happy new years ya’ll
So, it’s 2009 now. What the heck? Here at Starship Amazing, we resolve to continue to make awesome music that we feel great about. Have the best year ever.
Kanye West - 808’s and Heartbreak (Review)
Let’s face it, where was Kanye going to go after Graduation? Doctorate would be a terrible album title. So, he basically wiped the slate clean and started from scratch. There’s no pitched soul samples, no multitude of guests, and almost no lines about money, hoes, and rims.
And right now, I don’t miss any of it.
808’s and Heartbreak is something entirely new for Kanye, and, really, something entirely new for pop. And that’s the key to enjoying this album. Don’t judge it as a Kanye record, or even as a hip-hop record, because that’s not where this thing is aimed. This is stark, hard-edged pop, and it should be evaluated as such.
When I heard the first single, “Love Lockdown”, I wondered what Kanye was getting into. No rapping? Auto-tune? Crazy talk! But after awhile, the song’s sound started to make sense. The fat, pulsing 808, the light, nimble piano, and those glorious, pounding drums in the chorus. This vibe basically extends throughout the entire album. The whole thing has this great stripped down, electronic, synthetic feeling, with just enough of the organic laid on top that human interaction becomes evident. Within this aesthetic, the auto-tune makes perfect sense. Something as natural and unpredictable as the human voice, forced into rigidity and near-perfection. Man and machine, as one. Or maybe I’m reading too much into it.
This is a different style for Kanye, but when it comes together, it is a thing to behold. There’s “Street Lights”, with it’s pulsating synth sitting atop a deep, simple piano, building into something grand and lush. Then there’s ”Paranoid”, dripping in 80’s glameur, and one of the few spots where Kanye falls back into a rap-style flow. Perhaps my favorite song is “Robocop”. The beat is almost almost industrial in nature, especially when the drill-like sounds come up as Kanye croons, “When did you become a Robocop?” The strings that are used with subtlety elsewhere on the album are let loose, and the only way to describe it is “glorious”.
If I was forced to find some fault with the album, however, it would have to be the lyrics. Kanye has never been all that lyrically tallented, even when he rapped, but in that context he could come up with some catchy and clever shit (e.g. “I’m like the fly Malcolm X, buy any jeans necessary”). But here, nothing is really all that memorable, and every once in a while, it’s cringe-worthy. But most of the time, the melody is good enough that the lyrics redeem themselves.
Overall, this is Kanye’s response to hard times. His mother’s death, his fiancé leaving him, and this is what comes out. History will probably view it as an oddity in his discography, and after this it’s likely that the “Louie Vuitton Don” will return. But even if it’s not the Kanye we’ve always loved, and even if it’s uneven in places, it’s an artist trying something new, and this time, it works.
purchase songs of the highest quality
There is a new link up there labeled “Store”. Here, I’ll give it to you again in case you’re lazy.
http://starshipamazing.bandcamp.mu/
Here you can buy songs from our new album, The Power of Science is Staggering, in a digital format. Really, the quality of these things can only be described as pristine. And for such a low price! 50 cents for each song, or 5 bucks for the whole album. Hell, if you like us enough, give us more! We’ll take it! Depending on how this works out, we’ll put Ultra-Modern Rhythms up there, too. Have a good time!
new songs dawg
Here is some new stuff we’ve been working on for the new album. They haven’t been put through the final gauntlet of EQ and compression or whatever, but the songwriting part is essentially done. I allowed comments on this post, so tell us what you think. They are tentatively titled “Watch Out” and “So Be It”.
let me give it to you straight
I haven’t really updated anything for a while, and it makes me feel guilty. So here’s an update on the new album:
It’s about robots.
It’s about humanity not knowing any better.
It’s about inviting a hurricane into your home.
It’s about getting what we deserve.
It’s about angry, vengeful automatons, their metal fist raised in defiance.
It’s about the system we’ve created swallowing us whole.
It’s about the one and the many.
Or maybe I’m being melodramatic.
Do you require more?
I just got a Twitter account. You should totally read about the boring minutia of my life.
hey jerks tell us what you think
Loyal listeners, we need your input. All of our albums are currently available for download completely for free, as 192 kbps MP3’s. Many people consider this less than appetizing, in terms of audio quality. Now, we aren’t quite ready to give away high-quality, lossless copies of our songs for free like we do with the MP3’s. We are, however, considering other options. One of these is selling high quality lossless copies of our albums through this website. Here’s how it would work.
- 5 bucks per normal full-length, with pricing being scalable for EP’s or a double albums.
- Our current releases will continue to be free in their current form, as lower-quality MP3’s.
- Future emissions will see a dual release. Free MP3’s and appropriately-priced lossless files.
- File types would hopefully include FLAC, Apple Lossless, AIFF, and WAV.
So, here’s where you come in. If we were to offer this service, would you partake? Is the price acceptable, or would you want to pay less? Hell, maybe you would you want to pay more. Do you have other suggestions? It would be great if you could give us your opinions on this system. Leave a comment on this blog post, or e-mail us at starshipamazing@gmail.com.
Now, album news! It’s almost done. Everything is written and recorded, and right now we’re working on some minor nitpick changes, along with getting things like the cover and liner notes finished. It will be on your computer as soon as possible.
…And I’m out. Dinner time.