Mark

To anyone who didn't get tickets, last time round, I got tickets for the arena shows because I thought this was a last chance to see them or something, what with the rumours of them just wanting to do singles, and "scale down". I got tickets for that, for the stadium shows, and then for the Reading performance after that. There will always be another chance to see them. Don't worry too much! :)

Find a friend who also plays an instrument. If you want to be in a band, it's better to do it with friends.

Thanks for your time. I didn't intend to "prove you wrong", I'm simply stating why I like it, why many others may like it. It's a big record, but he can get away with it, because he's a big personality, is that what you mean? If critics have genuinely said that - I've not read a single review of the record - then that's not something I agree with. I believe he can get away with the grandiosity because he rarely wastes time. There's always something exciting going on, apart from So Appalled, which goes on two minutes too long. I think there is plenty of variation on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Many of the tracks are rock-influenced, there's swaggering R&B, pop, stadium-pop/rock, more traditional hip-hop... yet it's cohesive. Again, I don't think it goes on too long, but that's just me. If there's one thing that the album has in abundance though, it's variation. How exactly is his flow getting worse? I don't see that. He's as good as he's ever been for me, and matched Jay-Z toe to toe on Watch the Throne. He might not take on any new subjects to talk about, but the balance between the ego and the vulnerability makes this record a lot more downbeat than the first three, and a lot more vibrant than 808s. I think it sums him up pretty well. It's the best expression we'll ever get of Kanye West, I feel. I do mean that they are inspired, and diverse, because My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is a Kanye West album. It's pretty mainstream. And I can't think of any other festival-headlining rapper that would sample King Crimson and Gil-Scott Heron on the same record. I love both albums with a passion. Endtroducing..... got me into producing, Since I Left You I discovered a few months back. Both brilliant alternative hip-hop records. But that's exactly what they, alternative. I'm not taking anything away from those guys, but do you think they'd choose the same samples if they made something more commercial? Is My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy solely a rap album? It doesn't have a true hip-hop spirit, really. It's mainstream, but it's not quite pop. I don't think it's as easy as to say "these people did it first" because it's unique, it fits into so many boxes, and yet none of them. And Madvillainy is fantastic, you're correct. I have listened to it, it's one of the best of any genre of the last decade. Of any decade, to be fair. But My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is a completely different kettle of fish. And this is why it's so good. Because it doesn't sound like any hip-hop record that's come before, but it was still commercial and it didn't alienate Kanye fans, and it had a degree of fine artistry that he'd never quite pulled off before. That not many 30-million-song-selling artists have pulled off. When people remember Kanye West, they'll rank him alongside Jay-Z, Nas, Common, Kid Cudi, Drake, Eminem, Lil Wayne, those kind of guys. How many of them have released something as good as Fantasy? The thing about the substance, again, don't just look at Kanye, look at the guests, the choruses, maybe the lyrics aren't your thing, but I think he's got a hell of a lot better. It's thoughtful, varied and a vast improvement on his previous work. But that's just my opinion. Yeah, it's flawed, most albums are. But when I said it was the greatest hip-hop record in recent memory, I speaking subjectively. It's totally different to Madvillainy, which I am also a fan of, so I'm not going to say one's better than the other, because both have their positives, and both have made separate impacts. But like I said from the start, no one expected Kanye West to release a record as good as My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. He's one of the most famous popstars in the world, and to record an album of such scope, variety and pomposity, it's unique amongst his peers. And hey, an Aphex Twin sample is pretty inspired. It's not the most obscure, but it's beautiful, it fits the piece, and it sounds like it was written for that song, which is what all good samples should do, right?

It's all very well doing the sci-fi, just have a bit of feeling behind it as well. If I wanted to hear about totalitarianism and panspermia, I'd read a book about it. I want a bit of expression, feeling, and something beyond sixth form love poetry.

I don't think it's much of a change. It's more apocalyptic, political, classical-fused-guitar-hero rock, and all I want to hear from the band is something with the heart of Unintended and the delicate beauty of Blackout. I'm fed up of all the sci-fi bollocks. I'm too old for it. I want Muse to prove that they're human, and that they can write songs to move me again.

Minus Glasto :P

You make some fair points, but I still believe it's the greatest hip-hop record in recent memory. Firstly, albums are often judged by the artist in reviews. I don't think that's a bad thing to be honest; obviously not every musician is as good as the next, but that shouldn't hinder anyone who wants to make good music. I think that the reason that bands like the Beatles, Stone Roses and Oasis were so huge is not only because of the music, but because they're working class people who can't read or write music. If Radiohead had created something as huge as My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, it would've been praised, but critics would've picked up on the flaws you point out. As it is, it was Kanye, a man who's spent his life living in Jay-Z's shadows and appointed protegees, Kid Cudi and Lupe Fiasco, who are both handier than him when it comes to penning lyrics. The fact that Kanye is the name on the album is important; no one expected someone like him to create something like that. Secondly, the College Dropout and Late Registration are both actually longer than My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Not only longer in length, but there are eight more tracks on each; My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy may only have four tracks under five minutes (plus the All of the Lights interlude and Who Will Survive in America), but I'd say only So Appalled outstays its welcome and goes on too long. Thirdly, you talk about style over substance, but I believe there's a fair deal of substance on this record. Kanye's lyrics are more varied in subject on My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and he seems to often torture himself in songs like Runaway, something he's never done, but something that sounds extremely natural for him, and is often quite affecting. It depends how you judge someone lyrically of course, but he's not only become more thoughtful and quotable on this record, but he's using his voice in different ways, via singing, contorting it on Runaway, the effects on Blame Game etc. He seems to effortlessly match the backing; if the track needs egotist, brand-dropping Kanye, he delivers something of Power calibre, if the track needs wounded, heartbroken Kanye, he delivers Runaway. Which by the way, is one of the greatest R&B ballads of the past decade. If you want more substance, Nicki Minaj's verse is quite simply earth-shattering (and the only decent thing she's ever recorded), Rihanna, John Legend Bon Iver, Pusha T, Elton John and Jay-Z all turn in performances that rank alongside their solo work, and the choice of samples - from the chorus of Dark Fantasy, to King Crimson in Power, Bon Iver in Lost in the World, Manfredd Mann, Aphex Twin and the late great Gil Scott-Heron - it's all simply inspired. No one else has ever been so diverse, and no one is trying what Kanye was trying when this was released. The greats I named earlier also released records that pushed against what was going on in music and delivered what was actually needed; OK Computer, Revolver, Stone Roses, Definitely Maybe. If we're talking hip-hop, what does My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy mean in 2010 that the Blueprint didn't in 2001? What about The Low End Theory, the Marshall Mathers LP or Three Feet High and Rising? The album's received such acclaim because it's just simply so ambitious, so lushly textured and so finely detailed. And all of this from an arrogant, clumsy producer-come rapper who many thought had already reached his peak. It sounds - to me - like the album that Coldplay were trying to make on Mylo Xyloto; I've heard fun. and the Big Pink claim that it's been a major influence to them, and I'm sure that it'll go down as one of the most influential records of the decade.

It's not a troll. That's not their style.

It's a delicate issue, but all I'll say is that I believe it was blown out of all proportion because West is a black, 30-something male, and Swift is an white female, and was a teenager at the time of the incident. He did exactly the same thing to Justice - a pair of white, 30-something, French males - at another awards ceremony. No coverage whatsoever. I'm not saying what he did was morally right, but if the incident had been Swift interrupting Kanye, I think it would've been laughed off. Institutionalized racism of the media? Maybe, but colour is only a single factor. The fact it was an older man stopping a young woman is more prominent, added to the fact that Taylor Swift is a blonde, American country singer... Well, she's very 'American', if you like. Can't help but feel that there wouldn't have been as much fuss if someone more Hispanic, like J-Lo had been involved. For what it's worth, I respect him for standing up and saying what he thought. We all sit back and moan at the choice of winners during these things; Kanye had the balls to say what he thought, and I respect that. There are better ways of doing it, however...

This ^ The man is a true genius. The whole Taylor Swift thing is ridiculous; without delving into why what happened caused such a furore, there are race and gender issues there. What no one can deny is that Kanye has reinvented modern hip-hop, influenced R&B more than any other artist in the last decade, and he is continuing to meld disparate genres into his work. How many artists, regardless of genre would create an album as colourful, indulgent, versatile and yet cohesive as My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy? He summed it up best when he said that he can't sing or dance, but he still wants to be the greatest popstar ever. He has more ambition than any two-bit pop puppet and he's someone that we should celebrate in a world of increasing mediocrity.

Plastic Beach by Gorillaz I still hold as one of the best pop records of late. Parklife is another one. I guess that's not what you mean by pop though?

Got the vinyl. Beautiful art. Gorgeous music.

Up there with the very best gigs I've ever been to. Setlist was almost perfect, the energy from the band was incredible and the atmosphere was lovely. They really put in so much effort. Also, everyone around me seemed really nice, met a couple of nice people. If any of you are on here, it would be nice to speak to you to see what you thought of the gig! I was the one who started rapping Jay-Z about 30 seconds before it came on, then rapped the whole thing with my sister :P I was about here too...

http://www.nme.com/list/100-best-tracks-of-the-00s/269740/page/10 Really bloody surprised to see Blur number 8 on this list, but it's well-deserved. First song I ever learnt the solo of on guitar. Just such a beautiful song, words don't do it justice.

You don't actually get cheese in cheesecake though, do you? You don't in the ones I make anyway. Not that I like cheesecake. And strictly speaking it should be a biscuit, not a cake.

I don't think anyone can ever say there'll never be another Blur album, but an album was the rumour. They're all in a better place than they ever have been, and no one's expecting it, so why not?

Lol.

For anyone looking for digital keyboards, the Yamaha MOX8 is amazing. It's £1,300 (About $2000?) but it's worth about double. It's not the priciest Yamaha keyboard, but it has pretty much all the sounds of the priciest one, it's light, which is good for transporting, it sounds immaculate, and the keys are weighted. I'd recommend it for live purposes, probably not best for a home piano.

Rumours are that Blur are recording a new album and that William Orbit has been dropped from producer duties... ...Can anyone confirm/deny?

Thanks for listening. It's not for everyone!

http://ilostmycell.ytmnd.com/ Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. Ha.

This! I love the bit in Brianstorm with the drum fill from Helders, the pause and then everyone strumming, and Al shouting "THUNDER" or the "when there's people like you" in Teddy Picker... I think my all-time favourite is Dance Little Liar. Slow-burning, moody, and that solo just blows all away.

I think Alex is one of few true poets in music. People talk about great lyricists, and they mention Dylan, Lennon, Gil Scott Heron, maybe more recently they talk about Jay-Z, Damon Albarn, Thom Yorke, Frank Turner, Scroobius Pip. But poetry is the misbehaviour of language. It's about playing with words, cadence, flow and rhyme, and it's as much about how the words fall into place as what the words mean. All these lyricists have something to say, and that's great in its own way, but Alex is the only songwriter I can think of that is considered so great, but doesn't really have a point behind what he's saying. It's just all about the language. If you look at Library Pictures, Cornerstone, Crying Lightning, Only Ones Who Know, he's not really trying to say anything. He paints a beautiful picture with his images, and the words flow spectacularly, but he's not trying to start a revolution with his lyrics. That's what I think true poetry is, anyway.

Since Kartica were shared on this section of the forum, I thought I might as well share my band. We have a free album, which hopefully makes this shameful self-plugging okay :P http://circuitchase.bandcamp.com/

It is, and then he opens his mouth and says something like "comfortable shoes" or "curly straws and metaphors and goo". :D