jamie Foxx sample from "Gold Digger" hit me just as hard as it did everyone else in the world. "Diamonds From Sierra Leone" built upon my love of James Bond movies and Shirley Bassey's haunting theme by building an exceptional hip-hop track around it.
The problem with sampling in hip-hop, especially the sort used in "Diamonds," is that it undervalues the importance of the rap. There's no doubt I enjoyed the track as much as I did because I already enjoyed the Bassey track. Does that negate the worth of Kanye's version? I don't think so. I enjoy both versions of the song, but in a greater sense Kanye's track helped build a bridge between two disparate musical worlds. I came to the album because I liked what he did with something I was already familiar with; I stayed because I checked out everything else he was doing and found I liked it just as much.
But holy effing pancakes of Sodom the shit he has pulled in his public life. Throwing huge tantrums, making an ass out of himself over and over (and always, seemingly chastised, apologizing for his actions, only to replicate them a few months later), and basically acting like, well, an unfathomably spoiled celebrity (read: child). The kind of celebrity that makes "real people" like me fucking hate celebrities.
Most of the time, I can separate an artist's work from their life. It is how I am able to remain an ardent fan of Woody Allen, for example. But with Kanye, the weight of newsworthy jackass antics slowly but surely became commingled with my perception of his work, and began to drag the entire entity that is Kanye West down the drain of my esteem, and even my interest. By the time of 2010's multimedia corporate megablitz surrounding the release of "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy," I couldn't have cared less. The album, like everything Kanye has done, received rave reviews, but I was so over that fucking douchebag that I barely cast it a second glance.
And then I heard "Yeezus," and suddenly things got complicated. In all sincerity, the album is one of the greatest things I've ever heard (especially the brutal first half). The maniacally self-promoting braggadocio and bluster is still there, as is the sexism, racism, and classism that is the sad backbone of most hip-hop, but the spartan production makes the whole thing come across like a horrifying glimpse into the freaky brainspace of a man tormented by his genius. The words may celebrate the lifestyle, but the music makes it feel like sheer torture to actually have to live in that rarified space.
When I read track titles such as, "I Am A God," I rolled my eyes, expecting another exasperating "I speak rhymes into a microphone - worship me!" delusional rap screed. And while the track is that, it manages to be much more - almost an indictment of celebrity culture, and a tirade against the value we "real people" place on it. Could it be that Kanye West actually gets why he turns so many people off? Is there some actual introspection going on in there?
On the same track, Kanye compares himself to Michael Jackson. Meaning, I suppose, far more that he has attained the same level of fame, and not that he is disappearing down his own fantasy rabbit hole. Indeed, MJ could never touch Kanye's level of boldness. With each new release, Kanye dares you not to listen, challenges, and confronts his listeners in ways MJ never would have dared.
And that's what makes "Yeezus" so damned compelling. It's some of the most acidic, jagged, bleak music produced in any genre. My mind keeps making comparisons to Nine Inch Nails "The Downward Spiral," although "Yeezus" is a much more unexpected statement. It has a unity of sonic texture and lyrical theme that transcends popular culture and the time of its creation, and approaches the level of art. It's also highly addictive and the first album in a very long time that immediately hooked me from first listen.
Kanye West is not worthy of worship, but he is worthy of forgiveness. Maybe he really is a genius who sees the world differently than the rest of us. Or maybe he really is just a douchebag. But a damned compelling one and, once again, one of my favorite artists. My only hope for the future is that Kanye and other musicians continue to make albums this concise and uncompromising. I'm sure it won't happen, and Kanye will likely alienate me again sometime soon with his high-profile buffoonery.
But at least I'll always have "Yeezus."
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