Lou Reed Reviews 'Yeezus'

Rock legend and musical pioneer, Lou Reed, shared his two cents on the much-hyped release of Kanye West‘s Yeezus, and he’s breaking it down, track by track, lyric by lyric. Taking to TalkHouse – a new social platform engineered for musicians to talk music — the Velvet Underground mastermind is picking at the good, the bad, and what he considers to be the “same old sh*t.”

With “Guilt Trip” bringing the rock star to tears, to the lyrical humor behind “getting head from nuns,” Reed’s sure to point out the album’s moments of “supreme greatness” and musical genius. He talks of Ye’s unparalleled shock factor, his ability to “challenge” and “dare” his audience, and how

“he’ll pile on all this sound and then suddenly pull it away, all the way to complete silence, and then there’s a scream or a beautiful melody, right there in your face.  That’s what I call a sucker punch.”

Some of Ye’s work might be a little too “perverse” for Reed — to the point it’s “begging people to attack him,” and despite Reed’s love for certain tracks, some of the productions are just plain “sh*t.” But despite the flatulent “typical synth buzz saw” synth in “On Sight,” and the contradictory lyrics in “New Slaves,” according to Reed, one thing’s for sure:

“it’s like a synth orchestra. I’ve never heard anything like it — I’ve heard people try to do it but no way, it just comes out tacky. Kanye is there. It’s like his video for “Runaway,” with the ballet dancers — it was like, look out, this guy is making connections. You could bring one into the other — ballet into hip-hop — they’re not actually contradictory, and he knew that, he could see it immediately. He obviously can hear that all styles are the same, somewhere deep in their heart, there’s a connection. It’s all the same shit, it’s all music — that’s what makes him great. If you like sound, listen to what he’s giving you. Majestic and inspiring.”

Do you agree with Lou Reed’s breakdown of Yeezus? Give us your thoughts in the comments below.