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<\/p>\nANNIVERSARY SPECIAL<\/p>\n
\u00a0 <\/p>\n
For this issue of “Hannah and Matt on Music,” we wanted to bring on fellow music enthusiasts to look at Kanye West’s classic album\u00a0My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy<\/em>. This mega-piece has garnered definite mixed responses of the album from our contributors, but what is Mr. West if not extremely controversial? Thank you to everyone that helped out with this piece, and I hope you all enjoy!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Review by Jordan Cohan<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 I guess I should preface this with an important piece of information – the most I’ve listened to Rap\/Hip-Hop is Eminem and \u2018Hamilton\u2019. Take all of this with a grain of salt.<\/p>\n That said, the 10 year anniversary of “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” by Kanye West gave me a reason to step outside my musical comfort zone. Going into this album, I had little-to-no expectations. I remember listening to “Lift Yourself” a few years back and thinking, ‘I will never listen to Kanye again’. I used to be – and sometimes still can be very judgmental when it comes to music. I am eager to listen to new things, but let my opinions of an artist or a genre be made by one song I dislike. Hell, I actively avoided pop music for the better part of 5 years after I heard the song “Rude Boy” by Rihanna. I hated it. It wasn’t until I went to college that I finally started listening outside my bubble of comfortability – and even then it wasn’t willingly. But I digress.<\/p>\n I listened to this album while running, so I was really focusing on the melodies, the lyrics, the instrumentals – pretty much anything but the fact that I was running. On first listen, I must admit, I was pleasantly surprised! I liked it a lot more than I anticipated. \u201cDark Fantasy\u201d was a fantastic introduction – a REAL introduction to Kanye for me. The earworm of a chorus had me fighting the urge to sing along. The instrumental for \u201cGorgeous\u201d fit perfectly with the lyrics – which still have plenty of cultural relevance today. \u201cPower\u201d was a great pump up song, and is definitely going in my work-out playlist. \u201cAll Of The Lights\u201d was probably the stand out track from this album. Despite having a more dance\/club feel driven by the drum track, I really enjoyed this song! I\u2019m surprised this wasn\u2019t a bigger song. Maybe it was a bigger song, and I just missed it, still being mad at Rihanna for \u201cRude Boy\u201d. As I\u2019m writing this, though, I find it difficult moving on to the next track. Paired with a perfect interlude, \u201cAll of the Lights\u201d is a great song that I will most certainly be returning to.<\/p>\n If I\u2019m being honest, \u201cMonster\u201d didn\u2019t do much for me. My favorite part of this song was Nicki Minaj\u2019s verse – and I\u2019m not typically a Nicki Minaj fan. \u201cSo Appalled\u201d felt like a filler track to me – but since I don\u2019t know much about the genre, who knows! Maybe it\u2019s a hidden gem to some. \u201cDevil In A New Dress\u201d had a fun instrumental breakdown section around the three minute mark that I really enjoyed.<\/p>\n The intro on \u201cRunaway\u201d piqued my interest very much while I was running (I wasn\u2019t looking at song names at the time so I didn\u2019t see any irony in that but I do now). Maybe it was the fact that the piano keys were slightly out of tune, maybe it was the overtones you could hear in the background every time the higher keys were hit – whatever it was, I was in. I was captivated. The lyrics were interesting, to say the least. The melody on the line \u201cYou been putting up with my shit for way too long\u201d, I\u2019m not sure why, but that melody got stuck in my head. This was probably my second favorite on the album. Immediately followed by another good song, \u201cHell Of A Life\u201d. I think it was the instrumental that did it for me on this one. The lyrics – meh. The melody of the chorus, as reminiscent as they are of Black Sabbath\u2019s \u201cIron Man\u201d, didn\u2019t do much for me. This is the kind of song I could listen to, ignore everything he is saying, and still enjoy it.<\/p>\n \u201cBlame Game\u201d stands out from the others in a lyrical and musical sense. Maybe because, other than the random Elton John vocals on \u201cAll of the Lights\u201d, John Legend is the most\u2026 I guess out there?… when it comes to features on this album. Him and Kanye – very different musical styles. The piano is very pretty on this one. \u201cLost In The World\u201d does some very interesting vocal things. The harmonies are very unique, and made me stop and listen for a bit. I know it\u2019s an artistic choice to have all the vocals to not line up exactly, but that kind of took me out of the listening experience. But that\u2019s just me. I\u2019m sure for some people, the fact that it\u2019s not all perfectly lined up makes it feel more real. To each their own, right? \u201cWho Will Survive In America\u201d is again, a song with plenty of cultural relevance in today\u2019s world, and a great way to close the album.<\/p>\n To say I was pleasantly surprised when listening to this album would truly be an understatement. I went in expecting to loathe this experience, and I am so glad I\u2019m walking away with a better understanding of Kanye West as a musician. I\u2019m glad this is the album that is helping me understand and appreciate Hip-Hop and Rap a little bit better – even if it is 10 years late. Better late than never, right?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy<\/strong><\/em> – Sexuality and Spirituality<\/strong> \u00a0 \u00a0 Not much needs to be said about MBDTF. It\u2019s iconic for its grand scale production, incredible songs, and not to mention: <\/span>it\u2019s album cover<\/span><\/i> (the REAL album cover). Often heralded as “peak Kanye” material, there\u2019s no shortage of discussion online about this masterful album, and absolutely no shortage of praise for the song “<\/span>Runaway,”<\/span> as well. My favorite song though, is “<\/span>Devil in a New Dress<\/span>,” but my reasons why have changed after my most recent listen. Originally, it was purely because of the beat. It\u2019s sensual, cool as fuck, and I feel like the hottest shit to ever grace the planet while listening to it; but upon listening to the whole album again for this article, I found a new appreciation as it is the pinnacle of what I believe is a central recurring theme of MBDTF: spirituality and sexuality. These two seemingly opposite things form a major part of Kanye\u2019s introspection on the concept of fame; the beauty of the human spirit, and the dark and twisted aspects of lust and sexuality. Lust does not have to apply just for sex, but could also apply for the desire for external pleasures brought with fame.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 The contrast between these two become intertwined throughout the album, and are fully connected in this song. It\u2019s strange to hear religious quotes to refer to \u2018sinful acts\u2019, but its usage creates something else entirely, something more complex. In “Hell of a Life,”<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>this is blatantly mentioned with, \u2018pussy and religion is all I need\u2019. The results of these connections are hard to fully explain, at least for me, but it poses a lot of questions, and sometimes posing the question is more powerful than the answer itself. That, in fact, encapsulates my feelings on the album as a whole: How does this album manage to be incredibly thoughtful and extremely shallow at the same time? I don\u2019t really want to figure it out, I just like the question.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 On an entirely different note, my favorite line is not from this song, but from “Monster”<\/span>:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cHave you ever had sex with a Pharoah?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n ahh<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n I put the pussy in a sarcophagus.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Review by Evan Frew<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0I just want to put on the record that I am writing this while listening to MBDTF. Admittedly, it has been a while since I listen to the album in full. However, I do recall my first exposure to the album. Before it was released (And when I was an avid watcher of MTV because it was the\u2026 Cool\u2026 thing to do back in my middle school) I remember Kanye debuting “<\/span>Runaway” <\/span>at the 2010 MTV VMA awards. I didn\u2019t see the award show the year before but that was the one where he called Taylor Swift out. There was a lot of publicity surrounding his performance, whether or not it would hurt his career or not because of the previous award show. I remember seeing it and being blown away. The music I predominately listened to at the time was classic rock and my knowledge of hip hop and rap was very small. I had an idea of what that genre should sound like, at the time, but this was something different. Something unique and intriguing. My family wasn\u2019t big on the performance but I was fan and wanted more. I bought the digital single and was talking to my friends about what we saw\/heard. My first real listen to the album occurred around the following December\/January and it gave me not only a better understanding of the genre but a new appreciation for Kanye. At that time, I only understood him to be the guy who hijacked Taylor\u2019s speech and the musician behind “Stronger”<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>and “<\/span>Gold Digger<\/span>.” <\/span><\/i>Later on, I heard more of his work after I heard MBDTF and I can conclude that this album took his career to a whole new level. It is genius and beautiful. A classic that will stand the test of time. It feels odd to hear that this album will be turning ten.\u00a0 It feels timeless to me, despite it being released when I was in middle school. I look forward to re-listening to this album with the years I have left. To end this commentary on the album in the most clich\u00e9 way possible\u2026 Let\u2019s have a toast to the douchebags\u2026 And enjoy your birthday!<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Review by Dustin Herrera<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 First off, thank you to Matt for asking me to write a review for his blog. Second off, I\u2019m so happy that we were reviewing Kanye West\u2019s seminal classic \u201cMy Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy\u201d. Personal lives aside and only focusing on his work, Kanye West, in my eyes, is a musical genius. A modern marvel of the music industry and his 2010 album is all the evidence needed to prove my point. The first half of the album has Kanye play his typical \u201cmachismo\u201d type character where all the glitz and glamour of the rap lifestyle is on show. But just like the real world, we start to understand just how hard it actually is to understand this lifestyle. When \u201cDark Fantasy\u201d starts, it\u2019s apparent the Mr. Braggadocio type of Kanye is in effect. His life is perfect. The lyrics show it. \u201cCan we get much higher.\u201d I don\u2019t know, can he? From what we see, he is a famous rapper who\u2019s made millions off of his creations. That\u2019s the dream ain\u2019t it. Well this song is letting you know it ain\u2019t all peaches and cream. But it\u2019s not the appropriate time yet for that conversation. You can\u2019t let us mortal people hear you complain. Because let\u2019s be honest, we take rich celebrities complaining with a grain of salt, so let\u2019s move ahead. And we move on to quite possible the greatest three song sequence in an album.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u201cPower! Hey hey!\u201d Now this song is where we snap back to the fantasy, Kanye is at the top of the world. You can\u2019t say anything that can convince him he isn\u2019t the king of the world. He has so much… well, power. But Kanye already showed his hand. We know it\u2019s not as simple as him declaring himself king. This is where the album takes it\u2019s next turn. \u201cAll Of The Lights (Interlude)\u201d. There\u2019s not much I can say. I just want you to listen to it if you haven\u2019t before. What do you hear and how does it make you feel? Because it definitely doesn\u2019t have the same energy as \u201cPower\u201d had. Something is off. But what? Can it be that Kanye is growing tired of the lifestyle? Sick of all of the lights? But as soon as you think that, \u201cI shoot the lights out. Hide \u2018til it\u2019s bright out.\u201d The song aptly titled \u201cMonster\u201d again demonstrates the battle of conflicting mentalities. At first the lyrics in the album were fairly positive, acknowledging that there are some problems with the celeb lifestyle but still deciding to not fully bring it to light, as he was starting to in the beginning. So instead, he shoots the lights out and hides the realities of this life in the dark. We hear Kanye and 3 rapper friends of his who also live the same lifestyle bask in their success for one last time. Letting us know he is the shit by telling us that his \u201cpresence is a present, kiss my ass\u201d. But guess what, remember that battle of good and bad we spoke about earlier. Guess what his next track is about. The title is \u201cSo Appalled\u201d so i\u2019ll let you figure it out. Let\u2019s move on to \u201cDevil In a New Dress.\u201d This song deserves a chef\u2019s kiss of a reaction. The flow and swagger of the lyrics is only somehow outdone by a career-best Rick Ross verse. Here we see the first sequential track on the album that doesn\u2019t have an opposite theme to the previous song. The idea of remorse and change is starting to stick. \u201cI ordered the jerk, she said you are what you eat. You see I always loved that sense of humor, but tonight you should\u2019ve seen how quiet the room was.\u201d And there it is. Kanye realizing what the public thinks of him always. He\u2019s a jerk. If this was \u201cPower\u201d Kanye he\u2019d probably tell her to \u201ckiss my whole ass\u201d but no. Here we see him be so struck by what this woman said that he can\u2019t even laugh about it. Now I didn\u2019t check in with Matt, but I’m ending this review here on \u201cRunaway.\u201d For me this should have been the ending of the album. A behemoth of a track with heavy duty star power, this song is literally perfect. This song strips away every single hint of glamour he spoke about on the album, and simply tells the listeners to… run away. To not idolize this lifestyle. This fantasy isn\u2019t what you think. Why would you want this life Kanye asks. It\u2019s not a dream one should strive for. It\u2019s merely a beautiful, dark and twisted fantasy.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Review by Kyle Licht<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 I\u2019ve always been disdainful of Kanye West, since I was typically never a fan of hip hop and because I\u2019m a huge King Crimson fan and many other fans hate him for using \u201c21st Century Schizoid Man\u201d. But, after Matt\u2019s persistence and my pride swallowing, I decided to listen to it. I was pleasantly surprised by the album. I have a huge thing for progressive music and concept albums. And this album is a prog rap opera. You don\u2019t hear those very often. The progressive elements are certainly present with the Crimson sample, 9-minute songs, interludes, and the great focus on masterful production. Each song is specifically crafted and carries the weight of a theatrical production in each. Matt described this album perfectly as maximalist. While I typically like minimalistic albums, there\u2019s something about the maximum energy and absolute over the top production that is so entertaining.<\/p>\n Overall, it\u2019s a tremendous album that deserves a re-listen and more intense focus on the story, lyrics, and connection of the tracks into the prog rap opera it is.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Review by Hannah Luterek<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 If anyone misses the old Kanye, it\u2019s me. <\/span>My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy <\/span><\/i>is the pinnacle of Kanye\u2019s career, and I think this is the album most people refer to when they say, \u201che used to be so good!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 Regardless of how Mr. West presents himself now, there\u2019s no denying MBDTF is a masterpiece in its own right. In the decade since it\u2019s been released, I can see how it has served as a point of influence and inspiration for modern rappers. West pushed the envelope with an eclectic mix of instrumentals, features from other big-name artists (even Bon Iver, which is especially impressive to me), and raw verses.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 The album immediately hooks listeners with an intro from Nicki Minaj and consistently impresses. MBDTF shouldn\u2019t be regarded only for \u201cPOWER\u201d and \u201cAll Of The Lights\u201d when the rest of the album offers just as much. The musical interlude early on in the record offers a softer spot to the high energy brought immediately afterwards.But what strikes me as the most interesting aspect of the album is Kanye\u2019s emotion.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 Now, of course, emotion is a defining factor of many rap albums. West was ahead of the game here. Rap was (and sometimes still is) about being tough, stoic, logical. MBDTF features Kanye\u2019s emotions on a variety of topics, but most notably his love-hate relationship with money, fame, and power. Kanye is constantly joked about for always looking miserable or even void of all emotion, which makes the emotional release in this album even more noteworthy.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 While <\/span>Graduation <\/span><\/i>holds a really special place in my heart, MBDTF proves to be even more notable not only in terms of Kanye\u2019s career, but also on the influence of the rap genre over the past decade. I firmly believe that this album is the reason we have more emotionally turbulent rap albums today.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 MBDTF is proof that Kanye is at his best when he projects his thoughts and grievances into his music rather than punishing us with Twitter meltdowns and public soliloquies. The man has his fair share of takes and I\u2019m hoping he returns to inserting them in an album as beautifully produced as My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Review by Shawn Majeed<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 Often called THE album of the 2010\u2019s, Kanye West\u2019s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy<\/em> is an album to remember (obviously). Halfway through my first listen I didn’t get it. I had already heard the radio hits like \u201cPower\u201d and \u201cAll of the lights\u201d, but listening to tracks like \u201cMonster\u201d and \u201cSo Appalled\u201d made me confused. This wasn\u2019t what I wanted from Kanye. The majority of the almost 6 \u00bd minute track \u201cMonster\u201d was occupied by other artists. After more than 5 listens, and plenty of time for thought and self-growth, I finally got it. Kanye brings out the best in them. They are the track’s strengths, they are the song. On “808\u2019s and Heartbreak,” Kanye began his CEO style of creating albums. Instead of being one of the only people writing his songs, Kanye would regularly have 4 or more writing credits. MBDTF is his best use of this artistic strategy. Tapping into the talents of Elton John, Mike Dean and Jeff Bhasker, they were able to create a wide variety of tracks spanning the rumbling bass on \u201cMonster\u201d to the storm of sounds found on \u201cLost in the World\u201d. Strong features by Rick Ross, Pusha T, Jay-Z and Nicki Minaj (an up and comer at the time) paired with Kanye\u2019s highly regarded production created a hard-to-match collage of high-octane tracks. While this might not be my favorite Kanye project, it is a master class of brilliant lyricism, grandiose production and it is solidified as a permanent staple of the 2010\u2019s.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Review by Myles Marrero<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 There\u2019s not a lot to be said about this album that hasn\u2019t already been said before, especially ten years after its release. Oftentimes when I go back and listen to classic albums like this one, a specific element will jump out to me, like the production or a specific element of a song that didn\u2019t jump out to me on my first listen. This time around, the highlight for me was the excellent features on this record. There are definitely a lot of highlights: Nicki Minaj\u2019s iconic verse on Monster and introduction to Dark Fantasy were particular standouts to me, as well as Raekwon\u2019s guest verse on Gorgeous. However, if there\u2019s any track that stands out with its features, it\u2019s easily So Appalled. There\u2019s a reason the track is so iconic of the era it was a part of, every single verse hits even harder than the last and builds into an incredible finale. It\u2019s an incredibly gratifying listening experience, and the themes it explores are even more timely than they were a decade ago. These features are an essential part of the album, and it\u2019s insane how well some of them have aged considering how badly other albums released around that time have aged since then. However, there are definitely some cuts that show their age. Chris Rock\u2019s outro on Blame Game is an incredibly drawn out and tedious ending to what is otherwise not really a stand out track for me. I could say the same for Justin Vernon\u2019s vocals on Lost In The World, which would also be a bit of a sleeper track for me if it weren\u2019t for the EXCELLENT lead-in to the closing track, courtesy of some mind-blowing samples, as well as some excellent production choices. Ye\u2019s ear for production was unrivaled at this point in his career, and the timelessness of this album\u2019s beats and samples and instrumentation are a testament to how well it was crafted. Listening to this album made me realize how much I missed this era of Kanye. It was a time when it felt like he had so much to say, whether it was a verbal statement about his personal life as an allegory for society as a whole, or an artistic statement represented by the music itself. There are few things that he has produced lately that come close to matching it.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Favorite tracks: “Runaway,” “So Appalled,” and “Hell Of A Life.”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Overall Score: 9.3\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Review by Kyle Osmun<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 Although “808s and Heartbreak” will always be the Kanye album I go back to the most, “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” is Kanye at his strongest. MBDTF in a way felt as though it set off the 2010s, in terms of production, being super feature heavy, and being an advertising licensing beast. It\u2019s a very cinematic, self indulgent record. From the more vulnerable and emotional cuts like \u201cRunaway\u201d and \u201cLost in the Woods,\u201d to the egotistical and heavy tracks like \u201cMonster\u201d and \u201cPOWER,\u201d Kanye rarely lets a moment slip without building to some kind of grandness or spectacle.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n It\u2019s a Hell of a Life<\/strong><\/p>\n By: Michael Reusch<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 In many ways the start of the MBDTF era began the night of the 2009 VMA Awards, in one of the most infamous moments in award show history. I think we all know which one I’m referring to. For those that don’t, an argumentative and in all likelihood inebriated Kanye interrupted Taylor Swift’s best music video award speech, taking the mic from her and announcing his disbelief that Beyonc\u00e9 wasn’t the winner. Iconic.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 It’s easy to recall this moment, but it’s hard to encapsulate what a cultural touchstone this was. Much like Jennifer Lopez’s historic Green Dress or Janet Jackson’s Justin Timberlake assisted Super Bowl nip slip, it spread like celebrity gossip wildfire. It was everywhere, from SNL,to sports commentary, to President Obama’s lips,to countless water cooler conversations. The moment was too perfect not to be. Kanye already had a well earned reputation as an egotist, and Taylor Swift was still early in her America’s sweetheart & girl next door phase. On some level, the image of a black man taking the microphone and the moment from a young white woman offered the chance to slip in some veiled or not so veiled casual bigotry from those so inclined to do so.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Kanye criticism was everywhere in pop culture, prompting his exodus from the American celebrity scene. During his hiatus West went globe hopping, traveling Japan and taking a Rome based internship at Fendi alongside future Off White founder and Louis Vuitton creative director Virgil Abloh. West credits this internship with the fashion house as influencing his later ventures into the high end fashion scene.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 Against this backdrop, it might be hard to believe that West could shift his public perception in only a year, but that’s exactly what happened with MBDTF. West would debut perhaps the album’s most famous single “Runaway” at the 2010 VMAs, one year after the Taylor Swift incident. The song, and his performance, stands as the perfect encapsulation of this period of West’s career…<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 From the beginning note the song is attention grabbingly unique, opening with monotonous and solitary piano plucks. West himself is no less visible, clad in a bright red suit and matching sneakers, the only color on the black and white hued stage. His sequencer sits atop a white Roman era pillar. During the course of the performance a gaggle of ballet dancers, as well as a sauntering with alleged narcotics trafficker swagger Pusha T will grace the stage. The verses from West and Pusha T\u00a0 in particular detail a newly acquired knowledge of the bourgeoisie, rapping about Versace sofas and faceless Rolexes. The opulence of cosmopolitan Europe is on full display, yet in a way that retains their status as outsiders in said world. The proverbial chip on the shoulder is still there, and the duo take pleasure in announcing their arrival into the circles of the cultural elite. While some might find them undeserving of a place amongst the snobs, they’ve carved out their spot, and they want the world to know that. Set against a baroque piano melody and punctuated by driving 808 drums, the rap verses are a gilded love letter to cosmopolitan consumerism.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 The emotional thrust of the lyrics however, is found in West’s chorus and sung verses. Vintage samples of old soul music interject as West’s fingers strike the keys of his MIDI controller. “look at ya” “look at ya”. Even as Kanye calls for a toast to the douchebags and assholes, his first verse reveals a surprising amount of emotional vulnerability. It serves as a mea culpa to those he’s hurt with his ego, particularly to the women in his life. 2010 was not that far removed from the zenith of the “all women are bitches and hoes\u201d sentiment in hip hop, so for Kanye to publicly battle with what would today be described as elements of toxic masculinity is eye opening in hindsight. A man who would go on to proclaim himself a god not long afterwards, acknowledging his own toxicity and inability to form healthy relationships is an interesting nuance.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span> The chorus however is where Kanye seems to speak directly to the public perception of himself. As he croons about jerkoffs who can never take work off, an emotional subtext develops. “Runaway” is simultaneously a deconstruction and a celebration of West’s arrogance. An apology to those affected by it, and an acknowledgement that his trademark ego is a part of who he is. Kanye implores both the listener and the in-narrative recipient of his lyrics to Runaway from him, knowing full well that they won’t. Humility and narcissism should mix like oil and water, but on Runaway they don’t. They mix like paints on canvas, not cancelling each other out but interplaying with one another, granting a look into the totality of Kanye’s emotional state. West’s vocals become progressively submerged in Auto-Tune, to the point where distortion becomes the primary vocal element as the song nears its conclusion. The sparse piano melody makes a reappearance near the end, pastiche against all the melodic richness that’s happened since the melody’s introduction. The performance ends in the most Kanye way imaginable, alone on stage, silhouetted against a shower of golden sparks. Garish yet somber, sprawling yet solitary. One year after becoming the music industry’s number one villain, Kanye’s message is clear. He can’t edit himself to be more acceptable, he is Kanye West in his full totality of being.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 The audience, and the public at large, can leave or live with it.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Review by Alex Simmons (No image found)<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 When Matt first asked me to do a reflection\/review for the tenth anniversary of President Kanye West\u2019s <\/span>My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, <\/span><\/i>I said \u201cplease stop sending me gory pictures of roadkill\u201d and also \u201cI would love to!\u201d So I started thinking, analyzing, and quantifying my thoughts on the record (forever fighting TLOP for favorite Kanye album), and realized I simply couldn\u2019t abide by a standard binary \u201creview\u201d format, as my reactions to this album are only visceral rather than pragmatic and objective. So, for my piece, I thought I would take a relisten to the album as a whole, and write my thoughts on each track as I listen. And who knows, we may make some friends on the way.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n TRACK ONE: \u201cDark Fantasy\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n I wonder who came up with the idea that Nicki Minaj would introduce the album in a British accent. When the chorus kicks in with the victorious maximalist refrain, \u201cCan we get much higher?,\u201d I immediately think of this as a precursor to modern day Choir Leader President Kanye. The chorus, in all of their holy glory, asserts to the listener that this album is going to be massive; it\u2019s going to be dramatic, it\u2019s going to demand your full devotion. When the more conventional piano-driven beat kicks in, it reminds us that this is still a hip-hop album at its core and, though it may present itself as a holy place of worship, there are still going to be some club ready bangers tailor made for bumpin\u2019 and grindin\u2019 on your boo thang. It\u2019s a great track on its own, made even greater as the opener for this album. Can we get much higher?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n TRACK TWO : “GORGEOUS”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u201cThe cop looked like Alec Baldwin.\u201d Why did I single out this line in particular? I think it\u2019s funny. The only thing Dark Fantasy was missing is, of course, Raekwon from the Wu-Tang clan, but Gorgeous makes sure to deliver on that front. The beat isn\u2019t heavy with 808s or the deep bass you might expect from a lot of contemporary rap, instead electing to vamp with a smooth, buttery guitar loop over a quiet drum beat and, yet, it still carries the bombast and intensity on par with the rest of the record. Kanye\u2019s verses sound like they were recorded on an iPhone, and maybe they were? Probably not, but, hey, who knows, they could be. Raekwon, the secret best rapper of the Wu Tang clan, of course kills his verse. He packs his bars so tight with rhymes and rhythm that I always find myself wondering where he hides his breaths, if he does, in fact, breathe at all. The solo at the end isn\u2019t particularly impressive, but it doesn\u2019t really matter? Overall, despite my glowingness and positivity, this is a lower point of the album for me, especially after the amazing intro. The beat hardly switches up, and it doesn\u2019t quite bump on the car radio like I would like it to. It\u2019s Kanye you can take home to your parents. Kid Cudi\u2019s hook, however, is a highlight.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n TRACK THREE: “POWER”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 Though this is the most radio-friendly track, it absolutely encompasses everything this album should be. It\u2019s perfect for action-movie trailers, for the club, for workouts, for road trips, for freestyling over with your friends. Kanye\u2019s verses are very <\/span>very <\/span><\/i>Kanye here. \u201c<\/span>I know damn well y’all feelin’ this shit<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 I don’t need your pussy, bitch I’m on my own dick.\u201d And we love him for it. This is the kind of song that makes me feel like I could lift an entire car and throw it into my apartment, and the kind of song that makes me feel like I could clean the wreckage in the running time of this song. The beat is so heavy with deep kicks that my headphones might explode. This is the most popular song on the album, but in no way does it succumb to any music snob\u2019s version of \u201cbasic and pedestrian.\u201d Just a fire bop.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n TRACK FOUR: “All of the Lights (Interlude)”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 Well, this is certainly pretty.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n TRACK FIVE: “All of the Lights”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 You mean to tell me that interlude is going to turn into a real song? I am going to fangirl out for a second here. I absolutely LOVE this song. I love that half of it is Kanye listing different kinds of lights. I love the horn section. I love the hook. Again, Kanye reminds us that this album is to be reckoned with; it\u2019s as if a hip-hop record had a baby with a rock opera and classical symphony. Somehow, this song actually lights up the room I\u2019m in with street lights, car lights, whatever the fuck, like I\u2019m in the center of the Earth\u2019s stage dancing with Kanye. Fergie shows up to say some stuff about credit cards, I don\u2019t really know why, but I am not opposed. Again, I think of modern Kanye, and how he has always has a deep appreciation for choir and gospel music, as the chorus of seemingly dozens of people reverberate around the horn section, demanding our undying faith in Kanye.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n TRACK SIX: “Monster”<\/strong><\/p>\n Favorite, favorite, favorite track on the album. Most listened to track on the album. Favorite verse, Nikki Minaj\u2019s, is on this song. The beat, first of all, bangs hard. The downtempo, heavy drum section is made for strutting in slow motion to. Kanye blesses us with some of his freshest flow on the whole record. Have you ever had sex with a pharaoh\u2026. Put that pussy in a sarcophagus. What the hell does that even mean? Jay-Z tries his best to ruin this track, but it goes so hard that even he can\u2019t do it. His verse is wack as fuck. He\u2019s so out of breath the whole verse that I wonder if he was on a treadmill when he spit it. Minaj\u2019s verse absolves any and all of the sins of Jay-Z\u2019s, as she hits us with some bars so hard and varied, reminiscent of ODB in \u201cDa Mystery of Chessboxing\u201d or Busta in \u201cScenario.\u201d She isn\u2019t kidding when she says \u201cthey can\u2019t stand beside me.\u201d It\u2019s just a shame that she clearly has this incredible talent, but its been so watered down by the pressures of big record labels and radio stations that hardly anybody recognizes what she has. Then Bon Iver shows up, because of course he does. Were you expecting him not to?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n TRACK 6 : “So Appalled”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 Apparently some people hate this song and consider it a low point on the record? I am so appalled! The shrieky synth hits that pepper the chorus awaken something deep in me that I can\u2019t recognize as happy sadness or sad happiness, but, whatever it is, I feel it to my core. Normally, I think I would come down hard on a hook that says \u201cfuckin\u2019 ridiculous,\u201d it\u2019s just weird to me, but I like it here. And Jay-Z, I still think you were ass on Monster, but I feel you here. Even though you may be a billionaire robot, I hear real emotion here. Okay, now can I get candid? I like Pusha T just fine, I think he has a passable verse here, but I am not with the hype over him. His flow doesn\u2019t particularly impress me, his bars are never all that clever, and please don\u2019t show him this because he would diss me and I don\u2019t have the time to engage in a high profile rap beef. Cyhi has my favorite verse and my favorite line \u201cIf God had an ipod, I\u2019d be on his playlist.\u201d Imagine a big bearded dude in the sky cycling through his music library and landing on Cyhi the Prince is a delightful image.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n TRACK 7: “Devil in a New Dress”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 I am a sucker for songs that start with a drum hit, like this one does! This song is definitely the sexiest on the album, dropping dongs and thongs all throughout the world. It makes sense, as the song heavily samples Smokey Robinson, one of the leading writers of sexy songs. \u201cThe way you look should be a sin, you my sinsation,\u201d on paper, should be a terrible bar. But it seems a motif of mine is loving these rhymes by pure virtue of them being rapped by Kanye. The song interludes in the middle, injecting a slick, hot, sweaty guitar solo to prelude to\u2026 Rick Ross. His verse is good though, and his deep Barry White voice greatly compliments the overall romanticism of this track, making me kind of attracted to Rick Ross? I don\u2019t know, I have some things to work out. This song is huge and intense disguised as low-key and mellow; all the instruments are turned up to 11, the sheer amount of things going on is enough to burst an amp into flames.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n TRACK 8: “Runaway”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Is there a more Kanye song than Kanye\u2019s song, \u201cRunaway?\u201d Overly long, incredibly dramatic yet deceptively simple, lyrics that are somehow both narcissistic and self-deprecating, all at once? Toasting douchebags, assholes, and scumbags, every single one of them that I know? And, as with all of these songs, it vibes. So. Hard. The piano line that runs throughout the whole song is something a first time piano player or gifted toddler could come up with, without the burden of overthinking. Pusha T kills his bars, making me nearly regret my previous disparaging. Kanye isn\u2019t the most especially gifted singer, but he croons here like a mohawked, punked out Marvin Gaye. 6 or so minutes in, he gifts us with an incredibly distorted auto-tuned chorus or hook or verse or something that is impossible to make out the words to, leaving us to make it up ourselves, like listening to Kenny from \u201cSouth Park\u201d speak. I\u2019d wager that the words are hardly prophetic or meaningful, but somehow so prophetic and meaningful, just because it\u2019s Kanye and that\u2019s how it seems to go for him.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Track 9: “Hell of a Life”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What better to follow the somber, reflective \u201cRunaway\u201d with \u201cI think I fell in love with a pornstar?\u201d President Kanye goes from balladeering to full on Johnny Rotten Punk here, rapping against a power-chordy synth line. The hook is what really grabs me here. \u201cPussy and religion is all I need,\u201d thus is the duality of man. Unaided by any features here, this is pure Kanye bars. And, as usual, they\u2019re all fucking awesome and hilarious. \u201cMake a nun cum, make her cremate.\u201d Does it get any better than that? My head can\u2019t stop moving to this one. I want to go out and beat coronavirus with my fists or something. He really nails the \u201cI fell in love with a pornstar\u201d point here, he says it like ten times. My man be masturbating and proud of it. The heavy breathing at the end is a little weird though.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Track 10: “Blame Game”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 The beat is slick. It\u2019s another beat that, like “Gorgeous,” hides the heavily filtered drums in the background, bringing the piano front and center. As a good, liberal, 21st century student of social politics, I take issue with the line \u201cI\u2019ll call you bitch for short, as a last resort and first resort.\u201d But, as a good, loyal, Kanye fan, I\u2019ll laugh it off and move on. Legend\u2019s buttery voice lathers itself all over me and bakes me at 350 degrees and serves me for dinner. This song is an unabashed look at\u00a0 a struggling relationship, and the ins and outs of unconditional love. Coming from the man that sang \u201cI thought about killing you today,\u201d this is going to be honest and unfiltered. \u201cI would rather argue than live without you\u201d carries such weight and is a sentiment so pervasive in so many long term relationships. There\u2019s a bit in this track where a pitched down Kanye trades bars with regular Kanye, while it pans back and forth from left to right like a Kanye tornado. A Kanyedo, if you will. Anywho, I enjoyed that part. A lot of songs on this album, as maximalist and intricate as it is, are often predicated around single loops that hardly vary throughout. And you hardly even notice. Chris Rock shows up at the end, and it\u2019s just the cherry on top of a mountain of cherries on top of the best sundae you\u2019ve ever had. He doesn\u2019t need to be there, but of course he is. He has a history of showing up in rap songs and just talking, I\u2019ve noticed, and I am always absolutely delighted. His little speech goes on slightly too long while being slightly too pointless, but I am still pleased. Yeezy taught you well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Track 11: “Lost in the World\/ Who will Survive In America”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 This is a triumphant, victorious, optimistic ending to the shaky, uninspected wooden rollercoaster that is MBDTF. After reveling in despair over ourselves, our careers, our relationships, this song is a reminder that, at the end of it all, we are simply little specs in a vast universe, and that\u2019s beautiful. I can\u2019t stop dancing in my chair. \u201cIf we die in each other\u2019s arms, still get laid in the afterlife.\u201d More yin and yang; a sentiment as beautiful as dying holding the one you love coupled with the fact that, in Heaven, you\u2019ll still get to fuck. The whole album was building to this moment, and it\u2019s definitely one of my top three or so tracks on the record (following Monster, perhaps tied with all of the lights). I am a sucker for toms, and the breakdown near the end of the track, exuding primal, raw, tribal energy, gets me fired up. It flows into a separate track, though it is really just a continuation of the song, using a powerful speech by the revolutionary and excellent Gil Scot Heron to send us off.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Review by Tim (Brother) Turner<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 I’ll start by saying this; I’ve never written a review for anything, save for a book I bought on Amazon in order to get a free audiobook I’ve never listened to.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 For me to say I gave this album a fair shot would be a lie, as I listened to it on and off in the car during a day of running errands with the Missus. But the few moments I had alone in the car, listening to the tracks, as well as reading a bit into where Kanye was mentally at the time, it immediately took me back 10 years, to when I was in high school. How my friends of the time and I knew so little about his headspace amidst all of the controversies he was facing. And I couldn’t help but feel <\/span>horrible for the way my young mind reacted to this news; I thought it was funny, and Mr. West was the butt of many jokes between my classmates and I. How easily we could say he went crazy, that this new music of his sucks.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 While this “review” may not fairly reflect the contents of the album itself, I feel that, in a way, it has become a review of something much more important; personal growth. While I could fanboy over his crediting of Black Sabbath for the vocal-riff on “Hell of a Life,” all I could think during my listen was that, with Kanye, I’ve done nothing but grow and better myself over the last decade, even if it’s not immediately apparent to such a broad audience. While I can appreciate the artistic value of his evolving discography now, I couldn’t at the time. It is an unfortunate clich\u00e9 that many <\/span>artists’ genius aren’t apparent until many decades later, but Kanye is constantly disproving that. In short, thank you Kanye West, for helping me see that personal betterment is subjective, and not always immediately apparent, but always reflective of the creator of said change.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 -Timothy Turner<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/hannahandmattonmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Next-Page.jpg?resize=664%2C423&ssl=1\")
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