Though the album is not, strictly stylistically speaking, a gospel record, its steadfast call to worship is its defining feature. Like many of West’s later albums, Jesus Is King is filled with songs that echo earlier moments in his catalog. I didn’t want to do this. Life is not black and white, and neither is the experience of communing with any god. Kanye West released his new gospel album Jesus is King and we have your album review right here. Beyond superficial gestures at biblical references and the capitalist leanings of American prosperity gospel, there is virtually no indication here as to what it means to follow Jesus. Voice straining, he literally tries to enumerate what God is to him. The title was a play on words comparing himself to Mahatma Gandhi, but God had other plans. Elsewhere, the stark, confrontational attitude of 2013’s Yeezus is echoed in the battle drums that propel “Selah.” His raspy pleading on “Water” recalls the era of loosies that produced “Only One” and “FourFiveSeconds.” Throughout, Auto-Tuned vocals draw a line from 2008’s 808s & Heartbreak all the way through to the anguish of Pablo. On Jesus Is King, Kanye’s rap world becomes one big Sunday Service. Ostensibly a love song directed at Kim Kardashian West, he solemnly intones “Hold the selfies, put the ‘Gram away / Get your family, y’all hold hands and pray.” It doesn’t work (and makes less sense when he elaborates). The gospel-soul sample deployed on “God Is” harkens to his early days as an in-house producer at Roc-A-Fella. If West’s mission is, as he told Zane Lowe in an interview last week, to convert people to Christianity, he’ll likely have to search a little deeper. There is not enough depth here to distract from his politics, or to complicate them. I really didn’t. n/a; Lossless Digital). Though it will likely be placed alongside last year’s ye as a distinctly lightweight entry in his canon (thanks in part to a brisk 27-minute runtime), the album reminds us that even West’s lesser work can be capable of extreme dynamism. Revelations in recent weeks—that he admonished his wife for wearing tight clothes, asked collaborators to abstain from premarital sex, and began keeping a Christian scorecard that includes limiting himself to two curse words a day—suggest his interpretation of the gospel has been more dogmatic than faithful. “I don’t attest to any religion that tells me that other people gotta go to hell,” West said in 2008. In This Article: Pitchfork is the most trusted voice in music. And I don’t really believe in any of that. B-HOP. Lately, West is not as dedicated to stirring up controversy on record as he is speaking off the cuff. Introduction to Kanye. As West sells it, figuratively and literally, Jesus Is King is a repudiation of his past sin, an absolution, a blank slate from which to spread the word of a very specific God, one whose blessings rain down on a cul-de-sac in Calabasas and a ranch in Jackson Hole. All things considered, Jesus Is King is chaotic, but not a bad album by any means. JESUS IS KING is an album that perfectly describes the state of Kanye's faith journey...in process. Lyrically, the music sounds as if West picked up a Bible yesterday, took everything at face value and decided to make an album about it. But in typical Westian fashion, the song dramatically shifts, and very nearly redeems itself. While critics always focused — unfairly — on West’s technical prowess, a forceful clarity of vision was never in question. It’s no secret that West’s albums are often mined from whatever it is he’s thinking about at that moment, but before his latest pivot he at least tried to add punchlines to his verses. In 1964, in the small, rural community of Longdale, Mississippi, a group of black worshippers at the Mount Zion Methodist Church were ambushed by the Ku Klux Klan. From his breakout “Jesus Walks” to last year’s ye, religion has always been, if not a fixation, than a thematic concern, something to pick at and analyze, to mythologize and aid in his own self-mythologization. Kanye West: Jesus Is King review – rap genius can't see the light. But in typical Westian fashion, the song dramatically shifts, and very nearly redeems itself. Unfortunately, it’s the sort of work that would have made this album into something transcendent. The scope here is narrow, a distillation that clearly brings West some measure of comfort, but it comes with a simplification of the music itself. Truth be told, it is one we should find familiar because it is the story of us all. Though Jesus Is King offers some resolution to the darkness hinted at on Pablo, it lacks the deeply human searching that made that album effective and moving. Kanye West never stopped talking about God. Jesus Is King, an Album by Kanye West. Three years and a religious rebirth later, the motif returns on West’s ninth album, Jesus Is King. Reviews . Comparing Kanye albums is difficult because of the stark contrast between their content and their time of release, and because Kanye West is an amazing artist who has had an undeniable influence over rap and the music industry. Christianity is the unwavering focus of Kanye’s gospel album, a richly produced but largely flawed record about one man’s love of the Lord (and himself). If Thou withdraw Thyself from me, where shall I go?” Improbably, the Klansmen retreated. That has something against Muslims. This one-of-a-kind experience features songs arranged by West in the gospel tradition along with new music from his forthcoming album. It’s the kind of drama West can orchestrate in his sleep, and few others can convincingly execute. Like every Kanye West album, Jesus Is King is filled with moments of undeniable brilliance. “JESUS IS KING,” on the other hand, is very scattered in its themes and musical palette. This one-of-a-kind experience features songs arranged by West in the gospel tradition along with new music from his forthcoming album. It’s the kind of drama West can orchestrate in his sleep, and few others can convincingly execute. Almost . Album Review: Kanye West’s ‘Jesus Is King’ The artist's ninth album contains flashes of inspiration — divine and otherwise — but that's all. Nowhere is the view muddier than on “Closed On Sundays,” featuring a newfound, poorly articulated dedication to women’s purity in the social media age. In the midst of the chaos, a woman named Beatrice Cole launched into a spoken prayer of despair: “Father, I stretch my hand to Thee, no other help I know. The attackers, some of whom were allegedly dressed in police uniform, broke one man’s jaw, viciously beat others, and ultimately burned the building to the ground. It’s an album of slogans, dashed-off and too short, and as he continues to test the edge between spontaneous and half-finished, it gets harder to ignore the facts hovering outside the frame. The day of deliverance has arrived. Jesus Is King Review: A Story of Redemption. TheDyingSun . "Jesus is King," the album, doesn't fare much better. God saves, and that’s all you need to know of the matter. He’s always presented as religious—“Jesus Walks” imagined the club as a holy temple back in 2004; the Kardashians’ labored, glamorous Easter photos have become something of an annual tradition; Pablo was explicitly an album about faith—and yet the timing is notable. It is a markedly more cohesive and enjoyable album than I believed him capable of creating at this juncture. The sample of a 1974 tune by Christian soul act Whole Truth on “Follow God” is neck-snappingly good, the kind of textured punch that, still, only West seems capable of; the effervescent triumph of the “On God” beat, the result of a Pi’erre Bourne collaboration, is one of the most immediate joys available on Spotify right now; “Use This Gospel” is a glowing deployment of the stylistic muscle West developed on 2013’s, However, the strength of those moments are often derailed by the presence of West himself. Loved it, as well as the album. Arcadia Episode 002 - JESUS IS KING REVIEW. Unfortunately, it’s the sort of work that would have made this album into something transcendent. And with Jesus Is King, he’s simply given us the religious episode of it. “How you got so much favor on your side?/‘Accept him as your lord and savior,’ I replied,” he raps on “On God.”. Categories: All, Reviews, US Rap Tags: Clipse, GOOD Music, IMAX, Jesus Is King, Jesus Is King Album, Jesus Is King Album Review, Jesus Is King Review, Kanye, Kanye West, Kanye West Jesus Is King, Kim Kardashian, No Malice, Pusha T, Sunday Service, Ty Dolla Sign Jesus is King is dedicated to Sharing the Good News that Jesus is King of all Creation. Here, he often cedes a point of view, or any sort of detail. The writing that pulls off that difficult task seems woefully out of reach on. On Jesus Is King, West’s relationship to Christianity and the Church is simpler. The maximalism of his leather-skirt phase is all over the expansive soundscape of “Use This Gospel,” whose Kenny G sax solo might be the 2019 equivalent of throwing Elton John onto a hook, just because you can. "Jesus is King" presents audiences with a difficult predicament: the film's content is fascinating, innovative and even inspirational. . While they’re all top notch, Closed on Sunday is so good that it can stand alone. On. The Chicago rapper and producer is far from shy when it comes to hailing his own talents, but given the quality of his long-awaited and oft-delayed new album, Jesus is King… Nowhere is the view muddier than on “Closed On Sundays,” featuring a newfound, poorly articulated dedication to women’s purity in the social media age. It's visually stunning, that utilizes all of the #IMAXmovie format & feels like a IMAX movie than a theatrical movie, and gives the viewer a. Jesus Is King is a spiritual work thanks to its deep feeling -- pure expression brought to today's calamitous social condition. The scope here is narrow, a distillation that clearly brings West some measure of comfort, but it comes with a simplification of the music itself. JESUS IS KING is an album that perfectly describes the state of Kanye's faith journey...in process. Filmed in the summer of 2019, Jesus Is King brings Kanye West’s famed Sunday Service to life in the Roden Crater, visionary artist James Turrell’s never-before-seen installation in Arizona’s Painted Desert. Description. But there's painfully little of it to justify the admission. Kanye’s rise is inseparable from his drive to prove people wrong: 15 years ago, a host of detractors told Kanye not to rap — he dedicated a 13-minute spoken-word outro to the struggle on his debut album — and the world would be worse off if he’d listened. certainly has moments echoing some of his less endearing public turns — briefly referencing the 13th Amendment, retrograde riffing on women staying off Instagram, claims that merch sales count as tithing — it’s typically getting more tough to grasp what, exactly, he’s trying to say. , but it admirably lays out what West is attempting to do. What seems wholly different on Jesus Is King is that those inconsistencies are almost completely absent. By Andrew Barker On Jesus Is King, West’s relationship to Christianity and the Church is simpler. It’s not the highest peak available, but it’s one of the only plainly endearing sections. The most interesting moment, thematically, comes in the inherent tension between a reunited Clipse—Pusha-T and his older brother No Malice—on “Use This Gospel” for the first time in several years and at different stages of self-reflection. It goes without saying that the Jesus Is King film is intended for Kanye West devotees. Discover Arcadia Arcadia Episode 002 - JESUS IS KING REVIEW. Here, he often cedes a point of view, or any sort of detail. Jesus Is King clocks in at just 27 minutes—slightly longer than the stump of an album that was Ye—and feels heavy on shortcuts and light on tension. “I don’t believe in a religion that has something against gay people. You know? The stylish and cold Jesus Is King movie worked along the same lines—bringing iPhone maximal-minimal sleekness to a millennia-old institution. "Jesus is King," the album, doesn't fare much better. , is his first to be classified as religious music, it’s also the latest entry in a public diary West has been writing for 15 years, in which his relationship with Christianity is constantly shifting. Such was the power of the gospel. It’s a fascinating fusion of gospel and hip-hop that keeps the listener engaged throughout, although the brevity of … Kanye West is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, entrepreneur, and fashion designer.