Saturday, October 5, 2013

Kanye's songs, in order of how much I like them.

1. Runaway-- the vocoder is chilling and haunting. Seeing someone rip their soul apart like this is terrifying and beautiful.
2. Power-- THAT SAMPLE. Kanye rips the song apart with a raucous energy, then it gets all introspective in the best of ways.
3. Jesus Walks-- it's a club hit about Jesus. The choir, the horns, the everything, Regis Philbin, awesome.
4. Through the Wire-- such a solid first single. Even with his jaw shut, he manages to make one of his best songs ever, with chipmunk soul, introspection, and everything you'll want.
5. Gone-- Ye's best verse ever, and wow, it's really a powerful track.
6. Lost in the World-- Bon Iver is great.
7. Bound 2-- I love this song and you need to listen to it. I'm really excited by its connotation of where his career will go.
8. Gorgeous-- the guitar....  mmmm. there's some weird vocal effect too that I really like.
9. Homecoming-- I am a sucker for pianos and Chris Martin doesn't sound stupidly bland.
10. Blood on the Leaves-- really a blend of all his aesthetics into a heartbreaking banger of a track.
11. Monster-- such a nasty track. Triple double no assist indeed.
12. All Falls Down-- I love the acoustic guitar and the id fueling the song is super powerful.
13. Dark Fantasy-- MERCY MERCY ME THAT MERCIELAGO. Just by containing that line, this song is great. The beat is super confident and the lyrics are awesome.
14. Black Skinhead-- HAAAAAAAAH this song is awesome and I will say no more.
15. All of the Lights-- despite Fergie, this is a great single with awesome horns and a music video that gave me epilepsy.
16. Say You Will-- I really love the drums, which is the best part of 808s.
17. Touch the Sky-- Lupe's last line is one of my favorites, and I love the horns. Such a feelgood track.
18. Hey Mama-- this song makes me very sad.
19. Never Let Me Down-- Jay brings it! so does J-Ivy.
20.Blame Game-- somehow putting Chris Rock on a rap song worked
21. New Slaves-- super quotable, awesome beat, Frank Ocean-- it has it all.
22. Welcome to Heartbreak-- Kid Cudi really fits in with the melancholy tone, and the lyrical introspection is fantastic.
23. We Don't Care-- that's how you start off an album.
24. Last Call-- I want to play this to everyone who says Ye is arrogant.
25. Devil in a New Dress-- ROZAY brings it, all without a hook.
26. Flashing Lights-- probably his sexiest song.
27. Diamonds from Sierra Leone (Remix)-- great switch of perspective between Ye and Jay, and that sample kills me.
28. Hold My Liquor-- gotta keep it #3hunna. BANG BANG (I have a weird thing for Chief Keef)
29. Love Lockdown-- I love these drums. this is one of Ye's best live songs. 808s was such a daring album, and I love how it came out.
30. Everything I Am-- Introspective Kanye is the best Kanye, and the instrumentals here are awesome.
31. Family Business-- really intimate and down to earth, a great closing track.
32. Stronger-- I like this more than the Daft Punk version and that's saying something.
33. Get Em High-- Talib and Common on one of Ye's stupidest tracks ever. Great stuff.
34. We Major-- YESSSS Nas. Some of Ye's best lyrical work, and I love hearing him on longer tracks.
35. Hell of a Life-- he kind of samples Black Sabbath and gets away with it.
36. Good Morning (Intro)-- I really love the music video for this.
37. Heartless-- one of the weaker singles from 808s but his earnestness really comes through in a positive way.
38. The Glory-- a better version of I Wonder.
39. Slow Jamz-- Jamie Foxx does a great job and it's a nice break in between heavier tracks like Breathe in Breathe out and Get Em High.
40. Drive Slow-- PAUL WALL. Once again, I don't really have anything specific to say about LR other than that it's awesome.
41. Heard 'Em Say-- Adam Levine somehow works, and this is a nice little antithesis to how he started off College Dropout.
42. Can't Tell Me Nothing-- no, I cannot tell anyone anything-- apart from to listen to this song.
43. On Sight-- THAT'S how you start an album. I want Daft Punk to produce all of Yeezy's stuff.
44. I am a God-- nice little joint with some weird psychological implications. It also makes me want croissants.
45. So Appalled-- such a great posse verse. The beat is driving and desperate and the different personalities all blend together really well (even if it does taper off a bit after Pusha's verse).
46. I Wonder-- nice little contemplative piece. The vocals are strong and I like how it melds the chipmunk soul from CD/LR with the more grandiose sound of Graduation.
47. I'm In It-- this is here just based on the ridiculous lines that come from it.
48. Paranoid-- there are a lot of unique elements to 808s and this song really exemplifies them.
49. Amazing-- this would be higher if it weren't for the Young Jeezy verse. I don't care about your sodium.
50. Good Life-- A lot of my love for this comes from the video. T-Pain sounds super good too.
51. Big Brother-- I know this track had to happen, and I'm glad it did, I just don't think the beat is strong enough. It's also weirdly positioned at the end of a track. But hey, Ye says thank you to Jay and then tells him he's coming for him. That's all I need.
52. The New Workout Plan-- Ye at his most tongue in cheek. It's hilarious and scathing all at the same time.
53. Champion-- this song's really grown on me. Put this on and go conquer the world.
54. Spaceship-- Ye is an underrated storyteller, and this song is him at his best in this element.
55. Bad News-- nice little piece of melancholy. The autotune is used to its best capacity and the robotic element of the song has some interesting thematic implications.
56. Breathe In Breathe Out-- this beat is insane. Kanye sounds more confident than usual, which is terrifying.
57. Roses-- Ye at his most empathetic. Really great storytelling on this track, and Ye tears at your heartstrings.
58. Two Words-- taking Mos Def, one of the most lyrically talented rappers out there, and condensing him to just 2 word segments of verse is genius and works really well. The beat is strong and it's an essential part of College Dropout's insanely good end.
59. Send It Up-- King L has a great verse, the airhorns are awesome, and YEEZUS JUST ROSE AGAIN. great sendoff before Bound 2.
60. Guilt Trip-- this track has always had something missing for me. Kid Cudi sounds great, but it's too static, especially coming after Blood on the Leaves.
61. Coldest Winter-- 808s has fantastic drumwork as it should, and the electronic sounds and drums come together really well here.
62. Street Lights-- a nice little serenade that's slights but lovely. Kanye sounds relieved of trouble and the minimal track does a great job of accompanying this.
63. Robocop-- 808s stalls out a bit after its fantastic first half, and this is the first signs of trouble. The drums are strong, the strings fit in really well, and Ye sounds great on the vocals, but it doesn't add up to what it should.
64. Addiction-- great sampling and vocals. LR is an album that's definitely more than the sum of its parts, and I feel bad putting so many of its tracks so low.
65. Crack Music-- once again, fantastic, but it gets swallowed up by other LR songs.
66. See You in My Nightmares-- It's a shame Lil Wayne can't sound good on a Yeezy beat. This track is great up until his verse.
67. My Way Home-- Having to put a Common track this low pains me. I just wish it was longer.
68. Celebration-- It's fantastic just by being good enough to be on Late Registration, but anything coming after Hey Mama is doomed to suffer, and it sounds like it would fit better on College Dropout.
69. School Spirit-- I'm not a fan of skits, and this track is stuck in between some, which makes it hard to rank high. It's a fun song, though, and the chipmunk soul fits in really well.
70. Bring Me Down-- This track suffers from being on Late Registration and having to match up against Gone and Hey Mama. It's by no means bad, but Brandy doesn't fit in and it stalls, especially amongst such excellent tracks.
71. Barry Bonds-- More recent listens of this song have warmed me up to it, but Lil Wayne just doesn't work on Ye tracks for whatever reason, and the lyrics don't pack enough of a punch to accompany the relatively strong beat.
72. Drunk and Hot Girls-- started from the bottom, and we're... probably going to stay here. When I started this list I had no doubt this would be at the bottom. Weak hook, wasting Mos Def, really banal lyrics-- this is one of Kanye's few weak tracks.

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