issue 8 // volume 44 From heartbreaks to twisted fantasies, part two > Kanye West's albums ranked Joshua Toevs Contributor his is a continuation of last week’s article about Kanye West’s top albums. Check the previous issue of the Other Press for the rest of the list. 3. Late Registration (2005) Late Registration is Kanye’s sophomore album and in a lot of ways it sounds like its predecessor, The College Dropout, but with a lot more of a financial backing behind it. Kanye struck while the iron was hot and released an album chock-full of beautiful melodies, catchy hooks, amazing use of samples, and an overall mastery of song-creation. Kanye smartly used high-profile singers like Adam Levine (Maroon 5), Chris Martin (Coldplay), and Jamie Foxx on hooks as opposed to relying on his average singing. From acommercial standpoint, Late Registration produced West's first number one record in “Gold Digger,” a song with an in-your-face kick drum, ’80s inspired sampling, and a very catchy key melody. The song is about a woman who only dates rich men (Usher, Busta Rhymes, et cetera) and is executed playfully allowing for repeat listens. For every fun record there is an equally dense social song, like the issue of blood diamonds on “Diamonds from Sierra Leone.” There are so many good cuts on the record. The chopped and screwed instrumental of “Drive Slow” leads to a true southern anthem, while “Touch the Sky” is every bit as egotistical and grandiose as Kanye West’s ego. The missteps are few and far between. The album loses a bit of momentum towards the end if only because the first two thirds of this record are near flawless, and tracks with a more New York boom bap flavor (“We Major”) feel out of place. An overall fantastic record that is close to perfect. Finding the Laugh Jed1 2. The College Dropout (2004) This album revolutionized what a hip-hop record could sound like as it is heavily influenced by soul music, which was foreign for the most part before this record. Kanye is very socially aware on this album. For example, on the track “All Falls Down,” he speaks about the need for material things to represent worth in the world while also noting how material goods illuminate how self-conscious we are as a society. One of his more controversial records, “Jesus Walks” looks at the idea of speaking about God ona mainstream level and why it can be looked down upon in comparison to drugs and sex. This theme is > ‘Improv Wars: The Laugh Jedi’ review Jerrison Oracion Senior Columnist wkekk he advance tickets of the next Star Wars film, Star Wars Episode VIL: The Last Jedi are available now, and most of them including early screenings are sold out. However, if you want to see something Star Wars- related while you wait for the film to be released, there is a show from the Vancouver TheatreSports League that has everything Star Wars with improv. Improv Wars: The Laugh Jedi has all the excitement of the Star Wars film series except that everything is improvised. In the show, laughter is starting to disappear in the galaxy, and a Jedi Master (Bill Pozzobon) asks the audience if they are members of the Jedi Council to help him find the Laugh Jedi and save the galaxy. In the first half of the show, six characters from the Star Wars universe both dead and alive try to get the title of the Laugh Jedi by doing various improv challenges. Since the show is improv, every performance is different and based off audience participation. In the performance | attended, we had Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, an Empire officer, Aunt Beru, C-3PO, and Jabba the Hutt. You will see other characters in the Star Wars universe in every show including Rey, Poe, and Princess Leia. As the first half progressed, characters were eliminated one by one until we found the Laugh Jedi. In arts // no. 9 66 As history as shown, Kanye made the right move to jump onto the mic.” Lae ADVISORY EXPLIGHE COUTE NT My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’ album cover done in an explanative way as opposed to forcing religion and God upon the listener. Kanye also speaks about his struggles to become recognized as a rapper due to his legendary status as a producer before trying to make it on his own. The specific song dealing with this, “Last Call” is half- song, half-story as West speaks about his time before getting a rapper deal. The deep cuts on this record are also tremendous. “Spaceship” sees West rap about being treated like crap at his job, unless black people were in the store. “Never Let Me Down’ is my personal favourite song of all time. With its knocking drum loop and a sped-up vocal performance by Tarrey Torae, the song sees Kanye, Jay-Z, and J. Ivy speaking about who they are doing this music for and how they will never let them down. J. Ivy steals the show with his spoken-word piece and it is worth the admission alone. It is goose-bump-inducing and adds a lot to an already perfect song. In general, this record announced that Kanye West is not just a producer but also a rapper. As history as shown, Kanye made the right move to jump onto the mic. 1. My Beautifiil Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010) Ihave been writing about music in different spaces for the better part of seven years now, and this record always finds a way to be talked about. There are so many things to unpack about this album. All the songs bring something different to the table, from the politically-charged “Gorgeous,” to the emergence of Nicki Minaj on “Monster,” this album blends so many different sounds. There are so many little things that Kanye does that keep you coming back. From the spoken-word piece on “Blame Game,’ to the transitioning from “All of the Lights” to “Monster” with a simple line (“I shoot the lights out”). This album plays out as a three- act play with aggressive Kanye leading the first act. He is defiant, cocky, and sometimes too smart for his own good. The second act (‘All of the Lights” to “Runaway”) shows the downfall of the ego as Kanye shows restraint, humility, and self-realization of his demons. Then the last act presents a full circle to West as he blends both versions of himself into the one that make him the mortal that he is. The production on this record is futuristic, aggressive, and complex. It incorporates choirs, string quartets, electric guitars, and live drums, all of which lead toa satisfying experience. The features are stellar: From Nicki on “Monster,” to Justin Vernon on multiple songs. Overall, this record blends genres and redefines them, and isa forefather to the current rap sphere. It is a perfect album and my favourite of all time. C C Six characters from the Star Wars universe both dead and alive try to get the title of the Laugh Jedi.” one challenge, Aunt Beru, C-3PO, and Jabba the Hut had to make a speech to the Galactic Senate. I suggested to them that they talk about taxes. I was laughing a lot during a challenge called Special Edition where two people who are in the league played two people from visual effects company Industrial Light & Magic, and the Jedi Master went ona rant about the many changes in the film series throughout the years. In the second half of the show, the character who is the Laugh Jedi tries to bring laughter back to the galaxy, the character who comes in second is led to the dark side by Palpatine, and the audience decides how the story continues. For the performance I saw, the empire officer was the Laugh Jedi, C-3PO was led to the dark side, and Yoda made an appearance in it. Jabba the Hutt spoke in his native language and this created a lot of funny moments in the performance. Throughout the show, there are references to what is happening in Canadian politics right now and millennials. Even if you are not a fan of Star Wars, there are jokes about not knowing about Star Wars for people in the audience who are unfamiliar with the series. The many references to Star Wars in the show caused it to feel almost like watching a film in the actual series. So, while you are preparing yourself for the next Star Wars film, you can keep yourself entertained with this funny show about Star Wars. Improv Wars: The Laugh Jedi is now playing at The Improv Centre until November 18.