The Popcast is hosted by Jon Caramanica, a pop music critic for The New York Times. It covers the latest in pop music criticism, trends and news.

Seven songs, less than 24 minutes and no shortage of emotional baggage — welcome to “Ye.”

The new album by Kanye West, released on Friday, was bound to be polarizing, given the rocky few weeks in the life of the rapper. (Declaring a kinship with Donald J. Trump’s “dragon energy” was only the beginning.) And yet upon its landing — first via scenic live stream from Wyoming and then through more traditional channels — the album still managed to shock with its immediacy, its rough edges, its moments of serenity and its lack of concrete answers.