I’ve never been one to pay attention to lyrics much when listening to music. I’m not sure exactly why this is, but I liken it to the fact that I’ve never had the attention span to enjoy poetry either. Hence, I’m perfectly happy listening to electronic and other kinds of instrumental music. When I do listen to music with lyrics, the singer is often more of an instrument than a medium for language – e.g., Sigur Ros, Radiohead, Bjork, David Bowie, etc. And once I’ve listened to a record enough times, the lyrics eventually soak in and I can often appreciate them – e.g., Sufjan Stevens, Flaming Lips, Elliot Smith, etc.

I imagine my lack of attention to lyrics is why I’ve never been heavily into hip-hop. There, the beats and samples are often repeated ad infinitum because the focus of the music is on the rap. Sometimes a beat can really draw my attention, but its usually not enough for me to get really into. Independent rap often focuses much more on poetic/progressive lyrics, so I haven’t been drawn in that direction either, although I’ve been a huge fan of Prefuse 73 throughout his career, perhaps because he specializes in instrumental hip-hop. There are exceptions of course: Outkast, Eminem, CloudDEAD, Saul Williams, and Common have all been a source of enjoyment for me. In these cases, the lyrics stand out as excellent especially in the context of a good beat and striking melody.

And now: Kanye West with Late Registration. (I still haven’t heard The College Dropout.) I bought this record for two reasons, both of which indicate how out of touch I am with hip-hop in the first place:

1. I heard that Jon Brion (singer/songwriter; producer of Fiona Apple; film composer for Magnolia, Punch Drunk Love, and I Heart Huckabees) co-produced the album
2. “George Bush doesn’t care about black people”

I had just finished installing the sound system at our new place and as we slept – on sleeping pads, since we didn’t have a mattress yet – I put on Late Registration, the volume level quite low. I couldn’t hear much what Kanye and his guests were singing/rapping, but I instantly loved the melodies, the instrumentation, and its overall musical sensibility. The next day I listened to it again, this time much louder, and knew that the appeal from the previous night wasn’t a byproduct of exhaustion. This is a fantastic album, masterfully produced, both dead serious and intelligently witty. The lyrics are still sinking in, but I can already tell that Kanye West is a master lyricist, and producer. Brion’s contributions are obvious, but somehow his cabaret touches mesh well with Kanye’s restrained bombasity.

And Kanye is interesting in that he doesn’t play the larger-than-life game that most hip-hop personalities have reveled in. His mother is a college professor and his father a Black Panther turned photojournalist. He’s from Chicago. He doesn’t rap about hoes or shooting rivals unless he’s satirizing hip-hop. He doesn’t wear gangsta clothing. And his personality and demeanor are a little bit… nerdy.

This is a must-hear album, no matter your musical proclivities. And if you like it, check out Common’s album Be from earlier this year (and produced by… Kanye West). These are two of the best albums of the year, mainstream or otherwise.

Highlights: Touch the Sky, Roses, Diamonds from Sierra Leone (Remix), We Major

N.B. Also check out the “George Bush doesn’t care about black people” remix of Gold Digger that recently appeared on the internet.