Try as I might, I couldn’t see my way clear to including Kanye West’s 808s and Heartbreaks on my list of 2008′s best. Too much Auto Tune, too little mischief, not enough of the entertaining ego-tripping that characterized his previous albums. That characteristic braggadocio was replaced by whinging regret, an angry longing and a conceit that Auto Tune alone can turn someone into a bonified crooner. (It can’t.)
But at the same time, I couldn’t dismiss it entirely. I left it on my iPod, letting shuffle find tracks on occasion and usually letting them play out. I started to think of it as a friend going through a rough patch. Even with the misplaced emotions, the production values were still incredibly high, so 808s could put on a brave sonic face. Basically, I couldn’t abandon it, but I knew it needed time to itself. Maybe 808s needed therapy?
Then I thought, maybe what poor little 808s needs isn’t therapy, but some good company. 808s needs musical friends. And maybe a new voice to vent some frustrations. So here it is. Borne from my concern about Kanye’s 808s‘ emotional well-being, I give you Wrath of Khanye.
A warning … this is perhaps the most geek-tastic mix I’ve ever done. Put it this way: I love hip-hop, late 70s pop funk, electronic soul, unexpected covers … and sci-fi, Star Trek in particular. All of that is in here. Seriously.
So get your headphones. Download. Let’s go.
Source Tracks (In Order of Appearance):
- “Heartless” – Kanye West
- “I Want To Be Your Man” – Zapp & Roger
- “Heartbreaker (Part I, Part II)” – Zapp & Roger
- “A View To A Kill” – Hollywood, Mon Amour
- “I Just Realized (Tom Moulton Mix)” – The Brand New Heavies
- “Amazing” – Kanye West
- “No One’s Gonna Love You (Blackbeard Rework)” – Nicole Willis & The Soul Investigators
- “Love Lockdown” – Kanye West
- “They Were Lyin’” – Ayah
- “Brave New World” – The Foreign Exchange
- “Paranoid” – Kanye West
- “Green Light” – John Legend (featuring Andre 3000)
- “Say You Will” – Kanye West
- “Sick” – Sam Sparro
- “I Can’t Give You Up” – Smoove & Turrell
- “Welcome to Heartbreak” – Kanye West
- “Everywhere” – Common (featuring Martina Topley)
- “That Girl” – Esthero
(And yes, if you ask nicely, I will go back and split the 48-minute mix into tracks.)
