808s & Heartbreaks Roc-a-Fella****: Hip-hop has been long fond of whinging. Weeping is another matter, which makes Kanye West's fourth album all the more remarkable.

Written after the break-up of a relationship and the death of his mother, the songs of 808s & Heartbreaksreveal a vulnerable and fragile performer. What makes these moods all the more eerie and alien are the sounds that West creates using the sparse clatter of a Roland 808 drum machine and the Auto-Tune vocal-pitch tool. The effects, stripped of the sampled breaks and beats that usually add texture and depth to his tracks, throw West's laments into previously unchartered terrain for a big-league rapper and make him sound as if he's abandoned in deepest space. As soul singers have shown over the years, heartbreak and tears can make for some hugely moving and emotional albums. In West's case, it's also the signal for what could be a promising creative rebirth. www.kanyewest.com Download tracks: Say You Will, Heartless, Amazing, Cold Winter