Kanye West - "Power"

First, he cooked up the hardest beat talent can buy. Then he pummeled it into submission. The outcome? A double dose of genius.

I'm about to break an unwritten rule of music criticism. The one about never proclaiming your unfettered love for any artist, song, or album. There's one main reason critics tend to restrain their enthusiasm when reviewing an artist. It's important for a music critic to remain fair and objective in order to maintain credibility.So, at the risk of throwing mine out of the window, I'd like to say that I'm in complete awe of "Power." It's all of 'Ye's finest qualities on display. It's the coruscating beat that brings "Power" to life. It's the triumphant chant. It's the hand claps. It's the vivid lyrics, replete with bumper-sticker worthy one-liners. Top it off with Dwele's infectious vocals and you've got the perfect comeback anthem, Kanye-style.

Kanye is an in-your-face lyricist. In the midst of a red-hot rhyming session ("This is way too much, I need a moment"), he pauses not to catch his breath but to announce that he's "killing this sh-t." You can call him narcissistic, but you can't call him a liar.