New Kanye West "808s and Heartbreak" CD Review

Tons of new Thanksgiving releases have hit store shelves. All of them are long awaited releases from Kanye West, Beyonce, and The Killers.

Lets start with Kayne. This CD was leaking all over the places with lead singles "Love LockDown" and "Heartless". Both had fans and critics alike scratching their heads on his new obsession with the auto tuner. He not only uses it on said track mentioned he uses it throughout the new disc!! What sounds like a complete backlash in theory works wonders on the ears simply because Kayne has filled the CD with addicted hooks, throbbing bass lines and hypnotic composition.

Kayne releases this CD after a difficult 12 months. The star’s mother Donda, who was also his manager and mentor, died after complications from cosmetic surgery; then he and designer Alexis Phifer ended their 18-month engagement. The simplistic beats of the CD are reflections of the CD cover showing a saggy balloon in the shape of a squashed heart.

The entire CD is a departure from his college series. The next CD was planned to be "Get A Good Ass Job" rounding out last years "Graduation" CD. Instead Kayne got his heart broken in more ways than one and flaunts pain all over with standout tracks like "Heartless" and "Street Lights" in place of his usual over brazen bravado. The standout track is "Paranoid" with its heavy synth and 70's vibe and the most uptempo song on the CD. Once again another persons heartbreak makes for great music.

8 outta 10