The Cold Cut

I'm right in the middle of many things right now (new job, new decks, US university applications, etc etc) so my talented brother has kindly agreed to step in. Bravo.
Kanye West- Anyway (Link 2)

So Kanye’s Heartbreak is leaking all over the internet at the moment, and I for one am a little confused. Auto-tune? 808s? TEARS FOR FEARS samples? Wake up, Mr West.

Kanye wants to do whatever he wants, and what he wants is to no longer be seen as just a rapper, but a pop artist not bound in by a particular style. Those in the know realised some time ago that his music is just great pop, and when it comes to flow he’s never really had skills that pay the bills. In a John-Woo-style shoot-out of great rappers, Kanye would be first of the gang to die.

The problem is, he’s turned into a bit of prick. Yes, rappers are supposed to be arrogant, but The College Dropout gave hip-hop back its soul not because of all those vintage samples, but through its subject matter: less bitches and bling, more tales of how he used to pee the bed as a child. Sadly, post-fame, his last album revealed that he has become everything that he used to rail against: “I shop so much I can speak Italian”, anyone? Don’t even get me started on Drunk and Hot Girls. Graduation is a good album, but he’s not easy to love any more.

And so to “808s”: this sounds like we’re headed towards an album of commercial r ‘n b. The title hints that it’s going to be about relationship troubles. So perhaps a move towards a bit of honesty and soul again, which is good. But the musical wrapping concerns me a little, as a whole album of this is going to be a bit much for me.

I do like the fact that he’s trying to switch up his game rather than ploughing the same path, but hopefully there will be some genuine rapping in there as well.

Over to you Kanye.

Kanye West- Love Lockdown (T-Minus 321 Remix) (Link 2)

Unlike many of the bigger blogs out there, I've kept 'Love Lockdown' at arm's reach... not because I don't like it, but because I wanted the dust to settle before I posted a definitive remix. I've also tried to keep the number of 'hot tracks' down to a minimum for the last few weeks, purely because its nice to have something in reserve when you need it.

Let me state my position: 'Love Lockdown' is such a grower. If you break it down, its a pretty simple composition, but Kanye has really impressed me by upping the audience-input, evolving the song little by little and responding to the backlash. The 'Love Lockdown' that I now sing along to is not the same song that he debuted at the VMA's. I also don't believe that this version will appear on the album, as Kanye has displayed an experimentive nature that will no doubt carry over to the album.

Anyway, after sifting through the remixes (trust me, there are waaay to many), I chose one definitive song. As well as taking the song somewhere totally new, the artwork is incredible. Feel free to keep the creativity alive by downloading the stems (they're all over the net).

Kanye West- Love Lockdown (Link 2)

I feel relieved. I feel happy. I feel exhausted. Many emotions. First, the good news. I am now able to get back into the swing of things. I have internet. I have lots of stuff to catch up with. I need to burst the bubble around me. The Cold Cut needs to become relevant again. Most of all, I have a blog to run. And run-it I will.

So how does one burst the bubble that's been enclosing you? With difficulty... I must admit, my lack of contact with the internet, TV and news has been a bit of an eye opener. As in, what the hell would we do without it? Now I appreciate it even more- I feel lucky to be connected again.

Anyway, back to the music. I've missed it ever so much, looking through my emails longingly on my phone. Able to see, but not to listen. Out of all the music that has flooded my inbox (about 250 emails and counting from the last few weeks- keep 'em coming), one track stands out. It's so 'now'. Kanye West's new track 'Love Lockdown', from the upcoming album release, '808's And Heartbreak'. A live debut at the VMA's was incredibly promising (watch it), and yet the recorded version falls annoyingly flat.

Disregarding an over-generous bass track that I could listen to all day long, it's hard to like this song, let alone love it. 'Love Lockdown' starts, peaks, starts, troughs, restarts... and finishes. It goes nowhere... Instead, we are treated to 270 seconds of Kanye living out a T-Pain fantasy. Jittery pianos and a vocoder dominate proceedings. There is no Chris Martin this time, though. And no intelligent sampling.

The VMA's were the perfect platform from which to launch the new album. Kanye performed well, his voice fragile, but hidden away behind Autotune. He sings better than you might expect, but will struggle with the live demands of this song. Still, it was a great performance, with strong images through lighting and his performance. Unfortunately, these fixtures cannot be translated onto the studio version.

This song hurts. Where has the genius of 'The College Dropout' gone? The concept is all wrong- Kanye isn't a singer by nature. It's brave, but a whole song of slow vocals is really pushing it. And in using a vocoder, you immediately take the emotion out of a song. I mean, who would attempt to prove that 'Lollipop' is an emotionally affecting song?

'808's And Heartbreak' drops on December 16th. Pre-order it on Amazon. The chips seem stacked against Kanye at this point in time. I'm not even going to mention the whole arrest fiasco. Still, I would never bet against him. Oh, and good luck Kanye. May you shock us all.