This song was the jump off point for this alternative sound in mainstream rap and R&B
Period.
"Flashing Lights" received widespread critical acclaim from music critics and was widely regarded as the best song on Graduation. Alex Fletcher of Digital Spy highly approved of the single, awarding it a four-star review and asserting that it "easily demonstrates why West is the hottest property in US music at the moment. Mixing chilled-out electronics, jittering synths and laid-back, old-skool hip-hop, he creates a sumptuous track that grows more intriguing with every listen."[6] Billboard gave a favorable review, claiming that it "does a great job of reintroducing Miami Vice-esque keys."[7] Rolling Stone also gave the song a positive review, stating that within it, "West single-handedly takes hip-hop back to its pre-Run-DMC disco days."[8] PopMatters complimented "Flashing Lights" for its glitzy sound as well as its futuristic feel.[9]Stylus Magazine music reviewer Jayson Greene heralded the "gorgeously airy" single as "one of the most unabashedly graceful things heard on a commercial hip-hop record in years."[10]
"Flashing Lights" was listed as the 31st-best song of 2007 by Stylus Magazine.[11] The song was also listed at number 13 on Pitchfork's "The 100 Best Tracks of 2008".[12]It was later cited as the 52nd best song of the entire decade by Pitchfork, which wrote, "It's classic Kanye-- self-possessed, superfluously art-ridden, probably too clever by half. In Kanye's post-everything museum, da Vinci sidles up next to a bust of Julius; a Karen O-repping blog post follows one dedicated to 10-ft. tall "Chewing Gum Sculptures"; Parisian house mingles with stadium hip-hop. 'But what do I know?' goes the hook, pop-pushing curiosity still intact."[13]
