Since The Life Of Pablo, Kanye hasn’t had the mind to “finish” his albums. Kanye albums have become sketchbooks, dream-pads, impressions, feelings, and vibes. So here we have another album Kanye released under the pressure of artificial self-imposed deadlines. And I have no problem with that because Kanye is an artist who is committed (for better or worse) to always putting out the purest and most unfiltered portrait of who he is and what he believes.
Jesus Is King is a look into the mind of a recent convert (“born again Christian”) and his journey to peace, happiness, and most importantly, his resurrection. Filled with Kanye’s brilliant production that we all know him for, the album features a wide array of diverse instrumentals. Kanye sticks to the theme throughout with bars relating to Christianity, without being too preachy, and with the addition of his Sunday Service Choir.
With that said Jesus is King is still chock full of vintage Kanye tropes; there are the bangers “On God” and “Follow God,” beautiful soul/gospel moments “God Is” and “Every Hour,” anthems “Use The Gospel” (which he compared to a soccer melody at the Detroit “Jesus Is King Experience”), moody cool slow songs with corny lyrics (what’s a Ye album without corny bars?) “Closed on Sunday,” gritty twisted weird sounds “Hands On,” beat switches & spazzes “Selah,” and pop hits “Everything We Need.” And finally, there’s “Water” which is a total vibe; a song where Ant Clemons’s perfect vocals float over the obscure Bruce Haack’s “Blow Job” to blissful effect. the album feels slight and ragged but also bright and elated. It’s a fascinating twist in the discography of Kanye West. I’m a fan of this weird diversion. Bravo, Kanye, for always keeping us guessing.
With most other Kanye albums, one of their most entertaining qualities is the ridiculously arrogant, introspective, and comically self-centered lyrics. But with Jesus Is King, everything is dialed back, and instead, Kanye’s faith is on full display. I’m very much a fan seeing this more personal side, as we did in 808s & Heartbreak and Ye, which were masterpieces in encapsulating emotional vulnerability. In similar likeness to those albums, I like how he feels more open to singing. It leads to unexpected and more memorable moments like the moving ballad “God Is,” that sees Kanye straining to reach into his upper register, but with a level of sincerity that ends up being quite refreshing.
Sonically, the record sounds great. It often sounds as majestic as you’d expect religious experiences to be, especially when Kanye’s accompanied by the amazing Sunday Service Choir. There’s a surprising number of organic-sounding tracks on Jesus Is King, something I wish we heard more of. On the other hand, I’m also fond of the somewhat minimalistic, clearly digital sound he experiments with on tracks like “On God” and “Water.” The latter also shows Kanye doing something I was positively surprised to hear; him just floating around in some soundscape, making it almost feel like a live recording, similar to his Coachella performance of the song. This can also be heard on “Follow God” and the outro, “Jesus Is Lord.”
My only gripe with the album is that the mixing on the vocals is sub-par, however, the rest of the album, production-wise, sounds stellar.
Like most Kanye albums, I feel that this album wouldn’t have been criticized as much if another artist made it, but no other artist could make this album. Jesus Is King is pure Kanye and I love it.
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