Kanye West steps into the scene with an album that, as usual, is deeply intertwined with an underlying story.
Mr. West has mentioned that 808s and Heartbreak is a culmination of his sorrows over the last 2 years, including his mother’s passing last year and a break-up with his fiancee earlier this year.
So what are the 808’s you ask? Those represent the Rolland TR-808, which is a drum machine used for the album’s distinct beats. Mr. West also used Auto-Tune, a vocal audio processor, for pretty much every track in the album. The tone and beats of the entire collection are supposed to resemble the low tides in his life… this is done successfully in my view, but I see some tracks, such as Welcome to Heartbreak, being played at clubs in the near future.
Having said all this, Kanye West says he classifies his music as pop, and a lot of the elements on the album are meant to revive that popish feeling, which he thinks has been bogged down by current media. I certainly feel that pop, but also notice elements of electro in his music.
I’m waiting for the day Mr. West picks up a mic and begins MC’ing over a “traditional” house track…
Until then, enjoy sampling “Welcome to Heartbreak” here.
