Kanye West's new album, 'Swish': Another revolutionary work?

Critics hailed West's previous work, the 2013 album 'Yeezus,' as 'the work of one of the greatest creative minds working today' and 'the most musically adventurous album West has ever released.' 

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Julio Cortez/AP
Kanye West performs during the closing ceremony of the Pan Am Games in Toronto in 2015.

Music fans eager to learn more about rapper Kanye West’s upcoming album got a peek at the track list, courtesy of West himself.

West recently tweeted what appears to be a list of the songs on his upcoming album “Swish,” which will be released on Feb. 11. Tracks include such songs as “No More Parties in L.A.” and “Real Friends.”

West recently released “Parties,” which he created with rapper Kendrick Lamar, online as well as such songs as “Wolves,” which also appears on the track list for “Swish.”

“Swish” will be the artist’s eighth studio album. In the time since his previous work, 2013’s “Yeezus,” West has released such songs as “FourFiveSeconds,” which was a collaboration with singer Rihanna and musician Paul McCartney, as well as “All Day” (which also included McCartney).

Any work by West would be received with interest by some music fans. But the music community will no doubt be even more curious than usual to listen to “Swish” since it’s West’s newest album following the release of “Yeezus.” 

When it was released, “Yeezus” received many positive reviews from critics for its complexity and innovation. Reviewers wrote that the album is not always easy listening, with New York Times writer Jon Pareles writing that it “stays … combative … the tracks on “Yeezus” are raw and bumpy,” while Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune called it “hostile, abrasive (both sonically and lyrically) and intentionally off-putting.”

But Guardian staff picked “Yeezus” as the best album of the year, with Guardian writer Paul MacInnes writing, “The grand provocations in Yeezus are matched, step for step, by its craftsmanship… there's a sense of humour in there and a love of wordplay, too… ‘Yeezus’ is undoubtedly the work of one of the greatest creative minds working today.” 

And Los Angeles Times writer Randall Roberts called “Yeezus” "the most musically adventurous album West has ever released… a progressive, assured and kaleidoscopic rap album,” while Ray Rahman of Entertainment Weekly wrote of the work, “This album has the potential to mess with your whole year.” 

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