That's really a matter of opinion, don't you think? I think the songs are great. So does HartfordTheWhale, evidently. So does my fiancee, who didn't listen to or enjoy hip-hop growing up and finds most of it to be distasteful. Personally, I think the lyrics are highly interesting and insightful, calling out the shitty underside of our society (I especially liked the mention of the DEA and private prisons creating "new slaves," which is a comparison I've seen from quite a few educated individuals), and the music is creative and dark, though I wasn't quite as drawn to it as I was to My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, which is one of my favorite albums of all-time. Anyway, I view Kanye as an artist, not a hip-hop musician. I listen to Snoop and Jay-Z because I like hip-hop, but I listen to Kanye because I like art and poetry and deconstructing social constructs.
And then there's the first thing I said: it's a matter of opinion. You think the songs suck, and you're entitled to that opinion. But just because you think it doesn't mean your opinion speaks to any sort of true or objective nature of the songs.
Everyone's mentioning "Lover I Don't Have to Love," and while that is a great song that probably should be on here, WHERE is the love for "Haligh, Haligh, a Lie, Haligh"?? That is, IMO, the archetypal Bright Eyes song as well as the epitome of emotional, acoustic songwriting. I'm 26 and far removed from my days dying my hair black, but I still love that song and cover it on guitar all the time.
What's wrong with High Violet? I consider The National to be my favorite band, and I think both Boxer and High Violet are 5-star albums that are near perfect, but I'd still rate High Violet higher overall.
I agree that this list could include more Alligator and Boxer -- and "Brainy" is definitely not the second-best track on Boxer -- but there's nothing wrong with focusing on High Violet.
You had my interest, even my attention for a moment, but instead of ending with an intelligent or witty observation, you dissed a talented artist who's worked hard and is now getting his due, basically circumventing every point you just made. No respect. Not even a little.
I was totally expecting Ellen/Katy Perry to be #1.
http://cdn02.cdnwp.celebuzz.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/10/katy-perry-ellen-degeneres-portia-de-rossi-grammys-2013-1-580x435.jpg
No love for the song "ATLiens," even in the comments? Wow. It's the song that got me into Outkast!
Oh, and "B.O.B." is a better song than "Hey Ya" any day of the week.
Hahaha, my fiancee's name is Edie, and she has the weirdest dreams of anyone I've ever known... quite psychedelic, in fact. This is so funny... and a pretty good listen, too!
Great debate, but Yet Again, it seems that everybody's just Speaking in Rounds. There's certainly no Simple Answer to this question, but I feel that spending so much time on The Hunt for What's Wrong is only a Half Gate to what should be the focus -- not being Gun-Shy about improving the industry model of profit-sharing so that the Sun in the Eyes of musicians like Grizzly Bear is less blinding. They deserve much more of the pie than they currently receive, and that needs to change... now.
Oh shit... umm... Sleeping Ute. Yeah.
I'd like to contradict the hyperlink to this page: "...grizzly-bear-are-not-rich/news/" Sadly, it's not news; many of the best groups don't get a large enough percentage of the money that their music makes.
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