KANYE West's third album, Graduation, sees him move further towards the electronica influences which have shaped his distinctive sound. Even the cover artwork, with its Japanese cartoon-like sci-fi theme, makes it look like a dance album and not a hip-hop production.

This style is never more evident than in lead single Stronger, which not so much samples Daft Punk as lifts their entire track Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger verbatim and lays a rap on top.

West epitomises modern-day hip-hop, which was once a somewhat insular sub-genre but is now mainstream enough for collaborations with Chris Martin (Homecoming) and samples from Elton John (Good Morning) to be applauded, whereas a decade ago these might have meant career suicide.

But despite his groundbreaking approach and technical excellence, the majority of West's work has a melancholy feel and his lyrics continue to have the occasional air of hypocrisy about them.

On his first album, The College Dropout, he criticised designer-label consumerism, but would later release his own fashion line. On his second album, Late Registration, West rallied against bling culture with Diamonds From Sierra Leone, and yet has been known to sport "ice" himself.

This time, it is the Drunk and Hot Girls of the track name who come under fire, with West proclaiming he's "been through too much bullshit" to mess with them. While he is engaged and has remained a scandal-free figure, I'm not sure how convinced I am a man of his wealth, stature and notorious ego would allow himself to reject such advances.

Back to the music. Melancholy it may often be, but there is no denying West's work is superbly well crafted. It is, after all, as a producer where he made his name.

But, as is typical of producers who turn to rapping, West is nowhere near as strong on the mic as he is at the mixing desk. His songwriting is excellent - his lyrics are consistently complex and clever - but his vocals let him down. West's voice lacks character and his delivery tends to be either flat or forced.

Peers such as Diddy, Dr Dre and Timbaland suffer similarly, but get around this by liberally coating their albums with guest spots. West tries to carry long-players on his own but, for all his innovation and ambition, he can't quite manage it.