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CRITIC REVIEWS
90
Even at 23 minutes, it almost feels like two different albums: an aggressive, dissonant one, and an empathetic, soulful one.
80
Whatever you think of his politics, his songwriting, sample-hunting and beat-making remain dynamic, surprising and ballsy.
80
Substantially more focused than its predecessor, it packs a lot into 23 minutes. It is bold, risky, infuriating, compelling and a little exhausting: a vivid reflection of its author.
80
Ye paints a vivid picture of Kanye's current state of self and, for as brief as it is, succeeds as an intimate exploration of family and mental health.
80
ye merely excels in surface-scratching instead of the transcendent territories that spawned the Kanye everyone loved. Sometimes less does not equate to more.
79
Although ‘ye’ probably will never sit in the upper echelons of Kanye West’s musical legacy, it is by no means a project that is at the bottom of the pile either, an impressive feat in only a month.
75
After a year full of controversy for West, he leads his album by addressing many of his statements while delivering his typically hilarious and thoughtful lyricism. Where the album often falls flat however is in the inconsistent backing tracks, that can feel like filler for Kanye’s vocals at their most bland.
75
Kanye can’t convey his obsessions—drugs, death, sex, fame—with the eloquence of, say, Danny Brown. But he can still create thunderous blasts of sound on par with anyone on the planet, and Ye’s best moments are reminders of that. It’s a prismatic album, reflecting its creator’s entire body of work.
75
He’s been pushing the envelope for most of his career, but on ye, he’s consolidating old skills, not testing out new ones. The lack of wow-factor, combined with the short length, makes the album feel somewhat slight.
71
It is an album born from chaos for chaos’ sake, an album that can barely be bothered to refer to that chaos with anything more committal than a Kanye shrug.
70
Although not a masterpiece like My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, ye shares an abbreviated, yet complete look at Kanye, both the highs and the lows.
70
If West had better delved into his emotional and psychological turmoil in Ye's lyrics, instead of getting bogged down with click-baity asides, then this LP would've been a classic. Let's hope this soul gets the help he needs, so that he can give us a better glimpse into his psyche on his next LP.
70
‘ye’ is by no means Kanye West’s finest moment, but it’s a reminder not to count him out just yet.
70
Right in the middle of the furore, ye sallies forth, Kanye’s eighth, deeply egotistical, candidly self-aware, frequently cringe-inducing, captivatingly produced and infuriatingly compelling record.
70
ye might not be the classic that we needed, and he needed more than ever; but Kanye is revealing enough to have us appreciate the insight and bop our heads along the way.
67
Now more than ever, Kanye West needed to deliver a bombastic fireworks display. Instead, he’s arrived, amidst a storm of controversy, waving sparklers.
60
Nobody can deny this mini album flirts with brilliance, and feels like a pop cultural moment straight out the gate; we just wish there was a little more to it.
60
Over a brief seven tracks, the 40-year-old superstar confirms his production prowess, veering between sparse, hyper-modern styles and compositions which hark back to the soulful bent of the producer-turned-rapper’s early career; a volatile mix of the sweet and the acrid, the sentimental and the tendentious.
60
As he struggles to find his footing in a strange new world, there is still merit in a work like Ye if you can somehow look past the self-destructive celebrity behind it.
60
While the seven-song brevity of Pusha-T’s Daytona enhanced its potency, the similar play length hinders Ye: an album this short would have to economize time to cover a lot of ground, and Kanye lacks the precision to deliver.
58
In the end, this album is about one person and one person only.
55
While some fans have been quick to shriek “terrible!” and the like, West risked his inner world in a bi-polar story. Equally misguided will be the claims of brilliance: whether rushed or bare by intent, Ye suffers from an abundance of ideas and a lack of follow through.
50
The Kanye West we loved is gone. This man is a caricature. A copy of a copy. A meme.
50
It could have been worse. But who thought that would ever be a standard Kanye West would settle for?
50
A hollow document and a dumb spectacle, ye is the work of an artist who’s maybe been bargaining with no one but himself this whole time.
50
His verses mostly feel redundant, hastily thrown together to validate the presence of these songs on his project, and while the album has been described as introspective this very brief release only allows for skindeep thoughts on any one topic. The Kanye West show has already rolled on, but some of the magic of yesteryear has been left behind.
50
Ye can feel uneven, sometimes boring, and more indulgent than usual, but it's a fascinating peek into West's psyche.
48
Maybe Kanye West exorcised all his demons onto the tape for ye, and that's great for the guy, but at the end of the day it's as hollow as a rich rapper telling you to love everyone over twitter, and the guts he's spilling still stink.
40
If there are levels to this shit, some secret series of redemptive insider nods and brainy puzzles worth solving, West’s stans can keep them to themselves to nibble on like so much mousetrap cheese. For the rest of us, a millionaire’s stream-of-consciousness string of mental disorder admissions and rehashed rap lechery doesn’t suit West’s maturing genius.
40
Unlike Pusha's Daytona, which is all muscle and sinew, Ye feels like a mix of the weakest moments from The Life of Pablo. For the first time in his career, Kanye hasn't saved the best beats for himself. He hasn't even saved the best verses for himself. In many cases, it's debatable if what he did save qualifies as “verses” at all.
40
Perhaps if Kanye had simply called ye an EP or a mixtape it would have been passable, a fun little project, but as a 'studio album' it feels like a pointless exercise.
30
ye isn’t just an album that makes you question why it was made, it makes you question the entire concept of albums as an artform.
TLDR: AOTY. Kanye's done it again. Not as good as MBDTF or LR, better than 808s & Yeezus. Sweet, very personal project with impeccable production, the tightest lyrical performance since MBDTF and a couple of bangers. Couple of dad jokes too but they're funny & charismatic.
Best Advice? Ignore the reviews. It's a short album, give it 3 or 4 listens and make your own mind up. People are too emotional to be objective. Don't poison the well, think for yourself. I think you'll probably ... read more
Best Advice? Ignore the reviews. It's a short album, give it 3 or 4 listens and make your own mind up. People are too emotional to be objective. Don't poison the well, think for yourself. I think you'll probably ... read more
wow, this will have physical copies! Vinyl no less!
Additional thoughts:
Everyone using this site should have some freaking perspective. This album currently has a whole 319 user ratings, which is A LOT of scores when compared to other albums. In other words, there aren't very many people taking the time to use this site so we can at least try and be civil to each other.
This is not Kanye's best project, but I still enjoy it for sure. I think Kanye's recent ummmmm lets call them outbursts, ... read more
Additional thoughts:
Everyone using this site should have some freaking perspective. This album currently has a whole 319 user ratings, which is A LOT of scores when compared to other albums. In other words, there aren't very many people taking the time to use this site so we can at least try and be civil to each other.
This is not Kanye's best project, but I still enjoy it for sure. I think Kanye's recent ummmmm lets call them outbursts, ... read more
As someone who's been struggling with mental issues myself, writing about Kanye West's latest, surprisingly short studio album is both a challenge and an enticing grasp for hope. That is not to say that ye (a highly suitable title for such a down-to-earth and intimate release) truly offers any sort of tangible solace or answer for whatever problems anyone might be facing on a daily basis; nor is ye West's most accomplished or eloquent work up to date. Much like 2016's TLOP, what we have at hand ... read more
I want to say that Kanye is on his decline, as this solo effort is less than impressive. However his production remains stellar on the other G.O.O.D. Music releases from this summer. Kanye's artistry and vision are still intact, but lyrically and conceptually this is his weakest effort yet, although there is no shortage of good moments on this LP.
fav tracks: I Thought About Killing You, Yikes, Violent Crimes
fav tracks: I Thought About Killing You, Yikes, Violent Crimes
END OF YEAR LISTS
| #7 | / | The New York Times: Jon Caramanica |
| #10 | / | The Music |
| #14 | / | BLARE |
| #16 | / | Gaffa (Denmark) |
| #23 | / | Tiny Mix Tapes |
| #32 | / | The Needle Drop |
| #34 | / | NME |
| / | Gothamist | |
| / | Time Out New York |
MISC LISTS
| #5 | / | PopMatters (Hip Hop) |
| #23 | / | Consequence of Sound (First Half) |
| #30 | / | Rolling Stone (Hip Hop) |
| / | The Needle Drop (First Half) |
Track List
- I Thought About Killing You
- Yikes
- All Mine
- Wouldn't Leave
- No Mistakes
- Ghost Town
- Violent Crimes
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Added on: May 30, 2018
