ye dropped bully and it actually slaps (mostly)


ok so ye dropped bully on march 28th and i've been sitting with it for a week now. been seeing a lot of takes online, pitchfork gave it a 3.4 which, be serious for once, and rolling stone was also being dramatic. ngl i think a lot of critics are reviewing the man and not the music at this point. so here's my actual take, track by track.

the highs (and they are HIGH)

FATHER with travis scott is a 10/10 and i will not be taking questions. that's the best thing ye has made in years, full stop. the energy, the production, travis actually showing up, everything just clicks. if the whole album was like that we'd be talking about a classic.

PREACHER MAN is a 9.8 and peak is genuinely the only word for it. the sample of The Moments' "To You With Love" is elite, the bass sits perfectly, the religious imagery actually lands. only reason it's not a 10 is that kanye's delivery feels a bit flat compared to the old AI voice demo versions that were floating around. which is ironic lmao. he literally re-recorded the vocals to remove the AI and somehow the AI sounded better. that's a sentence i never expected to type.

MAMA'S FAVORITE is a 9.5 and the bass goes absolutely stupid. the part at the end where his mom is speaking got me. PUNCH DRUNK is a 9/10, straight old kanye feel with a great sample, no notes. DAMN is a 9/10 too, ye's rapping is genuinely sharp there and i love it when he actually raps instead of just singing through autotune.

the midrange (aka the filler zone)

KING opens the album at an 8/10, good sample and the vocals work but some of the background effects are kind of annoying and distract from what could've been a cleaner opener. ALL THE LOVE is an 8.5, the sample is rough at the start and the autotune gets slightly overused but it recovers. WHATEVER WORKS is an 8.8 and i love when kanye just raps, no gimmicks, straight bars. SISTERS AND BROTHERS is an 8.5 but that constant buzzing noise in the background is actually driving me insane. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is an 8.5, just peak, no other notes needed. LAST BREATH with peso pluma is a 9/10, the spanish vibe works really well and i wasn't expecting to like it as much as i did.

CIRCLES with don toliver gets a 7 from most people but i'd say 8/10, i think it's slightly overhated. nothing special but it's fine. THIS IS A MUST is a 7.5, it's just kinda boring, the trap production feels a bit generic for ye. BULLY with ceelo green is also a 7.5 and just not really my vibe. THIS ONE HERE closes the album at an 8/10, nothing groundbreaking but it works as an outro.

the lowlights

I CANT WAIT and WHITE LINES are both 7/10 and they're basically the dead zones of the album. i cant wait has barely any kanye rapping which defeats the purpose, and white lines just doesn't have anything that makes it memorable. if you told me these were b-sides from a scrapped project i'd believe you.

verdict

8.5/10. look, ye is not making MBDTF again. that ship sailed. but bully is the best thing he's put out in years and at this point that's actually saying something. the production alone is worth your time, and when he's actually rapping and the sample work is cooking, it reminds you why you cared in the first place. just skip the filler tracks and pretend the album is 12 songs instead of 18.