Album reviews

Those of you awaiting another album like College Dropout, don’t hold your breath. Those of you ready for a redefined Kanye West, you can exhale now. None of us really knew what to expect when Kanye announced his plans to co-produce his sophomore album with composer Jon Brion, whose résumé included Fiona Apple albums and the sweeping soundtracks to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and I Heart Huckabees yet nothing remotely hip-hop-affiliated. Nevertheless, it's apparent that he knows what he's doing. Rather than the raw driving bass of College Dropout, Late Registration is replete with flowing instrumentals; think of hip-hop meets orchestral rock with lots of keyboards, strings, and brass. Kanye didn't stop at Brion—the roll call includes Jay-Z, The Game, Jamie Foxx, Nas, Cam'Ron, and Adam Levine among others. While the whole Jamie Foxx a la Ray Charles motif seems a little late in coming, “Gold Digger” has already found a place on Billboard's Top 40. Lyrically, this album has the potential to leave your emotions in the gutter. Kanye goes on about money incessantly as well as crack, weed, and girls—not too different from most commercial rap albums these days. However, this time it's deep. No, really, I’m serious. Take “Crack Music,” where he laments, “We took that shit, measured it and then cooked that shit/ And what we gave back was crack music/ And now we ooze it through they nooks and crannies/ So our mommas ain't got to be they cooks and nannies/ And we gonna repo everything they ever took from grammy/ Now the former slaves trade hooks for Grammies.” There is a recurrent vein of desperation on tracks like “Roses,” “Addiction,” and “Heard 'Em Say.” It’s an about face to his previous optimism while denouncing higher education. Still, it’s exactly what a sophomore album should be: a chance for the artist to mature, grow and expand his musical horizons.