Photo: Scott Dudelson(Getty Images)
Kanye’s new album hasn’t reached the heights his previous masterpieces had, but The Life Of Pablo (2016) offers some quality amongst the forgettable tracks that make the majority of it. So while these five best songs from the newest Kanye West album didn’t make it to his top 15 tracks list, they are still great songs and you’ll be rocking out to them for a long time.
A large number of tracks has too many producers, and it seems like each of them got 30 seconds on the track, making one song too chopped up and incoherent. Most evident in the first track of the Kanye’s new album – Ultralight Beam, which sounds great at moments, the potential is there, but it doesn’t have the flow a song of any genre needs. The often hypnotizing, emphasizing repeating of the lyrics is also present, unfortunately, and both of these problems are illustrated on the cover humorously enough.
Yet, despite these flaws, there are at least five tracks that are worth keeping in your Kanye folder. Unfortunately, it’s becoming a strong trend for musicians not to publish a lot of their songs on YouTube, so only a handful of links are provided.
The Life of Pablo Top Songs
Fade
If you somehow managed to snap out of it while watching the amazingly simple, but insanely cool and hot music video, you have probably realized that Fade is a great song. Probably the best one on Kanye’s new album. A powerful track from the start it cascades upward with brief, natural intermissions that don’t break the flow of the song thanks to the very unusual beat. For hip hop that is. The third single from The Life Of Pablo got a lot of attention due to the Teyana Taylor dancing in the video, but if the song wasn’t amazing it would fall flat as a cheap gimmick.
Wolves
A track that not only has the best instrumental on The Life Of Pablo but is up there in competition with all tracks from Kanye’s discography. An opera-like constant singing has a very melancholic feel to it, and it’s a track that mostly resembles to the 808s and Heartbreak Kanye, as it is pretty slow and singing oriented. As on that iconic album, Kanye showcases that he is perhaps the only musician that knows how to use autotune effectively and make it not feel like a cheap trick.
FML feat The Weeknd
A collaboration that we needed and wanted, but which went somewhat under the radar since it wasn’t released on YouTube. It’s one of the best displays of The Weeknd’s range and talent, it could easily be regarded as one of his best songs. Both artists squeeze the maximum out of the minimalistic beat, that has a hint of the old Kanye behind it as it uses the piano, sudden silences, and unusual, dirty basses. There is a remixed version on YouTube, but it is vastly inferior to the original.
Real Friends
Heavy, emotional and most of all real, relatable track, Real Friends was the promotional single from West’s seventh solo album. It has a melancholic beat that pulls you in from the start, and Kanye flows effortlessly over it, with a pretty laid back style, unusual for this Kanye’s new album. Vocals from fellow rapper Ty Dolla Sign alongside Kanye put the song on another level, proving once again that simple “tricks” may go a long way.
Feedback
The funky edgy beat gets the listener excited as no other track on Kanye’s new album, but it doesn’t reach its full potential. You just can’t shake the idea that this song could’ve easily been a complete classic if there wasn’t a sudden cut out at the start, making the track lose momentum. And that there wasn’t so much lyrical repetition. The two main flaws of this album in general don’t negate the quality of the track so much, but a talented producer could give the track a much more deserving structure since Kanye’s power and style are here, but technically it’s not a perfect product.
Honorable mentions go to Father Stretch My Hands, Pt. 1 and Waves, while the I Love Kanye skit is also very entertaining. But the five songs listed will be remembered from the Kanye’s new album. If you disagree with our choices, pick your top five in the comments.
