Hip Hop Album Reviews

Cocoa Brovas, Smif-n-Wessun presents: Tek & Steele "Reloaded"

2005-10-06T20:52:00.001-04:00

Coming shortly!

Tragedy Khadafi, Thug Matrix (2005)

2005-10-06T20:52:00.000-04:00

Coming shortly!

AZ, AWO*L (2005)

2005-09-07T01:51:00.000-04:00

A*W*O*L is quite literally AZ's best record yet. Going into this one I knew of the mark of consistency set by the usually rock solid Brooklyn artists, yet I didn't expect this exceptional feat. His cadence has apparently been perfected, the flow is impervious, and his lyrics are like Junior's cheesecake, that good. This is an instant classic, marketh the words of Hip-Hop Reviewed! It's not a perfect 10 out of 10 simply because a couple tracks didn't send the chills down my spine like EVERY song on a perfect 10 album is supposed to. Still, it's not easy to be called a classic two days after being released.

So Sincere is reminiscent of New Life off of Pieces of a Man where A spits a short, succinct suicidal verse where he puts his whole style on the line to a sweet track and leaves you utterly convinced. On it Mr. Cruz recites "You know my persona/ let me kindly remind you, the Gucci, Gabbana/ the Louis the 'Lo, Evisu designers/ how I post up, poli amongst piranhas/ I'm the urban version of that turban wearing Osama/ last of a genre, it's nothing to mash you minors/ y'all trash, I leave half y'all niggas in trauma/ so I laugh 'cause I rather climb in vagina, splash a few grands on some hot sand in a sauna/ usually ponder when I puff my little ganja, somber/ feeling like Don Cheadle in Hotel Rwanda/ you know karma increase when you see shit, drama is deep but you sleep when you feel His peace upon ya!/ keep the armor, I formally greet as a charmer, but beneath is more to mystique, I'm a monster!/ came to conquer, no games I came to regain my honor, no lames it's insane what the brain could conjure/ why launder when I could outsell La Bamba, fishscale tell Mel he'll be out of jail by Kwanzaa/ from Tompkins to Gowanus to the hills in Brownsville I sponsor/ it's nothing to cock back the black p-80 launcher/ any hate could haunt ya, I'm straight from the LI, Gates in Yonkers, down to the southern states to the Great Lakes in Tonka/ young majestic, the beams from the sun reflected/ long before Bush Sr. son was elected/ eclectic, well respected like brother Umbeh from Duveh but hey/ what you expected, perfected/ connected so exit or have it all in here, we could war when? where?/ nigga I'm so sincere!"

Never Change is an amazing track with A spitting about dudes he knew and how they look now all grown. There's a real simple beat in the background with an unnamed sample with some woman hollering her lungs out. New York is a track with some monsters over another simple, yet bass focused beat. It features the Wu-Twins, none other than Raekwon and Ghostface Killah going to town. Very enjoyable. Can't Stop got AZ slowing it down saying "fat bitches get yapped for their Cheet-ohs." That was worth the price of admission by itself. The Fizzy Womack produced AZ's Chillin is real loud with what sounds like AZ freestyling. Not bad, but not great.

Street Life featuring Half-A-Mill & Begets is up there with the best in AZ's catalog behind Illmatic's Life's a Bitch and It Was Written's Affirmative Action. On it you could listen to Half (Rest In Peace) recite "Now the twin towers done blew up, niggas seen the footage and threw up/ I got platinum bullets for y'all to chew up, Mill-Laden, the dogs done grew up/ is it still Manhattan? I speak street slang, Arab and Latin/ my guns speak rata-tatin, understand my lingo/ I'm from Albany, Afghanistan, fuck Chris Cringle/ and Christopher Columbus, I shoot SCUD missles through his Kangol/ and spray Z gas on your faggot ass/ Allah U Akbar, make 767s crash/ smack Jesus Christ and smoke a half a pound of hash/ I keep a half a pound of cash, I thought I told you cats I'm not a rapper/ rock a "G" on my chest it stands for God, fuck Dan, I'm dapper/ Prada from head to toe, dollars, cherries and the Mo/ you fake ass pimps, get my chips or I'm burying you and your hoes/ I plant plutonium bombs at your each and every show/ so every artist you sign is guaranteed to blow/ I'm guaranteed to flow, puffing that magic weed/ knowledge of self, nigga, that's what you need/ so fuck you and them crabs that you feed, tell 'em to holla at me." All this over the theme to The Incredible Hulk.

The DJ Premier produced The Come Up is a basic knocker. Envious has that dirty dancehall feel to it, with Bounty Killer chanting half reckless. A.W.O.L., the album's title track, is as real as they come on here... basically an extended version of So Sincere with different lyrics and a different beat. The bonus tracks are off of AZ's unreleased Final Call album and includes Live Wire which isn't too impressive but Magic Hour featuring CL Smooth is special. CL blesses AZ with one of the smoothest verses I've heard in a while, effortless. The Truth is real too with one of A's Quiet Money crew members talking a bunch of greasiness in between verses which makes for a real head nodding effect.

Rating: One notch before perfection. Personally, I don't give half points, but if I did this deserves it. 9 of 10.

Buy or Copy: If you buy the bootleg to this you should never be allowed to vote, you're a liability to society.

Capone-N-Noreaga - The War Report (1997)

2005-09-06T01:04:00.000-04:00

Not to be confused with the Walt Report, CNN's opus is one very few rappers with little advertising and little exposure could ever hope to accomplish. Deep dark beats with excellent production and an abundance of fresh new lyrical content is what made this 1997 hit a classic. With Capone in prison for some of its recording Tragedy came through and laced joint after joint with saving grace lyrical competence. Noreaga skips through this album shouting "What! What!" at every corner and sounds like he was on methamphetamines everytime he steps in front of the microphone. And Capone drops some devilish bars that complement songs to the tee. The chemistry is not to be fucked with.

Bloody Money is certainly a danger to your health with the EZ Elpee production and Noreaga hollaring that illegal drug money shit. Stick You is another drug money cut where CNN has to get on the job after getting jerked for some weak product. On it Tragedy crushes "From 41-12 to the USA building in Iraq/ my crew bust back with cap peeling/ the crew dealing in the box with no feeling/ informer type, that's what you get for squealing/ it's the money or the morgue son, ready to die/ black Infiniti, yo, papi cold guy/ the coke connect don't trust us, he wanna rush us/ and call Russ, tell him to scoop me in the Lexus/ it's all good, in the hood/ nobody know sh--/ infrared off the roof, some old scope sh--/ CNN, desert men, holding the chrome with gorilla grip/ Sing Sing, straight convict/ strap the door, C4, detonate sh--/ blow the spot, don't give a fuck who you go and get/ we want the Yayo and the cash that's in the stash/ drip his Tommy drawers, yo check the crack of his ass/ (yo on some homo sh--) nah kid, we on some real shit/ and since we here we may as well get all of it..."

Tragedy was really at the top of his game recording this album.

T.O.N.Y. deserves massive spins with tight production, booming bassline and futuristic keyboard synths. Can't forget LA., LA., the response track to Snoop's NY., NY. Black Gangstas has 'Pone shining! "I never sweat Ds, I let trees blow, get bent on benches/ hopping fences, here they come in long trenches/ crack, chase 'em, lace 'em let the Chef bake 'em/ jake taste 'em take 'em wonder where we make 'em/ roll dice and break 'em on the street corners/ betting stacks, holding packs hoping police don't run deep on us/ peep the 3rd floor shade that never rises/ from jake our hallway, plus gats in greater sizes/ bulletproof down to my Nikes, now who the livest?/ survivest, open off of lye contact/ combat, twisting your cap and listen to rap/ position the mack to blow out your back/ hoes, across the map/ foes, eat a dick in fact/ I'm a score, flip more raw than Domonique Dawes."

This is vintage East Coast mid-nineties rap. The Mobb Deep comes through and provides back up as well. The only hiccups here being a couple deeply dissatisfying interludes and a lost Capone Bone where the supplied Marley Marl track is a weak one. Nonetheless, the flaws are easily overlooked as the energy is in abundance and the underground and commercial thug appeal is super satiating.

Rating: 9 Platinum Teefs

Buy or Copy: Buy!!!!!!!!!!!

Wu-Tang Clan, Enter The Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers (1993)

2005-09-03T11:19:00.000-04:00

We have everything from Method Man sitcoms and movies, to Wu-Tang Clan PS1 games, to RZA scoring Kill Bill and Blade Trinty, to manuals on the Wu, to shoes and ODB sour cream and onion chips, and my infamous Wu-Tang Name Generator ("Get a Wu-Name")

But a look at the monumental release that started this madness is needed. Enter the Wu-Tang.

From the first time the beat fades out and we hear the words "Ghostface, catch the blast of a hype verse!" and we get a slamming snare and finger snaps on "Bring Da Ruckus", you know its gonna be special.

And this is before we get to the whole 'nother universe that ODB is on his first appearence (at one point he rhymes "diarrhea" with "ghonorrea"), and before we hear Method Man bragging for the first time on "Shame On a N*gga".

The buzzing sounds and low basslines and the later atmospheric piano and hard break on "Clan In Da Front" continue RZA's incredibly innovative Wu sound that has basically shaped a whole 10+ years of music.

On "Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber", we hear verses from just about Wu member, including the particularly memorable "I be that insane n*gga from the psycho ward / I'm on the trigga, plus I got the Wu-Tang sword!" verse from the Meth himself.

"Can It All Be So Simple?" features a fairly minimalistic beat, keeping the particularly grimy, lo-fi sound he has established. On "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'" the vocal effects give it a particular thump accentueted by oriental keys, and we get another crazy amount of verses (even U-God and the Masta Killa rhyme on this) - including another crazy, sometimes unitelligable ODB verse ("at the party when I move my body / gotta get up and be-eeeeee somebodyyyy! / Grab the microphone, put strenght to the bone /TAN TAN TAN - enter the Wu-Tang zone!"

The anthemic "Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing Ta Fuck Wit" we get a gully and completely chantable chorus over a hardcore beat. "If ya wanna brawl, then bring da ruckus / Wu-Tang Clan aint nuttin ta fuck wit."

Following up is the certifiable classic "C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything Around Me)" with verses from Inspecah Deck and Raekwon the Chef and Meth on the chorus. The beat has a slow piano and certain vocal effects and strings. The song is a lament on what we do for money - funny that when you make a song about money, you can end up with great shit like this or Eric B. & Rakim's "Paid In Full" or, the tragedy known to us as motherfucking "Bling Bling".

Follwoing that we get to the slamming drums and funky piano of the self-titled anthem "M-E-T-H-O-D Man".

Next, we get to another classic, "Protect Ya Neck" where we get verses from another large group of people, including a memorable Deck verse and a nice closing verse from GZA. The rough yet funky "Tearz" follows up before the closing "Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber - Part II", which differentiates with Part I in the beat and almost nothing else (I prefer Part I).

Overall, the hype is right - this album is one of the best ever. The RZA beats all slam hard and every member has a unique style and personality that make every song enjoyable

Rating: 10 Mr. T chains
Buy or Copy: Buy it!

Big L, Livestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous (1995)

2005-09-01T19:20:00.000-04:00

Note: I'm on a fuckin' roll. 4 reviews in 4 days or whatever the fuck. Check out my blog, I guess.

Big L. Big motherfuckin' L. Why did it take us so long to notice our generation's finest punchline rapper? Yes, Big L, not Chino, not Canibus.

From the beggining of this album, with the lighthearted xylophones of "Put It On" produced by Buckwild and featuring Kid Capri on the chorus, you not only hear a very radio-friendly record, but you hear an incredible multi-syllabic flow, smooth voice, and clever punchlines that have made us miss him so much, n/h.

The Lord Finesse-produced "MVP" continues this trend with a sample some might recognize from Biggie's "One More Chance" remix. Big L kills it - and I won't quote him every time I should because then this review will never end.

On the self-explanatory "No Endz, No Skinz" we get a funkier beat from Showbiz and some talk about not gettin chicks with no dough. On the posse cut "8 Iz Enuff" featuring the 8 Iz Enuff Crew (notable members: Big L, McGruff, Killa Kam) we get a bare-bones beat reminiscent of "Halftime" by Nas. I should probably say that the song is best with Big L's short verse and then its a buncha other kids who arent a fourth as talented.

The oddly funky beat to "All Black" isn't the highlight - its Big L's incredibly clever "gangsta" bragging - not the trite shit you hear everday - that really makes this album great. This continues on "Dangerzone" till we get to the "social consciousness" of "Street Struck" - the beats are minimalistic - which is very appropiate to L's rhyme style.

Then we get to the hard posse cut "Da Graveyard" featuring Jay-Z, Lord Finesse, Mic Nut, YU and Party Arty. This has Big L spitting more angry and with still a great array of punchlines.

The title track has a eerie bass line and chimes and extremely dark rhymes with a really dark ending. "I Don't Understand It" is about fake MC's and its great lyrically as well as "Fed Up With The Bullsh*t," which is about racist police - both not exactly the freshest topics but both executed incredibly well. Btw, I know I've heard that bassline before on "Fed Up..." Oh shit! "Big Poppa"! The album ends on a high note with "Let 'Em Have It L" in another lyrical attack combined with a fairly bare-bones beat.

This album is one of the greatest albums in terms of punchlines, so if that's your thing this album is mos def a must-have. The beats are alot of times not the radio-friendly of the first 2 songs but are very dark and based on samples that sound...weird, really. At times you wonder if Pete Rock and Premier couldve shown up on this album and not only the other album and made this even better. I dont like criticizing Buckwild or Finesse, or none of them, but some beats just work because of L and hardly are masterpieces by themselves. ultimeatly this album has enough in terms of beats to hang with the lyrics, and it's definetly and enjoyable listen.

Rating: 9.5 Mr. T chains
Buy or Copy: Buy, especially if punchlines are your thing.

Masta Killa, No Said Date (2004)

2005-09-01T16:41:00.000-04:00

Go back more than 10 years. The Wu-Tang Clan just released their incredible classic - "Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers." Masta Killa might've caught your attention a little bit with a verse, but Method Man was becoming a star - he even had a song named after him.

Back to the present: Method Man has becomed a star - put out his latest album recently, was in a couple of movies, had his own TV show and documentary, etc. Masta Killa is putting out his FIRST album with very little mainstream media coverage.

So guess which album is better, Method's or the Masta's?

After the standard kung-fu dialogue on the "Born Chamber" intro - we get to the fucking ill yet relaxed beat on the first song, "Grab the Microphone," where we are introduced to the Masta's slow and gritty flow. The third track is the even iller title track, with a real hype chorus and string samples.

The hip-hop love song has been corrupted by bullshit like Fabolous, but "Love Spell" is a pretty good song, and after that we get to the unnecessary raps of his children to a Wu-Tang-creepy beat on "The Future", although its still his children.

Then the guests come in, with the piano-oriented "D.T.D. (Do That Dance)" featuring Ghostface Killah and Raekwon the Chef, and predictably this song is awesome. Btw, this is the first album to have all Wu-Tang members since like.....way too fucking long.

Next, we get the crazy, crazy, crazy good Shallah Mathematics beat featuring Wu WC's Streetlife and Prodigal Sunn. The beat makes this song rise above alot others, but dont get me wrong, the vocals are good.

Slowing down to the thick, hard break and guitar-sample-oriented "Secret Rivals" song featuring Killah Priest (one of the most underrated people ever, but thats another story) and the own Method Man dropping a nice verse.

After a skit, we get to the old-school electro-sounding RZA beat of "Digi Warfare" featuring RZA and U-God. Next, we get the funky beat of "Old Man" again featuring RZA and more importantly featuring Dirt McGirt (RIP) on the chorus just being ODB. We'll miss him, n/h.

We get another love rap song, "Queen," kind of a little too much for me to have 2, even if this song is pretty good. This beat is actually very un-love like with a very thick bassline and such.

"School" featuring RZA is pretty cool lyric-wise and the beat switches up a bit, but actually Im not a good fan of the beat. Heading into another Wu lo-fi, gritty beat of the song "Silverbacks" featuing the last 2 members of the Wu, Inspectah Deck and GZA. Some would say those 2 are the best, but really you could pretty much take your pick with any Wu rapper as "the best" except, like, U-God.

The self-titled song "Masta Killa" has another set of RZA production trademarks - sped-up samples and Asian influences. The closer is "The Day After," another eery beat with bangin drums and thick strings, another winner.

At the end, it is kind of hard to think that the over-looked Masta Killa's new album completely DESTROYS Method's own new album, but thats how life is.

One of the likelyest gripes people have about this album is that the Masta is no passionate, abstract poet like Ghostface, no intellectual sophistacated rhymer like GZA, no insane, high ODB. Really, he lacks the personality and some would say talent to be looked as by some as a top-flight Wu member.

However, for those people, the RZA beats and the ample guest appearances make the Masta's life easier in that if you like the Wu, you'll definetily like at least SOME of the songs on here. A must-buy for any self-respecting Clan fan.

Rating: 9 Mr. T chains
Buy or Copy: Buy, especially if youre a Wu fan.

Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, Mecca and the Soul Brother (1992)

2005-08-30T15:25:00.000-04:00

In 2000, the Baltimore Ravens had a defense that could hold it's own against the greatest of all time. On offense, however, they lacked an abudance of stars. Not to say that they had a bad offense, it was great, but there were certainly better ones out there.

Pete Rock in 1992, in his prime, is that defense at its height. C.L. Smooth is that offense - it couldnt win by itself, but it certainly did its half. So how good is this album? Well, the Ravens won the Superbowl.

Not to compare C.L. to Trent Dilfer tho, because C.L. hit his stride with this album and positioned himself in more than a few 100 best lists and the like.

Pete creates everything from the slow R&B-tinged "Lots of Lovin" to the funkiness and speed of "Act Like You Know."

Continuing with the classic horns of "Straighten It Out," you can appreciate C.L.'s mistake-free rapping and an incredible knack for feeling right at home over any Pete R beat.

Pete Rock raps himself as well on songs like "Soul Brother #1" and he performs like Ray Lewis at Wide Receiver but with things like sampling the classic JB's instrumental, "The Grunt," this song is a winner.

And then we get to the absolute classic "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" which may likely be the best rap beat ever. This song is incredible in its vocals as well - the song is about fallen (oh shit, no pun intended) Heavy D Boy and friend Trouble T-Roy. This song is impossible not to like.

After a quick beatbox/freestyle interlude from Rob-O, we get to yet another incredible creative and funky use of sampling of horns, piano and vocals on "On and On." The next songs is the likeable horn loops and drumming of "It's Like That" and "Can't Front On Me" and the weirdly funky posse cut "The Basement" featuring Grap Luva, Dida, Rob-O and Heavy D.

The album closes with the sexually explicit "Skinz" featuring microphone wizard Grand Puba of Brand Nubian, a pretty strong closer.

This album is an incredible audio experience, to hear one of the best ever to do it in his magnum opus - calling it "classic" is pretty fuckin accurate. As a matter of fact, the beat to "T.R.O.Y." alone is worth the price of admission. Add to that another 16 songs that never fall below good, and this is a must-have.

Rating: 10 Mr. T chains
Buy or Copy: Buy it!

Showbiz & A.G., Runaway Slave (1992)

2005-08-29T17:29:00.000-04:00

Note: This album was reviewed by DJXplicit, and it was literally written as soon as he got the invitation to review on this blog. Excuse him in advance if its not the best review he's written, he's sill getting my shit together. Ok, here we go.

This album has been mentioned in more than a few "Best Album Ever" lists. Does this rare 1992 gem hold up to it's billing?

From the opener "Stil Diggin'", you can tell that it's another extremely well-produced DITC album, including Diamond D famously saying "Holy Mackarel!"

Most of these beats sample some really hard drums and horns. Unfortuneatly, sometimes the beats run together a little. None of them are individually less than awesome, but if you listen through to them, they kind of do get just a little repetitive.

"Fat Pockets" is one of my early favorites, with an AG verse that switches beats from their hits such as "Soul Clap" and "Party Groove"

The album sticks to mostly a party flavor, but songs like "More Than One Way Out Of the Ghetto" show a deeper side through a first person narrative from the Giant himself, while never becoming overly preachy or self-righteous.

Another standout is the DITC posse cut, "Represent" featuring punchline kings Big L and Lord Finesse and unknown D'Shawn and ending with another quality AG verse.

The self-explanatory "Party Groove (Bass Mix)" helps move things along with an addictive horn loop and a Chuck D sample on the hooks while the "Soul Clap (Short Version)" keeps things up with another great party mix of bass and horns and creative sampling. The album ends with an intsrumental version of "Party Groove (Bass Mix)," which isn't just a direct instrumental version but it adds more elements to the mix.

"Runaway Slave" may not be cracking my legendary top 12 albums ever list, but it certainly makes for a really enjoyable listen - not one song is bad or subpar in any way, just that the great songs it has dont measure up to, say, "Long Live the Kane." I recommend to buy this album if you can find it - the beats are exceptional and so is the rapping, mainly provided by A.G. but his partner (no homo) Showbiz shows up to rap as well a fair amount.

Rating: 9 Mr. T chains
Buy or Copy: Buy if you can find it, it's kinda rare.

Capone-N-Noreaga, The Reunion (2000)

2005-08-20T20:14:00.001-04:00

Long on anticipation, the follow-up to one of the most critically acclaimed rap albums of our time, CNN unleashes a solid effort. On The Reunion, the thugged out duo from Queens tries to pick up where they left off, but their overwhelming popularity and expectations probably stunted their sophmore effort's growth. They still have great chemistry and make a very listenable album.

On Phonetime, Capone goes line for line with Noreaga on some collect call from a New York State Correctional Facility type shit. Bang Bang is a banger (for lack of a more descriptive adjective) featuring Foxy Brown and a Lil Kim diss or two. Straight Like That, Brothers, and Queens Finest are the necessary crew cuts. And Full Steezy is that jump-off for that jump-off in the hood.

The well done All We Got Is Us bumps seriously. On it Capone sheds "When everything gets sour, I got my dogs/ I squeeze off, break through the pound if they lock my dog/ I'm not scared of your guns I got shot before/ niggas jewels got little rocks like Arkansas/ I'm the prophet of BIG but never the next, I'm the first and in every verse man shit get worse/ you could hate me or wish I lie in a hearse/ respect the game, who the best, select my name/ I salute niggas, jail, I'm big as Latrell/ on the streets you need heat? ask Dominican Will/ my clique-ahs off the meter/ you come gun and bullets whistle past your ear like police of London/ we the best that ever did it, the rest never lived it/ getting bucked at or bing time, stressed on the visit/ I'm Y2K in the flesh, the future nevertheless/ I pop metal to death."

On B EZ with Nas, a boastful Noreaga fires "I see death through the corner, thy kingdom come/ six 500's pull up right in front of the slum/ sticky green fingers, cultures of the great Gods/ Clarence spoke to the poor but he lived in ours/ eh, yo hook like Roy Jones/ I'm a street corner bastard and crush weed with the hashes/ bandana head dome wrap, Caddy trucks with the grills and the chrome snaps/ I'm on point like Al Sharpton and peep the MU marksmen/ the S-Class is shitting on your weak Dhatsun/ graffiti written on the bible, my life is wicked/ I see dead corpses and Rolls Royces/ put your heart in your lap, let's say you hear voices/ my whole personna is the drama and to smoke skama/ how I could live it up, willy what, and in front of your slut/ money busting out my pockets, you bank is stopped."

Finally, the Lord Finesse produced Don't Know Nobody with Musaliny and M.A.Z.E. is a tight way to end the album. DKN is on some arrest me, I've got one hell of a lawyer shit.

When the smoke clears, you have an addictive yet altogether average long play. It's an album you'll be able to play over and over again without tiring, but you won't necessarily rave about it.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Copying it will make you one very happy hip-hopper.

Capone, Pain, Time & Glory (2005)

2005-08-20T20:14:00.000-04:00

Half of one of the best and most underrated hip-hop duos to ever do it, Capone emerges with an album all his own. The Queensbridge Housing native swings and misses in terms of sales receipts and doesn't pass the gangtas' litmus test either. Serious flaws in mastering plague the overall quality and production and Capone's flow slips all throughout PTG. The few bright spots hardly carry this title at all either. Capone's partner in rhyme is also noticeably absent here, probably due to differences, which is a shame because Noreaga could've certainly been a major asset either by dropping an invigorating 16 or lending a constructive hand in the final product.

Scarface, Devin the Dude and Raekwon do admiral jobs and put in quality work on the three joints in which they feature. Capone on the other hand seems as if he could've tried much harder. On several occasions 'Pone even mispronounces his own lyrics and it isn't even like he has a heavy foreign accent or some other excuse. I can't for the life of me understand where he went wrong. The subject matter in his songs are right where they should be. It just seems as though Capone's flow isn't where it needs to be. This album wouldn't even come across as a half decent demo tape.

Intro comes across excellently introducing the world to Capone the soloist. From there it goes South, figureatively and literally. On the extremely lacking Where The Stuff At C-Murder and Bun-B are disugsting. The beat and production is embarrasing. Noise. Diet Plan has the rugged feel 'Pone was looking for but his lyrics elicit diliberate yawns. F#@k Yo Set is curiously weak. U So Craaazzzy is a shout out to Black universities or something. Everything else is average except a few minor exceptions.

Frank Nitty produces the albums only gem in Streets Favorite which is unfortunate because he also produced Where The Stuff At. Capone rides Streets Favorite effortlessly, as he should have been doing all along. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang with Raekwon is direct, to the point and on par with what is expected of 'Pone. No Where To Run got Scarface up to his same old consistent self, delivering a sharp 16. Kudos nigga. I'm Gone featuring Devin the Dude and Butch Cassidy is tight as well if nothing else.

"Yes yes, I'm back with a vengeance/ my spot solid like a rock like Ashford and Simpson/
only death can stop me/ came in the game with poppy/ now feel the wrath of a solo nigga,
music for hustler niggas in the lobby/ to mamis in them Seven jeans and White girls with Black girl bodies/ and beautiful Black ones that like to poli/ they thought they could count me out, do the math homie/ survived the fittest this business turned killers mad phony/ I rapped for the vultures to rich motherfuckers who sniff coke off cup coasters/ I reach alot of niggas, bring the beast up out of niggas/ then bitches what to fuck me 'cause they know my gangster's authentic no gimick nigga trust me/ C- Murder showed love, Bun-B showed love, Raekwon showed love, who I fuck with is all love" off the Intro is certainly apt.

And off of What's My Name (Soldier's Story) 'Pone spits "An OG once told me you get it how you live/ if you don't get it in this lifetime you then get it by your kids/ if you don't get it by your kids you goin' get it by your grandchild/ I put in work the main reason why I can't smile/ I sold records did time, drove reckless live crime, no neckless, still shine/... if they talking 'bout somebody shot him, that's me/ the 411 or who got the best product, that's me/ who could take it from the top to the bottom, this year I'm the motherfucking problem/ I hand out beatdowns, I smoke by the jar, you could feel how I feel, it's murder by the bar/ by the song, you could tell who I am who we are/ militia, known to bop on willy feds like a spar/ I might ride around with a Tommy in the car/ a teflon vest on feeling like a star/ the heaters get best warm, aim up to par/ say my name I plan to leave this game with a scar." Not very impressive.

Rating: 6 Silver teefs
Buy or Copy: Do yourself the favor and stay away.

OutKast, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik (1994)

2005-08-07T00:38:00.000-04:00

In the wake of Speakerboxx/The Love Below and the mainstream rock press declaring OutKast the "saviors of pop music" and other such deserved hyperbole (though this writer would personally argue that OutKast has produced much better work than the above album), some of us have lost track of where the funky ATLiens began. The answer is, a Christmas compilation album. Dre claimed that he feared Organized Noize were "trying to wreck our careers", but by "doing it Dungeon style" to quote Big Boi the boys were able to spawn a new regional anthem and perhaps the best holiday-themed rap record. The record in question "Player's Ball" in turned spawned the classic Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, the album which put the South on the map in terms of quality and not notoriety (no diss to the Geto Boys,just keepin' it real). The seemingly juvenile topics of "pimpin' hoes and slammin cadillac do's" were given a surprising depth under a Rakim-like backdrop of unapologetic social consciousness. Let's take a look at this revolutionary piece of music and how it both kick-started the Dirty South movement and changed the way hip hop music was looked at and produced.
The album opens with a spoken word intro by a woman named "Peaches" over a lush background of jazz/soul. Overall it's nothing special but does serve it's purpose to introduce us to the basic theme of the album before the music begins. The first real track is "Myintrotoletyouknow", with the duo introducing themselves over a thunderous rap/Southern rock fusion which is typical of the experimentation and live instrumentation found throughout this album. The next track, "Ain't No Thang" is more heat,with an ominous yet funky keyboard track with Dre and Big Boi becoming more menacing in their lyrics,promising a "3-5-7 to yo fo'head" and such. After a short skit involving an airline pilot's description of ATL,the album's title track begins. Both of the songs so far have been impeccable,and this track is indeed no exception to the rule. Booming 808 drums,wah wah guitar, and soulful choir-esque singing on the hook guarantee for another banger. However,the next track "Call Of Da Wild" is probably the album's lowest point. While the flows of Big Boi,Dre,and guests T-Mo and Khujo Goodie are nothing to sneeze at,the hook sounds uncomfortable and the beat is somewhat lacking. Directly afterwards is the spectacular "Player's Ball",arguably the best produced track on the album, a ghetto Christmas carol seamlessly combining both traditional Christmas themes with the street poetry of the rest of the album. The album's first truly introspective track is the following "Claimin' True" a "Memory Lane"-esque look back on childhood and adolescence over old school Southern organs. After another short skit we are treated to an R&B track of all things, "Funky Ride" is a somewhat overdrawn but soulful offering which does serve its purpose as an intermission of sorts. After yet ANOTHER skit (they start to get monotonous after the second listen) the next offering is "Git Up,Get Out",my personal favorite on the album with Cee-Lo and Big Gipp of Goodie Mob dropping pearls of wisdom with Big Boi and Dre about the importance of going for yours and the difficulties faced by an underpriveledged young man in the South. The only "skit" with any real artistic value is "True Dat",a call to action by Big Rube for the people of America's ghettos to "wake up and see what's goin' on all around you". He comes with some serious knowledge,which makes a Yin-Yang balance to the next track "Crumblin' Erb", a soulful tribute to living life to the fullest and not worrying about all of the negativity in one's life. Finishing up the album we have the minimalist and experimental "Hootie Hoo",followed by the futurism of "D.E.E.P.". Both tracks are indeed impeccable,and lead into "Player's Ball Redux", a sort of soul remix of the original track with no rapping and a piano-driven beat that begs to be rapped over.
All around, this is a near perfect album that not only introduced us to Dirty South rap,gave us OutKast, and made R&B cross-pollination and live experimentation possible without loss of credibility,it also gave us a wonderful album that I think will withstand the test of time as one of the best Southern albums ever,but the only album I can think of that you can jam in your ride (or your man's ride if like me,you're too young to drive), AND muse on the lyrics at the same time.

Overall Rating: 9 out of 10 Snickers Bars

Worth The Cheddar: No I just spent a half hour talking about how much I love it to say you shouldn't buy it. Naw on the real dog,pick this up.

Common, Be (2005)

2005-07-05T23:20:00.000-04:00

A short and sweet album is what the Hip-Hop world ordered, and Common delivered. The drought looks to be coming to an end as Be is another solid effort in 2005. This no frills release is chock full of lyrical gems and tucked deep in the recesses of these 11 tracks is some classic material.

From the melodious intro to the solid It's Your World (Part 1 & 2), Common keeps you compelled like an award winning novelist or an Oscar nominated movie release. With all the solid K. West production and tight lyrics you have to wonder why'd he go with The Corner as the lead single. Go! is a song with a tight beat, interesting hook and Common talking about a tantalizing, freaky chikadee. What more could one want? Faithful is an inspirational joint with Common likening the divine being to his love interest. On it he sheds "I was rolling around in my mind it occured/ what if God, was a Her?/ would I treat her the same would I still be running game, on her?/and what type of ways would I want her?/ Would I want her for her mind or her heavenly body/ couldn't be out getting bogus with someone so Godly/ if I was with her, would I still be wanting my ex?/ the lies, the greed, the weed, the sex/ wouldn't be ashamed to give her part of my check/ wearing a cross, I mean the heart on my neck/ Her I would reflect, on the streets of the Chi/ ride with her, 'cause I know for me she'd die/ through good and bad call on her like I'm chirping her/ couldn't be jealous 'cause other brothers worship her/ walk this Earth for her/ glory I'm grateful to be in her presence I try to stay faithful."

On Chi-City, Common gets at some of the perps in the industry. On The Food (Live), we get the joint debuted on the Dave Chapelle show. They Say got Kanye and John Legend putting forth A+ performances.

Quality.

Rating: 8 Platinum Teefs
Buy or Copy: Buy. It's that simple.

Canibus, Rip the Jacker (2003)

2005-07-05T22:36:00.000-04:00

Remember that period in the early '90s where the NFL's Buffalo Bills went to the Superbowl 4 consecutive years only to lose each and every time? Canibus reminds me of rap's version of the Buffalo Bills. Wyclef would be the Thurman Thomas fumble, while Stoupe (The Enemy of Mankind) is the Scott Norwood missed field goal on Bis' Bills. At first listen through this album has nothing. Canibus fans everywhere raved about the production Stoupe put forth. And granted, there is new and more complex rhythms on the album, but nothing groundbreaking. There is hardly anything to get excited about here, sadly.

Titles like Genabis and Levitibus turn out to be generic versions of the same thing, songs in which Canibus spits a barrage of braggadocio lyrics. Another title, Spartibus, would have one wondering if Canibus is trying to author a new version of the Bible?

Lyrically, the man still has it: "I'm above average with verbal semantics/ the aurora Borealis in the form of a rap ballard/ they look at me like poor bastard/ why can't you manipulate Billboard with all your metaphor magic/ no matter how hard I practiced, every microphone I saw I grabbed it/ obviously that's the wrong tactic/ I went through a long period of mourning and sadness when I wrote that Stan shit/ but if you want to hear some hardcore Canibus just say so/ and I'll come out the eggroll with seven dead scrolls/ if you could find a better flow then I could find a dinosaur on the Galapagos archipelago/ hey, you shouldn't fall for the naivete/ lyrically I'm the illest when my beats is okay/ food for thought, nutrition for the whole brain/ keep your neurotransmitters warm on a cold day/ I'm ahead of my time or so they say/ I guess that's why I already feel old and gray/ okay that's enough knowledge for today I'm killing 'em/ you better not forget it 'cause this is Levitibus" is how the third verse goes.

Unfortunately, sometimes he lacks all this lyrical prowess. On Showtime at the Gallow Canibus tries to slow it down and keep it hardcore to a Cuban infused beat. The worst part is the hook is full of samples of EPMD and some other rap acts that have no place whatsoever in the beat. The relevance of Canibus' rhyme is all over the place as well.

Poet Laureate II is on another level altogether. This is by far one of Bis' best works. It's a seven minute song of varying cadences and beats and Canibus just goes bananas on it. He crafts a tale where in the future, a time machine will enlighten the world to Canibus' amazing talent. After describing how amazing he will seem to the future, he gives us an example in the form of one of his raps. This track accounts for the majority of its rating below.

Rating: 6 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: If you can, just get Poet Laureate II.

De La Soul,The Grind Date (2005)

2005-07-05T14:08:00.000-04:00

One could indeed say that the "Stakes Is High" for De La's newest album. Being that this is their first offering since 2001's decent but not classic AOI:Bionix, it was theorized that this could be the album where De La fell off. Thankfully this is not the case, the Plugs have returned with another solid album. Things get poppin' with the intro/first track "The Future" which opens with one of the plugs saying "the past the past the future the future" which gets really annoying after a minute, but all is forgiven when the beat kicks in and the plugs start flowing. Musically J.Dilla comes correct as has become the standard, with some strings and kicks. The beat is simplistic, but does its job in giving De La a canvas to paint over. "The Future" is followed by the old school boom-bap of "Verbal Clap" and Jake One's soul samples on "Much More". Both of these tracks are solid if not groundbreaking. Directly afterward we have Madlib's avant-garde dancefloor stylings,with De La decrying the evils of being ensnared by manipulative women. "Shopping Bags" works as both a concept track and as a club banger, and leads into the album's title track, which lyrically to me is dope but musically doesn't impress. This is probably the only skip-button fodder on the album. Next up is the neo-soul laced "Church" and the struggle anthem "It's Like That", which again are solid and mature but not the most innovative thing I've ever heard. Next up is "He Comes", probably the best track on the album with the plugs trading rhymes with Ironman himself Ghostface Killah over Jake One's dope horns and chopped drums. Common and Flava Flav's guest appearances on "Days Of Our Lives" and "Come On Down" don't fail to impress, and both of these tracks are musically on point if not masterpieces. After that we have "No" which isn't neccesarily bad,but the beat sound almost too poppy and sweet, like something off Nickelodeon. The album closes on a high note on "Rock. Co.Kane. Flow",with Hip-Hops illest villain MF DOOM spitting flames with the Plugs over a Deliverance sample.
Overall this is a solid album, with only one truly skip-worthy track and a slew of dope guest appearances. De La Soul proves that they can still be relevant to today's Hip-Hop community while staying true to their roots.

8 out of 10 Snickers Bars

Worth The Cheddar:Yeah

Beanie Segal, The B-Coming (2005)

2005-03-29T17:10:00.000-05:00

Beanie Segal is back with a soulful, crafty overall tone. This album feels like what rap would be if it were released in 1974. The B Coming is infused with lots old R&B samples and the track listing sounds like something off of a greatest hits from Teddy Pendergrass, Marvin Gaye and Al Green. Tracks like Feel it in the Air featuring Melissa (who, by the way, is one sweeeeet looking broad), I Can’t Go on This Way featuring Freeway and Young Chris, Gotta Have It featuring Peedi Peedi (formerly called Peedi Crack) and Twista, and Look at Me Now got that disco love sentimentality. Under it all, however, is just a Beanie Segal album without the commercial appeal of a single featuring Jay-Z and heavy rotation.

I Can’t Go on This Way is one of those tracks where the guest appearance disappoints and eats up bars unnecessarily. Beanie kicks rhymes in 8 bar segments with a couple seconds breather in between segments. He spits these 8 bar sets about 8 times before Freeway relieves him with a quick short 8 bar goodie of his own. Then Young Chris just spoils the whole thing with a lot of nonsense before Beanie peeks back in and tries to go line for line with the weak youngster. Similarly, Flatline featuring Peedi Peedi has Beans and P. Crack wasting no time with the gun talk, going on and on at length. Yet this is a strong track the whole way through and works very well. Following Peedi, Beans spits “fresh out the federal, cases I got several/ about 4 or 5, just had to settle 2/ they said I tried to show a nigga what the metal do/ but didn’t succeed, the nigga still breathe/ attempt? Please! I would’ve hit him in his piece/ with the mac with the beam then got back in the breeze/ only clap from the neck up, I’d of let the Hecklar plug him/ I don’t think they make Kevlar stomachs/ fuck him, I should’ve let the AR touched him/ cuffed him to the bumper, drug him two city blocks/ the juice in me and a Henney shot/ four percs and a hit of wop/ you shoot first if you get the drop/ the deuce work if you hit the spot/ lose the nurse, someone get the doc/ remove his shirt, shit his pressure dropped/ check his vital signs, he’s hemorrhaging finish him/ flatline!”

Tales of a Hustler Pt. 2 featuring Oschino and Sparks and Look at Me Now are both lackluster, whereas It’s On featuring Jay-Z is C4 with the two going verse for verse about 3 times.

The beats don’t disappoint, and Beanie rides them all adequately except on Purple Rain where Bun B and Beans go on and on about getting fucked up to a beat Ghost Face Killah murdered a couple albums ago (Saturday Night, from Supreme Clientele). But the album has some fresh flows and nothing necessarily warrants a skip button press.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Yeah, copy this unless you want to support the Truth.

Canibus, Can-I-Bus (1998)

2005-03-28T22:32:00.000-05:00

Canibus is a special kind of rapper. He's a rare breed that always comes with a fury like a bad case of Mexican water diarrhea. We all heard him on various joints with other rappers where he made his collaborators seem insignificant. He was an underground giant and growing. He teamed up with Wyclef and earned immense airplay with popular radio stations. He had the hip-hop world buzzing when he crushed LL Cool J with Iron Mike on a dis track. But that was the crescendo of his career. Who’d have thought? This album, as great as it is, was his undoing.

It’s disturbing, well at least to me, that true hip-hop heads dismissed this album. Apparently, no one saw the depths at which this lyrical madman works on songs like Niggonometry where ‘Bis deviates from the norm and busts some thought provoking raps with a few cheap shots at consumerism and “selling out” in the industry. “Now if you take a glass of water and add two cubes of ice/ you should see the cup’s water slightly rise, right?/ you need to watch what I’m a show you (watch this)/ you need to watch closely at what I’m a show you (listen to this right here)/ if you remove every living animal out of the sea/ then wouldn’t the world’s ocean water level decrease/ this means the planet wasn’t three-quarters water…” Poor intelligent-thug-type-rapper, no one ever promised that the world was 3/4ths water, it’s well noted, conversely, that the Earth’s surface is three-quarters water. Basically, 75% of the surface of the Earth is covered in water. But I’ll forgive him.

Other deep joints included I Honor U where ‘Bis assumes himself as a sperm cell, then an embryo and finally a fetus. Also, Rip Rock which has a sort of hybrid between electric indy rock and battle rap beat. But that’s not it, your man ‘Bis delivers lyrically too! He brings his signature, ready for battle, tenacity and straight demolishes the recording booth.

“Yo, physically I move at a velocity/ that’ll break your stop watch if you clocking me/ my concrete jungle is like Jumanji/ iller than what you’ve seen in the cinema/ a 5 foot 8 nigga with more horse power than 12 cylinders/ my brain consists of twin Pentium chips/ double the clocked speeds of a 586/ and nothing about my physical matrix is basic/ I kick flavor beyond what your tongue is capable of tasting/ you’ll be so surprised you won’t believe your own eyes/ it’s like a Jamaican seeing the snow for the first time/ rhymes of a sort that distort space and time/ it’s like it’s plain in color to a man that was born blind,” is effortlessly recited by the Canibus on Let’s Ride over a slow West Coast-esque sound.

The album slips up with a couple boring songs, namely Get Retarded and Channel Zero. But Buckingham Palace and How We Roll is pure nitroglycerin. In other words, you’d be stupid to not listen to this album. You will crack vertebrae knocking your head to this.

Rating: 8 Platinum teefs
Buy or Copy: Well if you’re like most, copying this will make you as happy as a hog in mud.

Canibus, 2000B.C. (Before Can-I-Bus) (2000)

2005-03-10T23:59:00.000-05:00

Battle rapper extraordinaire Canibus starts busting his high energy raps from the door on The C-quel. The first joint, at the top of the track line-up has Bis spitting like he got something to prove. He did, after the failure of his debut album. Canibus’ formula for 2000B.C. is battle raps over less than impressive beats. Nothing radio friendly here for Canibus, just gung-ho lyrical artillery.

Everything on here has some redeeming lyrical content to it which makes it exponentially more puzzling as to why this man has never received the acclaim he deserves. Life Liquid, featuring Philadelphia’s own Journalist, has two emcees spitting immaculate verses about bloodshed. I’ll Buss ‘Em U Punish‘Em with Rakim is another crazy collabo. 100 Bars is coconuts!

The only slip ups on the album is Horsmentality featuring Kurupt, Rass Kass and Killah Priest with a few corny verses (all except from KP). It’s meant for the backpacking, underground rap lovers but it’s too raw with little lyrical support. And Phuk You, which is clever and witty but boring and give my skip button a work out.

I would quote Bis’ verse on 100 Bars but… so here’s the first verse to Lost @ “C”:
“Now when you see that big ass C you know I’m coming through/ and when you know I’m coming through you know what I’mma do/ I never said that battling me would be impossible, I just think it’s highly motherfucking improbable/ you talking to a nigga that could split molecules and sub atomic particles/ strong enough to stop a bull/ body slam two oxes and drop a mule/ urinating rocket fuel freestyling over gospel tunes/ rhymes by the thousands, rhymes for hours/ I could kick a rhyme longer than your whole album/ the kick boxer, beating the shit out of niggas proper/ I beat them ‘til they hollar, beat ‘em ‘til the cops come/ beating niggas ‘till they have seizures, beat ‘em till they start screaming/ like fax machines when they start receiving/ beat ‘em ‘til my own hands start bleeding/ beat ‘em til they lungs stop breathing and they heart stop beating/ from 12am to 12pm in the evening/ with 3 15 minute breaks in between ‘em/ good Jesus, that’s a real West Indian beating/ that’s what you get for fucking with this lyrical demon/ my bloodstream’s been, contaminated for eons/ I got cast out of heaven for treason/ got cast out of the Garden of Eden for letting the reptilian beast in/ got locked up for a DUI in speeding/ a whole legion of half decent emcees will get released when, they spit 100 bars for their freedom/ see I’m much too nice to compete with, too nice to flow over beats with, too nice to hold the m.i.c. with/ on some diesel Hercules shit, I cold flip and start to punch trees until they leafless/ inhale with two real deep breaths, hold my breath ‘til the whole planet suffocates and then release it.”

This album is serious and deserves all the credit in the world.

Rating: 9 Platinum teefs… if you appreciate real raps.
Buy or Copy: Buy… if you appreciate real raps.

Cam'ron, SDE (2000)

2005-02-23T01:29:00.000-05:00

S.D.E., which stands for Sports, Drugs and Entertainment is an honorable attempt at an all-purpose rap album. It’s all here; something for the radio, something for the gangsta drug dealer in all of us, and a little something for the ass smacking, pussy bogarding niggas out there.

That’s Me is pretty gangsta in that boastful, I’ve been there and done that kind of way. Whatever is the album’s low point with its flat beat and its “whatever” subject matter. Come Kill Me and What I Gotta Live For are two inventive and different tracks where Cam goes off about life’s low points and those situations that have you wondering. His complex flow breaks things down real compellingly.

Where I’m from is a cut with a crisp underground beat that Killa tears a new one with “Yo, where I’m from they let the cartridge blast, everybody smart in math/ loan sharks with cash running from the narcs and task/ street sergeant craft?/ come on, I start to laugh/ ‘cause I almost caught the case for Rich Parker ass/ now a nigga paid out, suede couch/ I’m in the hooded things, Benz bucket way out/ these cats be Heathcliff, when I come around they play mouse/ Mickey and Minnie, Jerry from Tom, heavy in arms/ in front of Pam Pam, Hanna-Barbera leather/ collar bent, cotton candy blue gates, college men/ y’all in astonishment looking for acknowledgement/ [money] we pour it on ‘em, eat a snitch throw war up on him/ any repercussions make sure my seeds bubble/ if you ain’t hear me on Clue, I said I see double/ guns, double techs/ hoes, double sex/ count and handle my money, but I double check/ bubble Lex, ain’t too much more I care about/ liquor store in the Bronx though, warehouse, cleared out/ els with my liquor, silencer, one hell of a whisper/ gassing up a hoe, tell her you missed her/ dealing with the old timers, was a hell of a listener/ vend or sell if you differ/ nigga pelican slippers/ mami is senseless, get my moula, I'm conscientious/ tell meedas, got off our Benzes, por favor/ Harlem, mama poor/ we fell off, but back on, nigga time to ball/ hundred and 45th and Lenox, three piece suit, bean pies/ final call, gun up in the spinal cord/ I ain’t got no time for y’all/ we 8 digits you play frigid/ Killa don’t cook he blaze biscuits/ around us, straight midgets/ jewels we keep frozen, y’all keep dozing, the wolves in sheep’s clothing/ streets buzzing, V-dozen, bitches callin’ me husband/ saying we fucked when we wasn’t/ lying on her coochie, I’m dying for a hoochie with an iron for a boobie/ casino style, diamonds and a doobie/ but Killa keep running to the timing of a groupie/ but need work, plate of a kind/ if your dope ain’t an 8 or a 9, you wasting my time/ you racing for shine?/ the only way you be around mutherfucking paper boy/ if you quit your job and go be a paper boy/ car swoop up 50, gun shoot buck 50, bear facts buck 50/ Airmax buck 50/ only New York nigga to fuck Whitney/ on her period, blood sticky/ same night flood Missy/ play Toronto like Doug Christie/ fuck Kristy, Louie the 13th / suds with me, gimme head/ yo, Kedo Kentai, blunts in my head/ but my day is Friday, took from my bread/ niggas try to stick together like they Smokey and Craig/ in real life Nia think I’m long and throw me the head/ heard what I said?”

The album’s best song is Losing Weight with Prodigy over a banging Mobb rhythm. Capital P is up to his usual, and Cam rides the beat excellently. Double Up is tough too with Santana dropping a hot line or two. And What Means the World to You got some airplay, deservedly so.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs, worth a double take.
Buy or Copy: Copy

Cam'ron, Come Home With Me (2002)

2005-02-17T22:04:00.000-05:00

That dude with the purple and pink outfits in the videos returns, this time for the Roc. Unfortunately, this album lacks in replayability except it does satisfy those who crave this lyrical maniac’s intricate flow.

Losing Weight, on the previous Long Play, was a serious joint but this time with Juelz Santana Losing Weight Part 2 is corny. Hey Ma featuring Juelz Santana, Freekey Zekey, and Kay Slay is too, although it had a commercial appeal that lent itself to ‘nuff radio spins. In fact, there aren’t many songs on here that are actually good. This whole album is corny, for the most part.

Welcome to New York City is the Jay-Z joint that also features Juelz Santana. It’s okay but at this point of the album you’re probably expecting something less radio friendly. Also, Juelz Santana appears so many times you’d think him and Cam were doing their best Raekwon and Ghostface Killah impression.

Anyway, Cam spits “I’ve been on both sides of burglaries/ guns out and choked up/ man this shit will get you choked up/ I done been shot up and got at, back stabbed, coked up/ almost doped up but had no guts/ so I pimp for all these ho sluts/ when they period come it get slow, but so what/ I got big plans to blow up/ I’ma love this year, but Blood ain’t here/ we would puff grass plus hash/ cut class to fuck ass dough, we added ‘nuff cash/ little cats he would see y’all dreams/ 18 with the 318/ that’s blood y’all, he had hot gear/ rocks, yeah/ now that he’s not here I feel that it’s not fair/ fuck see him at the crossroads/ wanna see him at the drive across road, Porsche stored in floss mode/ had to tell a few niggas/ my man was a hell of a nigga/ swell with the triggers/ wherever effort, prime dog, better check it/ little Cam is just bloodshed resurrected/ death to birth, logic I said/ 4 months got him some head, right in the bed/ listen dog I’m beyond dead/ this ain’t even me spittin’ this Derrick Michael Armstead” on Tomorrow on some reverent shit.

Stop Calling featuring McGruff is a tough track for real. Cam’ron keeps it gutter describing how he sexes someone else’s girl. The beat is one of those slow, spooky piano backed jump-offs. It’s definitely one of the album’s highlights. So is On Fire Tonight with Freekey Zekey, where they go on and on about getting burned by a dirty slut. That kind of material is where Cam excels. Dead or Alive with Jimmy Jones isn’t bad either.

Come Home With Me isn’t a Roc-A-Fella highlight but Oh Boy with Juelz Santana helped its sales and I’m sure it afforded Cam some more pink outfits.

Rating: 6 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Copy

Busta Rhymes, When Disaster Strikes (1997)

2005-02-13T19:50:00.000-05:00

Busta Rhymes’ sophomore album flaunted the overt change in his rap style from deep, demented, and crazy to hip-pop, dance club musician. He caught the hip hop community off guard with the high energy Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See and backed that up with Dangerous, his two singles for the album. This plastic disc, When Disaster Strikes, flew off store shelves. Add to that a base heavy P. Diddy number, The Body Rock featuring Rampage, Mase and the super-duper producer, we know exactly what audience Busta was aiming at… the ones with the money.

Still yet, the album did come fully equipped with a few hard core joints. So Hardcore is one such example with Busta bragging “Yo, I walk through brick walls/ fuck around, highjack your whole shopping malls/ I be ripping shit, that’s my word’s bond/ Scream then I watch the whole planet Earth respond/ do just what your told, the remote control/ crash course your shit, Jell-O how we mold/ when I crumble and dry then you reply, Why Why Why, Why Why Why!!!!!!/ yo, I execute all plans/ when I bring two bitches for me and my man/ [Ha!] breaking fool/ [Ha!] for my fans/ in return niggas give me the [Ha!] sound scan/ [Ha!] strike matches, golden eggs hatches/ request line is open, send all your faxes/ freaks the flow with no rehearsing/ rollerskate backwards when the beat start reversing/ you so wack you make people start cursing/ flows contradict worster than the King James version/ turn on your mic but your shit will stop working/ beats brutalize your whole rhyme, your head hurting/ broomsticks and witches from rags to riches/ we get mad love while y’all niggas will burn bridges/ amateur, why won’t you look right at the calendar?/ a matter of, time before I start to damage ya/ so starving to just bust my rhyme caliber/ consecutive wounds like a nigga stabbing ya/ yo! My whole team get wild cream/ politicin’ every rule to the extreme!” That’s been his style from day one, but his cadence and flow is what brought him the success.

In addition, Get High Tonight is a song for you oregano tokers to enjoy. There’s Not a Problem My Squad Can’t Fix featuring Jamal is another one of those high energy tracks in the same vein as his singles. And Rhymes Galore is another attempt at Busta being hard.

This may not appeal to the fans of his first album, The Coming, but it didn’t sell a ton of copies for no reason.

Rating: 8 Platinum Teefs
Buy or Copy: Copy

Busta Rhymes, Extinction Level Event: The Final World Front (1998)

2005-01-30T19:50:00.000-05:00

In 1998, hip-hop had Busta Rhymes chanting that there’s only 2 years left. He must’ve meant his career as a successful rap artist because Extinction Level Event is the last piece of notable artistry that he’s produced. Nonetheless, this is a damned good album that, in its time, graced dance halls all over the place.

The supered up Everybody Rise is one of those cuts that make you wanna bang and break something. Nothing gangsta about it, there’s nothing gangsta about Busta Rhymes, but this good themed club song will get the adrenal glands pumping. Extinction Level Event (The Song of Salvation) is right too, plump with well placed Busta Rhymes ad-libs and a sing-songy chorus that’ll make it stick to your mind like chewing gum. Then there’s Tear Da Roof Off with that amazing bass line. Here, Busta kicks club-type boastful lyrics in unison with the track. The whole thing is just perfect for the asylum; head-nodding like how the sick people do.

Then there are the mediocre joints like the crew cut Against All Odds featuring the Flipmode Squad. Songs like Just Give it to Me Raw, Do it to Death and Keepin’ it Tight are interchangeable. The lyrics could probably go with any of the aforementioned tracks and basially consists of Busta screaming the name of the song several times in the chorus.

In the same vein is a song like Hot Shit Makin’ Ya Bounce where Busta spits “Caliente, wearin’ Sergio Valente/ shorty whippin’ in a Mitsubishi Diamante/ smell the roses, overdoses giving niggas their diagnoses/ I got the answer for niggas who need their prognosis/ shit for all of y’all niggas to smell up in your noses/ hocus pocus, introduce me to the hostess/ I was dying to stroke her, play strip poker/ in the limo as I directed the limo chauffeur/ told the nigga to spin over by the club Copa/ watching shorty lay as she spread in the limo sofa/ she asked the chauffeur to stop for a frapaccino mocha/ then she let me blaze it while I still had my gun in my holster/ still bonin’, word I love the way shorty moanin’/ zonin’, word is bond niggas is wide open/ yo, have a little fun all in between time/ and now we focus on the money shit all in the meantime/ word to mother, I work hard to keep microphonin’/ and alert miggas to shit like when the devil started clonin’/ what nigga?, yeah we bowlin’ and shit is rollin’/ little shitty ass nigga should go run and clean your colon/ any human that be assumin’ I check my nigga Ruben/ for the ice cube and the system in my Lincoln Nav boomin’/ what’s the issue, I come to get you/ may the force be with you/ bang your head, rupture your brain tissue/ I unravel shit faster than sound travel/ battle any amphibian or live mammal/ don’ fret from sun rise to sun set/ make a nigga bounce quick and I ain’t even grab my gun yet/ I ain’t done yet, before I go to my permanent home/ make sure you put ‘one of the illest’ on my tombstone.”

With Busta Rhymes, singles are a dime a dozen. This time he went with Gimme Some More and What’s it Gonna Be?! Featuring Janet Jackson but he could have went with any of the tracks on the album including This Means War!! featuring Ozzy Osbourne. So, when you buy ELE you basically get a bunch of pop sounding crossover raps.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Go ahead and get this one, it doesn’t disappoint. Buy.

Busta Rhymes, Anarchy (2000)

2005-01-27T01:36:00.000-05:00

Now there are no years left! And, well, Busta brings another album full of the same old, same old and frankly it’s getting old. You all know the Busta Rhymes protocol; get some high octane beats, scream at the top of your lungs and repeat the name of the song 4 or 5 times in the chorus. That’s exactly what you’ll find on songs like Bladow!!, and C’mon All My Niggaz, C’mon All my Bitches. Street Shit, although adhering to the formula, does hit hard with a Just Blaze beat that Mr. Rhymes ain’t competing with.

So a bunch of generic songs pepper the album, but Busta went all out on the production with tracks by D.J. Scratch, Swizz Beats, Rockwilder, the Large Professor, and Jay Dee in addition to the aforementioned Just Blaze. Unfortunately, by the time you get 4 or 5 tracks into Anarchy, you realize that Busta Rhymes might have just run out of things to rap about. Actually, that happened a couple albums ago. A couple standouts include the much welcomed change of pace offered by verses from Roc-Marciano, Raekwon and Ghostface Killah on the Heist. The rappers team up over a strings laced, Italiano-themed offering and refresh things before we get back to the grind. Also, Ready for War, featuring M.O.P., has Lil Fame going off bustin’ “Fuck the bullshit, I kick a bone out your ass/ hard rock niggas, I kick a stone out your ass/ warning to all those, caps get peeled/ quicker than emails to your ass saying ‘chill, chill, chill’/ chase him, straight lace him, with a mack-10 blazing/ split your ass up like the Temptations/ you cats is animated cartoons/ who y’all, The return of Goodfellas part 2?/ bitch, throw your fuckin’ guns up, put your fuckin’ hand down/ Famester, Berkawitzc, Buss-Buss-Down/ we sneak the guns right in, y’all keep tryin’/ and I’m a check all pussies like the GYN/ open up your can of whoop ass/ I open up a fresh can of I’ll fuck your ass up quick fast/ Flipmode, M.O.P./ Fizzy Womack, whoa Mack, y’all know who the fuck I be.”

And on Anarchy, obviously the album’s title track, Busta spits “Right before I lay your soul to sleep/ witness the day of your reckoning with God on the street/ behold, what the fuck y’all niggas come around here for/ we massacre the masters so therefore/ here’s your, invitation to explore/ the way we gather up niggas to thoroughly rep for/ my street niggas [come on], stressed niggas [come on], hungry niggas [come on], yes yes y’all [come on]/ hope my live motherfuckers pass the test y’all/ prepare for high retribution and I hope God bless y’all/ fuck shit up and watch the truth manifest y’all/ feel it in your guts to burn it in your chest y’all/ rushing through just like a wild flood, with such a pain and so intense it make y'all wanna cry blood/ my slang talk earned a scholarship on how to style a chick, influence rulership and earn another dollar quick/ you need do the philosophical research/ fuck around and be the next to die and better leave first/ yo, my whole crew extra large and stay charged/ like polytheism, having belief in many Gods/ I gotta handful of niggas with a sick disease/ diagnosed with destructive anti-social tendencies/ yo, turn up the treble, adjust the level/ analyze the science deeper than when Mozart civilized the devil/ now lemme ask y’all…” Your guess is as good as mine as to what the man’s talking about.

Busta Rhymes hasn’t had a good album since Extinction Level Event, but back then there were like 3 years left or so. Better get the hint because it’s over.

Rating: 6 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Copy and throw it on when you’re trying to drown out your neighbors or something.

Joe Budden, Joe Budden (2003)

2005-01-24T22:45:00.000-05:00

"I'm tired of hearing about you raps dudes coming with the guns/ never caught a body, had the smell comin' from the trunk/ I'm tired of hearin' 'bout your 4s bust, while I was cuffed on a up-North bus y'all fucked on a tour bus/ all them stories 'bout you gettin' money with gangstas, that shit is pretty funny to gangstas/ I'm tired of hearin' about that gat in your boot/ 'cause when it's said and done and you finished that rap in the booth it's back to the truth/ and your shit is glass thug, [and you] never outside you's a in the lab thug, a pen and pad thug/ it sounds good, you ain't pushin' work in the projects but you spittin' about it when you work on your project/ clown, answer back, I never seen your hammers flash/ just photo shoots when camaras flash/ all I'm hearin' is another niggas life over tracks/ and you lames ain't willing to lose your life over rap." Joe Buddens talks about his life and gangsta rappers' credibility on his album, Joe Budden, as exemplified by his second verse on the album's first bonus track Real Life in Rap.

If you were alive during the summer of '03, you know Pump It Up and Focus, songs with commercial sounds that got serious radio play. The rest of Joe's album is much more complex as is Joe's flow. Pusha Man, probably the albums hardest gangsta track, with a harder bassline and even tougher talking than Real Life in Rap. Then he's got some old school type sounds like on #1. Budden has also got songs with singing on the hook, par for the course in rap now-a-days, like on She Wanna Know featuring Lil' Mo. Budden threw in a club joint with Fire featuring Busta Rhymes. Then the end of the album finds some serious introspectives into Budden's thoughts, life, emotions. This album reminds me very much of Beanie Sigel's the Truth. In fact, Stand Up Nucca reminds me almost exactly of Die; both in my top 25 of rap tracks for all time. Its hard beats and complexity definately puts this album in the "official" category.

"For all my mans that died with grams at they side/ plans just to ride, gun jammed when he tried/[this is for my] ballas who never made it out the hood, cats who owed but never made it out the hood/ if they offered you pleas but you went to court with it/ my dogs doing time 'cause you got caught with it/ or if you need cheddar, blast heat whenever and run from the cops 'cause you know the streets better/ dope niggas who rich 'cause they know connects, or dope niggas who spit but got no connects/ if you pitch to pay rent, but get no business/ life in the state pen but get no visits/ fend for yourself 'cause you ain't got no boys/ ride or die, really you ain't got no choice/ your alibi straight when you're wanted on the stand/ soldiers who take their football numbers like a man/ hustle OT 'cause your product's rich there/ 'hood know you snitched but you gotta live there/you held your man's shots, you don't know where it hit him/ and you trying to buy guns, you don't know where to get 'em/ if you strapped in the street with your palms all black/ young G's that gotta see their moms on crack/ pops can't be found, hand me downs or you the oldest outta 5, hold the family down/ if you caught a body and your wiz hid you out/ or if you slept in the park when moms kicked you out/ or if you gonna die you gon' leave with a slug/ idolize your big bro but he was a thug/ if you squeeze your leather first 'cause it never hurt/ street cats who never worked cause it never worked/ or if you got your shit snatched, gripped clipped and matched/ too small for the kick back but gotta get your shit back/ killed niggas playing, he was only boxing/ accept 20 flat is your only option/ calm and your juggling between the system/ if you high on parole and gotta clean your system/ if you told 'em to stop 'cause soon you'll lose it/ pull up your pants leg, bullet wounds to prove it/ or if you grab the liquor and swallow it hard, if they drive by you but you follow the car/ full clip, 'cause your foes is lurking/ or the D's at your door with a picture, 'do you know this person?'/ if you dead broke but forced into extortin'/ 'cause your girl's pregnant and she don't want an abortion/ got charged before, strap a gun anyway/ took the state's lawyer but you won anyway/ stand up cats beat the odds by far, real recognize real, r. r. r." Stand Up Nucca is serious.

This album has a little of everything and then some. It misses classic status, but Joe's first album has got him sounding like a veteran.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: The verdict is out. In my opinion, buy this. If you're reading this in a couple years and Budden turns out to be a couple hit wonder then skip it. It's teetering on real top tier material.

Buckshot, BDI Thug (1999)

2005-01-23T19:49:00.000-05:00

Buckshot is one intense workaholic. Besides being behind the scenes of nearly every song his Boot Camp Clik makes, he still finds time to put out his own music. BDI Thug is another example of a hard working mc. Unfortunately, for most of the music world, Buckshot's exploits fall on deaf ears.

Album bangers include Follow With Pride, Ladies N Gentlemen, and My Bitches & My Niggaz featuring Harly Hearts of Crow Hill. I'll Be Damned Featuring BJ Swan and Boom Bye Bye with Top Dog of OGC on the hook are some of the near misses. buck basically teeters on mediocrity when it comes down to the come down with BDI Thug.

On Final Words, Buck goes off, spittin' "People say a thug is something I shouldn't be/ some say death is something I shouldn't see/ I had to be me, I had to do what I had to do/ only hung with niggas who said "I ain't mad at you"/ Buck good, now I'm back in the hood/ puffin' the backwood sporting the all black hood/ regroup it, with my niggas who stay shooting/ now I'm up in your spot ready for the looting/ tell me I'm bugged for saying I'm a thug/ in this new millenium Imma give you a slug/ it's real now, this is how I feel now/ niggas ain't have a reason to kneel down, 'til now/ Shit, wanna know why I'm back in Crow Hill now?/ it's mo' bills now, and everybody real now/ so all I wanna do is pop as if/ roll up and then proceed to hit the back of the spliff/ and be who I be, t. h. u. g./ this is live shit now, this ain't a fuckin' movie/ niggas see me and they wanna do me/ shit, not to mention the groupies, y'all wanna get next to my group, see/ ahh man, it's all over with/ Buck on some wack chauvenistic shit/ see this when I show you this, motherfucker."

This project was all about Buckshot showing wannabe up and comers that it's not easy to be in the rap game. In fact, the same goes for Buckshot's career. Case in point is a song like Breath Control. So this is vintage Buck, is what it all boils down to.

Rating: 6 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Copy it, most folks don't care to listen to Buckshot much unless they wanna nod their heads while high anyway.

Bubba Sparxxx, Deliverance (2003)

2005-01-21T21:35:00.000-05:00

Sparxxx comes pretty ho-hum with another attempt at dazzling the world with "hick-hop". It doesn't work, but there are a few breaths of fresh air on here worth a listen.

As we all know, anything super producer Timbaland touches has some serious bounce to it. Executive produced by Tim, Deliverance's beats are its saving grace. Down South, banjo/hip-hop tracks go reasonably well with Sparxxx' drawl. "There is no king for the throne I seek/ all by myself so alone I leap/ for the young boy daddy gone 5 weeks/ he's only 14 but he's grown by me/ 'cause he keep the heat on and his little sister fed/ with his knowledge of the land and the tools in the shed/ he could be in school but he choose this instead/ no avenue he won't pursue for the bread/ and who is there to speak for him but Bubba?/ he listens to his own, can't relate to none other/ the product of a bad hand and a young mother/ if daddy wasn't ready all it took was one rubber/ to prevent the pain that his family's done suffered/ thankfully his son is a real come-upper/ 'cause it's gon' be something on the table come supper/ there the plight of my people's uncovered," is how the Southerner attacks his third verse on Comin' Round, one of those songs about suffering and surviving. The man can really control a mic with his flow.

She Tried is a track about Bubba losing his love, Warrant featuring Attitude is a catchy tune about the long-arm coming after Mr. Sparxxx and Deliverance is the single that got some radio attention.

Then there are the hootin' and hollarin' tracks like Take a Load Off and Hootnanny which don't seem to be about anything in particular besides raising a ruckus and creating fresh noise to get a headache to.

Bubba does pull something from under his sleeve in the last track, though. Back in the Mud is one of those 'you could take a nigga out the 'hood, but you can't take the 'hood out the nigga' songs in the White trailer park trash perspective. The beat is electric guitars and piano notes on methamphetamine. I turn this one up in my car with the windows down in the summer, you might too. Good song.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Buy if you can find it for the right price, cheap. This can be a neat asset to a well-balanced rap collection. It's like diversifying your portfolio.

Brandy, Never Say Never (1998)

2004-12-21T01:36:00.000-05:00

On the heels of the hip and highly successful sitcom, Moesha, Brandy comes at her fans with Never Say Never. The Boy is Mine, featuring Monica, banged for the whole year and Brandy was on Top of the World as described in the Mase verse who featured on the track back in the 9 8. The girl that always wanted to be "down" was certainly flying high by now.

The album's opening track, Angel in Disguise, infuses Brandy's sultry grown woman voice with hip-hoppish synthesized bass and a harp somewhere in there. The result is a meaningfully done joint about a deceptive woman who "left you in the rain." Go figure.

Have You Ever is one of the album's more popular tracks, to this day. The chorus says it all, with Brandy crooning "Have you ever loved somebody so much it makes you cry/ have you ever needed something so bad you can't sleep at night/ have you ever tried to find the words but they don't come out right..." As you can imagine, it's coolest with all the ladies, a typical love song. Many a baby owe its creation to track number 10, I'm sure.

One Voice is a typical song on this album. It embodies the whole album as sort of a retro to the slow jams of the early 90's and maybe late 80's. Here Brandy sings in what sounds like a choir in typical gospel-like fashion. The overall theme is love, peace and harmony. It's slow and is accompanied by a piano.

Brandy's Never Say Never is a slow jam album in a hip-hop package. What with the singles being so uptempo and Brandy's image on her sitcom being so young and contemporary, you don't expect to get such a soulful and solemn album.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Nothing groundbreaking here, copy.

Boot Camp Clik, For The People (1997)

2004-12-09T01:24:00.000-05:00

Headz Are Reddee PT. II was the underground hit back in nine-seven that brought the BCC to the fore-front. Things were good for the group back then, just on the precipice. They were about to blow, everyone in the Camp could feel it. Smif-n-Wesson, the Originoo Gun Clappaz and Heltah Skeltah, which accounted for 8 of the 9 members, were coming off of great selling albums. This album was to make the fame and the fortune all come to fruition. Instead of flourishing, they fluttered. It was all f'd up.

Diversification, it sounds like a financial term, but that was the For The People strategy. Hard raps, radio friendly club joints, and even a reggae/ska influenced song rounded out the vast entries on this album. It's hard to imagine this all star line-up failing like they did. Exactly what missed, however, was indeed that very same diversification. Like all Brooklynites such as myself keep hearing, they should've kept it "real, son".

On Illa Noyz, Rock, of Heltah Skeltah, spits "Yo! Who's this dufus, thinking they ruthless?/ Rock leave you toothless, now you sound and look stupid/ you get your head spun around like a screw just/ for being the only girl in the town full of men like Smurfette, that lil blue bitch/ think I'm foul?, fuck your momma smack her if she never warned you 'bout a walking bomb with a timer/ alright, line your boys up, that's a fair one, ask Illa Noyz/ [yup, yup, yup] like my little nephew, I break toys up."

Like most rap songs, there are lots of shit talking to go around, but there's also a nice mix of various other topics like the Ohkeedoke where the Camp explains the shit out there that can get some men caught up such as "when shorty calling you and she bleedin'" or being locked up with niggas behind you all the time. Many of the tracks were composed with live instruments, from what I remember hearing, as opposed to being synthesized (had something to do with sample clearing and budgeting issues). There are alot of innovations going and it is fresh.

On Last Time, the project's last song, a solemn Buckshot raps "There used to be a rumor about BDI/ I wouldn't come back, I tell you no lie/ but when I listen to the radio I think/ whenever I'm back, I'm bound to make a link with the music that used to make me jam and jump/ thump while the bass bump/ tell the dj throw on the wax that's playing the therapy mix/ you said it was aiight, we made a remix/ licks after licks take ticks off the time clock/ BD buck a shot, take it to the top/ see I'm bound to make your body pop/ one nation under a groove see my beat'll never stop/ when I heard about the beef between the East and the West coast/ called my nigga Kurupt, I knew it was boast/ they hope a nigga end the music with this bomb, so I prepared, load my arms and wait, 'cause this is the last time." It kind of sums up the whole BCC ambience after this album didn't do too well.

Rating: An adequate 6 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Copy

Boot Camp Clik, The Chosen Few (2002)

2004-12-04T01:48:00.000-05:00

"I do what I do like I do for the hood/ pop tools, pop jewels, burn backwoods/ slay djays who think they untouchable/ renegade, never been afraid, emcees get it too/ the moral of the story is this/ I used to say get off, but this time suck my dick/ I'm from Bk, home of Big and Aaliyah/ watch how the pound or the four fifth leave ya," is how Tek sets off this amazing album on And So. Straight backpacker rhymes and serious hip hop melodies, a Boot Camp trademark, is all The Chosen Few is about.

Besides the great opening song, the BCC supplies us with straight hot track after hot track on Let's Get Down 2 Bizness, Let's Roll, and The Chosen Few (obviously the cd's title track) to name a small sampling. Think Back, a reminisce style track, even got plenty of airplay on college radio stations and even some major hip-hop radio stations.

On Just Us, Starang Wondah says "Yo it's Starang Won, with no deal, I mold bills/ this rap shit is so real and you don't even know Will/ I play the crib, reruns of Moesha/ eating cold pizza, man, smoking more refer/ pass my bitch off, took the hooker back, it's cheaper to keep her/ tried to escape, a nigga keep getting in deeper, yo/ this ain't the same Starang niggas is used to/ I'm neutral but that don't mean a nigga won't shoot you, yo/ I write a check, niggas turn up dead/ I'm like I toaster the way a nigga burn up bread/ Come on, I play chess when I'm rapping/ for real, a nigga feel like I'm the best when I'm rapping."

Steele goes off on The Chosen Few spittin' "Ghetto living, parallel to prisons/ cursed soul, from hell I've risen/ blew the bail from the system/ Bloomberg cutting billions from children/ so we resort to the streets, I walk with my peeps/ OG's responsible for my speech, co-d's make me comfortable enough to reach/ Tony Montana was deep, we all follow the script/ recipe to turn powder to bricks/ devour the strip/ the game's the same, the players change/ homie you gotta maintain if you wanna remain/ let God give guidance/ may the hood provide us with the necessity to get by this/ niggas falling victim to mirages/ we rep the hardest, blood and sweat goin' drip regardless/ behind enemy lines we chargin'/ the target, getting at all you niggas in the market/ got trees spark it, got Vs then park it/ Bucktown where all the Ds like to hawk us/ walk what you talking, gotta stay focused/ beware this rap industry and the hocus pocus/ many are called, few were chosen/ I choose to die for a cause and ride with my soldiers..."

The ever consistent Boot Camp Clik definately make a quality rap release with The Chosen Few. These guys are as reliable as the brakes of a finely tuned Italian sports car. Except for the corny old school-ish Whoop His Ass featuring Rufus Blaq the whole album has excellent beats and the Clik flows like they're supposed to on every last one. If you're an illict substance smoker (that green tea preferably), this is the kind of rap music you can enjoy a high to. The Boot Camp defies bragadoccio raps and bling bling word play to bring us hip hop in its purest.

Rating: 8 Platinum Teefs
Buy or Copy: This is one you can always pull out of your collection, pop into your player and thoroughly enjoy. Buy it.

Mary J. Blige, The Tour (1998)

2004-12-03T23:50:00.000-05:00

Mary J. Blige released this thing on the heel backs of Share My World, a very excellent album. I went ahead and got this release because Share My World was such a diverse album but I was genuinely disappointed in the way The Tour comes together.

At first glance The Tour looks like a can't miss with a collage of some of Mary's finest hits. Real Love, Sweet Thing, Everything, and others are all here. But what makes for a great live show misses the mark in an album release. For one thing, the recordings are of live instruments dealing with crowded coliseum acoustical issues. Second, the impromptu verbiage from Mary and her hype man between sets are just a bunch of nitrogenous waste. And lastly, short sets cut up the songs and your favorite part may just get skipped or faded into the next tune.

One could imagine one hell of a ruckus it would be catching Mary live in Los Angeles (where this was recorded). It sure seemed like, in person, I'd have had a blast. The effect fails to transition to your home cd player or your car in the summertime. This is a great find if you can get your hands on it cheap and want something to hum to while you mop the floor, wash the dishes, or shower but it won't set the moods a typical in-studio style MJB joint would.

Rating: 4 Tin Teefs
Buy or Copy: It'd be a nice addition to your collection for when you spend Sunday cleaning the bathroom if you can find it for less than $4 or $5, but I'd copy it if you really want it that bad.

Mary J. Blige, Share My World (1997)

2004-11-27T01:59:00.000-05:00

Share My World is a potent and magnetic album with excellent production from the Trackmasters and Mary J. sounds exceptional. The project seamlessly blends hip-hop and R&B incorporating energetic bass and moody soul rhythms with a flurry of rap hitmakers like Nas, Lil' Kim and The Lox and R&B crooners like R. Kelly and the star of the show Ms. Blige. The best part to this creation of marked greatness are Mary's grown woman topics such as the seven days with which it takes for a relationship to both spark and fade as exemplified on Seven Days (nope, it isn't brain surgery). There's enough here to keep you entertained for a whole summer. It's a good album to have if you ever decide to be stranded on a deserted isle.

On Round and Round, Mary gets straight forward about a lover keeping her in the dark about their standing. "You don't know what you did to me when you told me you love me/ now you're acting shady, now I'm going crazy, please stop falling back on me/ 'cause I got to keep from going round!" All this over that banging Jay-Z beat from Reasonable Doubt's The Evils, what more could you want?

Everything was on the radio forever in the Fall of 1997. All the ladies knew the words, and the guys couldn't front like they didn't like it. With its sample of You Are Everything by the Stylistics, Mary croons a happy tune of what else but love?

And on Share My World's last track, M. J. B. gets real mellow and dejected on the redeeming Not Gon' Cry, where she chants "you're not worth my tears." Moving on from a less than happy relationship is something all women can appreciate and see inspiration in.

Mary's life experiences before and during Share My World's recording were its amphetamine. It lives on its author's bipolarism, changing moods, and life turmoil. The result is art in its most esteemed form. This album is easy to appreciate.

Rating: 9 Platinum Teefs
Copy or Buy: quite possibly Mary's most versatile and comprehensive project, it is worth your dollars, do buy.

Mary J. Blige, Mary (1999)

2004-11-13T18:39:00.000-05:00

The queen of contemporary R&B, Mary J. Blige, gives us a focused album in Mary. The album features hits like All That I Can Say and the Elton John inspired Deep Inside.

This is a hum drum R&B album, no bells, whistles or innovation here.

The sole unique and different track on the album is Your Child where Mary sings about a lover's flame showing up at her door with a child that looks just like him. In the chorus, she sings "Girlfriend, she wasn't disrespectful/ in fact, she's a hundred percent sure/ and how can I argue with her, holding a baby with eyes like yours/ she said it's your child, and it really messed me up/ how could you deny, your own flesh and blood?/ gotta face reality, there could never be anymore us/ won't deny its hurting me, yet so precious." It's a real situation and one that hasn't been done to death in R&B. It's sung well and engrossing, as far as songs go.

Jadakiss, Aretha Franklin, and K-Ci Hailey make so-so guest appearances, nothing to write home about.

As usual, Mary's voice sounds good and her music is fine and up to date. The lack of much original material weighs heavily on the album though.

Rating: 5 Stainless Steel Teefs, a bore.
Buy or Copy: What do you think? Nah, copy it.

Black Star, Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star (1998)

2004-11-12T23:17:00.000-05:00

The two most revered soulful and conscientious rappers alive converge here to shed some light on life and rap. The Black Star album is a concept on par with excellence. With Kweli's assiduous delivery and Mos Def's funky "wild nice" flow, this album turned into a reflection of the state of the industry.

Kweli's sickest verse came on Hater Players where this dude blacks out spitting "It's a small wonder like Vicky why I'm picky/ 'cause niggas suck like hickeys, still get to slip they shit in like mickies/I'm sick of these hater players, bring on the regulators with the flavors and your farm team fucking with the majors/ like a river how I run through, what I do is so cold/ freezing up your bodily fluids, your style is old/ you running your mouth don't really know what you be talking about/ you should retire, get that complimentary watch be out/ yo with the quickness, so swift you miss this lyrical fitness/ yo get this, these mc's want to test me like litmus/ bear witness, I'm like shot clocks, interstate cops and bloodclots/ my point is your flow gets stopped..."

"I'm sure that everybody out listening agree/ that everything you see ain't really how it be/ alot of jokers out running in place chasing the style/ be alot going on beneath the empty smile/ most cats in my area be loving the hysteria/ synthesized surface conceals the interior/ America, land of opportunity mirages and camoflauges, more than usually/ speaking loudly saying nothing, you confusing me/ you losing me your game is twisted, want me enlisted in your usery/ foolishly, most men join the ranks cluelessly/ but foolishly accept the deception, believe the perception/ reflection rarely seen across the surface of the looking glass/ walking the street, wondering who they be looking past/ looking gassed with them imported designer shades on/ star shines bright but the light rarely stays on/ same song just remix, different arrangement/ put you on a yacth but they won't call it a slave ship/ strangeness, you don't control this, you barely hold this/ screaming brand new when they just sanitize the old shit/ suppose its just another clever jedi mind trick/ that they been running across stars through all the time with/ I find its the stress and there's never no inbetween/ we either niggas or kings, we either bitches or queens/ the daily ritual seems, immerse/ in a perverse, full of short attention spans, short tempers and short skirts/ no barrel automatic released in short bursts/ the length of black life is treated with short work/ get yours first, them other niggas secondary/ that type of illin that be filling up the cemetary/ this life is temporary but the soul is eternal/ seperate the real from the lie, let me learn you/ not strong, only aggressive 'cause the power ain't directed/ that's why we is subjected to the will of the oppressive/ not free, we only licensed not live, we just exciting 'cause the captives own the masters to what we writing/ I come passionate, only polite, we well trained/ Our sincerity is rehearsed and staged, its just a game/ not good, but well behaved 'cause the cameras survey/ most of the things that we think do or say/ we chasing after death just to call ourselves brave, when everyday next man meet with the grave/ I give a damn if any fam recall my legacy/ I'm trying to live life in the sight of God's memory, like that y'all." That's a crazy Mos Def verse on Thieves in the Night.

These guys bring it deep. This is a project heavy in lyrics before beats. The beats, for the better part of the album, are melodic and smooth sounding with piano or guitar riffs and compliment the rappers well. Good album.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Buy, you don't lose anything by making this purchase.

Black Rob, Life Story (2000)

2004-11-12T15:47:00.000-05:00

This Black Rob project was in the making for a long time over at the Bad Boy camp. The Source raved about this album, and the folks at Bad Boy marketing let fans know this by putting a sticker on the jewel case with The Source's 4 and a half mics rating.

There are many guest appearances on this album and (as par for the course for Bad Boy) alot of radio airplay and club songs. Everyone in the Bad Boy camp, Cee-Lo and Jennifer Lopez is on this album. It has alot of fire power and alot of great beats, production, and coalescence. Simply put, Black Rob's album is professionally done in all aspects. I only wonder where is Black Rob these days.

Anyway, on Can I Live featuring the Lox (back when they were still with Bad Boy which is pre 2000) Black spits "This is to my AK toters, money bill folders/ bad bitch holders, whips with big motors/ on the low for years, the feds can't decode us/ we bust rhymes, all you gotta do is load us/ my night time prowlers and grimey after hours/ Karl Kani, Mar Malone wearing Eddie Bauers/ flipping cake niggas, who strip and take niggas/ upstate niggas, my Crystal Lake niggas/ we goin' hold it down if we gotta shake niggas/ and make niggas do what we say or break niggas/ survival of the fittest, it ain't me 'cause I did it/ now you see me shining 2 mil worth of diamonds/ and I owe it all to hard criming/ don't mean that I'm a stop climbing, '99 is good timing/ and I salute my thugs who rock/ with the drugs and switch guns and pay 30 thousand a slug/ make it happen, I swear to God if I don't make it rapping I'm clapping/ extorting and robbing niggas cribs and car jacking." On this same track Jadakiss says "this is a monopoly, niggas ain't stopping me, and we can't lose 'cause Puff set us up properly/ just won't settle for lesser, who wan' test us/ we be in the 5 with the goose head restes/ Lox put niggas under pressure/ you should've knew that, it's always the new cats that'll get ya/ better start looking at things from my angle/ I'm trying to be up on the board with a triangle/ next to my name with a ten or a twenty/ now that's when you really can say you getting money/ but right now all I do is sit back and listen/ to a wise young man that quickly became a rich one/ put me up on the fact it ain't hard to get some/ chips if I just keep writing with ambition/ then I could advance from the 5 to the 6 and/ house with two kitchens, diamonds plenty women/ built in pool to swim in/ but the plan is to start from the floor/ and raise it up, then you hit 'em in the head till your days is up/ you blazing what?/ playboy you frail and butt/ you know when Bad Boy drop all your sales is cut." Definately some hot, boasty rap, typical of the day.

Sure they've been better albums, but songs like Life Story featuring Cheryl Pepsi Riley & Raquel where Black Rob rhymes about his rough upbringing to a milky smooth beat, and Espacio featuring Lil' Kim and G-Dep over an electronic funk and hip hop blended beat make this album a shining example of what big hip hop labels can bring to the table. It also didn't hurt to have a series of club knockers, especially Whoa, bang for not weeks but months!

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Copy, unless you're into Bad Boy's commercial appeal.

Black Moon, War Zone (1999)

2004-11-12T15:17:00.000-05:00

To some fanfare, Black Moon released a much anticipated 'back together' album. This is the manifestation of all the anticipation. The first part of the album, with hits like Onslaught featuring Busta Rhymes, War Zone, This is What it Sounds Like, and Come Get Some featuring Louieville, is a true banger but then things get tame.

Showdown featuring Q-Tip is a happy sounding song with the hardcore Buskshot spitting and Q-Tip doing the hook. It sounds corny as hell. It's not all downhill however, as One-Two is a tough track with a heavy beat, Two Turntables & a Mic is a throwback track giving praise to the b-boy and in the park days over a Heartbeat sample, and Annihilation featuring M.O.P. and Teflon is a rough Brooklyn collaboration.

"Got all these stressed out niggas with firearms/ prepare, get ready, they 'bout to bomb/ first one hit, usually an innocent civillian/ shot by the elevator, dead up in the building/ I'm illin off the chill I got/ threw my spine last night when I heard a shot/ took flight, 'cause I knew that the gods was right/ telling me you gonna make it when it's hard in life/ and the stripes that you gain through the streets is pain/ no matter how many motherfuckers is slain/ hold your head son, maintain/ fuck getting the tumor in your brain, motherfuck the rumor, or you on cain/ simple and plain, life, piece of the pie/ is to hussle and get yours nigga, I can't lie/ I'm addicted to the high life/the wild life, make the stress go by easy when I bomb right" Another one of Buckshot's easy to smoke something to verses. This one is from Weight of the World. On this same song, 5ft kicks "The weight, of the world is on my shoulder/ but everyday I wake I find myself, I'm getting boulder/ as I annihilate, plus dominate figuring weight to rise up like a Republican primin'/ in the bomb state of thinkin'/ sometime life is like quicksand if not watching your step you end up sinking/ so pay close attention, don't be blinking/ 'cause you might miss the entire point of the words that we speaking," obviously not on Buckshot's level but that's expected.

All things considered, the group knows how to make albums. Although there's nothing great here, it's good rap music.

Rating: 6 Gold Teefs, an average album by all accounts.
Buy or Copy: Nothing groundbreaking here, make yourself a copy.

Black Moon, Total Eclipse (2003)

2004-11-10T01:06:00.000-05:00

When you think Black Moon or anything related to Buckshot, the groups' lead vocalist, you think hard hitting raps you can roll something and smoke it to. It always seems to deliver and Total Eclipse is no exception. Here, the 5ft has so few appearances you can count the number of verses he has on the whole album on one hand (and Lord knows how little impact DJ Evil Dee makes on their work these days). It's pretty much all Buckshot here folks, but he doesn't disappoint.

"Industry rule number ten thousand and eighty/ record company niggas are shady baby/ definately, never maybe/ or have to be a pain in the ass like 'fuck you, pay me'/ crazy, picture me slippin'/ like a broke transmission/ I got both positions, I own both the missions/ I write poems for commissions/ I'm the leader for the squad when the gods in a hard predicament/ like, got a hot group and need they contracts right/ or got jerked for your publishing last fight/ now you wanna act tight, lemme give you advice/ it don't matter if you that nice/ 'cause the bottom line is the kind of mind not the kind of rhyhm/ signed and sealed delivered, delivered and signed/ right now I know you wanna get yours/ I'm out my prime so I gotta get mine before I'm out my mind." Vintage Buckshot wordplay as displayed in the forementioned example on Confusion; obviously a song about people's understanding of the business side of the rap game.

Naturally, Buckshot brings his in-house (his Boot Camp Click and Duck Down Records entourage) talent along for the ride. Featuring along side Buck, 5ft and Evil Dee are Starang Wondah, Tek and Steele, and Sean Price. As usual, they do the job effectively. Underground backpackers, and long time Brooklyn weed heads know how BCC does.

"You cowards think we going out? no way/ you catch Steele off point nigga, no day/ nigga for spray, fuck fore play, I don't play/ you ain't having it? you gangsta? you don't say?/ word B? You wanna go to war with me? okay/ no more Mr. Nice Guy, come with me/ gun hid away in the hide away when I ride your way/ hit you up then cool and casually slide away/ by the way, you hardly find me outta haze/ these days alot of these rapper rather imitate/ what I demonstrate, boy I'm original/ criminal, set trends, respect the generals/ I ain't mad atcha, I take business personal, I might blast at ya/ hit at me, I get right back atcha/ straight snatch you up from under your desk and just pimp slap ya!" That's Steele's verse on No Way. Knowing most Steele fans, they're high half way through that verse!

Another solid and consistent Boot Camp showing. You know what you get when you hit up the Click at your record store, no doubt about it.

Rating: 8 Platinum Teefs
Buy or Copy: Hard beats, tough rhymes... why not? Buy it!

Bilal, 1st Born Second (2001)

2004-11-09T23:20:00.000-05:00

Bilal, the funky R&B crooner whose style is in the same vein as artists like Erykah Badu, Common, The Roots and Slum Village, hits with a masterful debut album. Its impressive soul rhythms and production blend perfectly with Bilal's unorthodox singing style. Further helping this little known gem along are the impressive, well done appearances from Dr. Dre, Jadakiss, Mos Def and Common.

Bilal did get some radio airplay, mostly due to the notariety of rappers Dr. Dre and Jadakiss who featured on Fast Lane, an ode to street life and the perils that that life sometimes bring. However, the best song on the album, in my opinion, is absolutely Soul Sista. But other tracks also stick in my head like Queen of Sanity, For You, Love It, and Reminisce featuring Mos Def and Common. In fact, there are very few songs that lack replay appeal on this album.

This project is a medley of style and mood, blending hard core street sound with soulful funk and everything inbetween the two. This is an album that, unfortunately for no good reason, was slept on. Don't sleep on this if you are an R&B fan. Everything Bilal touches seem to have some abstract appeal to it and his album doesn't disappoint.

Rating: 9 Platinum Teefs
Copy or Buy: Uhm, tough call here but definately try it first. I, personally, would buy.

Big Noyd, Episodes of a Hustla (1996)

2004-11-09T01:13:00.000-05:00

By all accounts, this is a darn good album that got very little marketing and is short. I am guessing Noyd just didn't have enough material, so he filled a 39 minute album with an intro, two interludes and remaking 2 of the songs over. On top of that, most of the songs have guest appearances supplying even more filler. It's a bonafide album with 6 songs, 8 in total if you count the remix and remake (part I and part II). What's left has tight production with equally tight beats, thanks in full to the Mobb Deep (all tracks produced by Havoc). Noyd's lyrics are on point and exactly what you'd expect from the Mobb's background cat, they're aggressive and hyper.

All the songs are head boppers but All Pro featuring Ty Nitty, Twin and Prodigy is the headliner! On it, Prodigy wrecks a serious verse saying "The chronicles of a criminal cat who hold gat/ and bust back at trash ass cats who scratch/ leaves big holes, like bitches with their legs spread hot/ ready for action, now peep my whole plot/ Unveil and reveal, hazardous skill, trained assassains of this rap danger field/ I feel ya'll niggas ain't really keeping it real/ use that ice grill like a sheild, nigga you meal/ for my vultures, who swoop down, attack your court/ found laying in the streets of New York/ now sleep walk/ for that shit you did, should have never have did/ now you boxed in, sentenced to a lifetime bid/ nigga, Noyd and P shine bright like, jewelry/ silver and gold exclusively/ terrorize and multiply/ shot up your spot up, you just ain't what you used to be/ after these fists of NY struck you D/ now you see a whole new light and new leaf/ searching for an exit, trying to retreat the street/ waving white flags, no dangers, dead meat/ we only truce when your heart cease, peace!" I listened to this song infinitely in 1996 and it was certainly my vote for rap verse of the year.

On Recognize and Realize (Part II), to an uptempo Havoc track Noyd spits "The trife life, I'm living famous/ busting shots live it's dangerous/ in midnight, we do it right in broad daylight/ the trifle life, living rough, wearing handcuffs like bracelets/ 25 to life, he faced it/ got on the run and got wasted/ mad agony having me more vexed/ got me pulling out techs on opposite sex/ the cream got me fiend/ from massive vill schemes, like doing drive-bys in stretch limosines." Add to that another knocker from Prodigy on this song, you have to wonder what's happened to P of late?

Believe it or not, this album would rate alot higher if it was longer, and not so because of more filler. Of course, if it was longer with similarly strong content, it would be a classic but not to Noyd's merit but to the credit of Mobb Deep.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Not worth the price of admission seeing as how it's less than 40 minutes including interludes and filler. Download or copy it, I'm sure Noyd isn't collecting any royalties off of this lost release.

Big Pun, Yeeeah Baby (2000)

2004-11-06T03:14:00.000-05:00

So right before this thing was supposed to be released, the immensely immense Big Pun bit the dust. The rumor mill churned out anecdotes of how fat he'd supposedly gotten at the time of his death. But the single on the streets, It's So Hard featuring Donnel Jones, had him talking about how he just offed 100 pounds. It indeed was hard as it had the streets buzzing for months. The whole summer had the South Bronx nodding collectively to the catchy Donnel Jones sung hook and Big Pun's rapid fire delivery. "Fuck that, spun a uey lost a hub cap/ it's back to the shack, came back in a 'what's that?!'/ straight from Paris, check out Gaby's friend's baby carraige/ Perry Ellis, hot bird, cherry-radish/fresh out the dealer, got the tech for the squealers/ wear a vest for the killers nothing less 'cause it's realer/ in the Big Apple, where it's quick to get your shit tackled/ enemies spit at you, best friends kidnap you/ trust no one, got beef bust yo' gun/ you don't need no one talkin' 'bout that you owe 'em/ I'ma go for dolo, Scarface without Manolo/ want beef? I be solo, bustin' heat, throwin' bolos, it's on!" The video featured cameos of some of New York's biggest hip hoppers, like fellow New Yorican Noreaga, all out to mourn one of their own.

Another album highlight was the introduction of Remy Martin, Terror Squads resident female gangsta rapper. She seriously killed a long verse in Ms. Martin with her deliberate and well put together delivery.

Off With His Head featuring Prospect, however, was the real highlight of the project. The two Terror Squadians flow seamlessly back to back, going line for line talking shit the whole time to an upbeat horn laced track... the way hip hop is supposed to be rocked.

All in all, Pun never strays far from his winning formula of machine gun fired raps with a twist of thug humor, killer cameos (like M.O.P. and Fat Joe) and uptempo beats. He certainly has more than enough ability to carry an entire album, and this is a rather short one. Consice and succicnt with a couple hiccups, i.e. We Don't Care and My D**k this comes across effectively.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs, it's hard to pull out the crates and just listen to after the first month.
Buy or Copy: Buy, it's certainly no slouch!

Big L, The Big Picture (2000)

2004-10-06T03:08:00.000-04:00

In The Big Picture, one of hip hop's most talented is at his absolute peak displaying his different styles on the mic. L comes off on an explosive freetstyle, from 1998 and shows us how storytelling is done on The Heist and Casualties of a Dice Game. The all star line-up also reminds us of exactly how revered L is (Big L passed on in 1999). This album features verses and work from C-Town, Tupac Shakur, Fat Joe, Stan Spit, Guru, Miss Jones, Sadat X, Remy Martin, et al.

On Ebonics, L breaks down hip-hop slang shouting "My weed smoke is my lye/ a key of coke is a pie/ when I'm lifted I'm high/ with new clothes on I'm fly/ cars is whips and sneakers is kicks/ money is chips, movies is flicks/ also cribs is homes, jacks is pay phones/ cocaine is nose candy, cigarettes is bones, uh!" From these lines alone, one can tell exactly what kind of master of rhetoric L was.

On Deadly Combination featuring Tupac, these two belated mc's kick some hard rhymes to a real hard Ron G track. Flambouyant is a smooth, catchy track where L defines his lifestyle. Platinum Plus has L taking us back with Big Daddy Kane dropping a sharp verse. This whole album, put together posthumously, is sharp and done big. The only tracks that give my skip button a workout are Who You Slidin' Wit' featuring Stan Spit and Games with Sadat X and Guru.

This album was a instant classic when it hit the store shelves in 2000, and it is still on constant rotation in my collection.

Rating: 9 Platinum Teefs
Buy or Copy: Buy!

Beenie Man, The Doctor (1999)

2004-10-06T02:41:00.000-04:00

On this project, Beenie bangs us in the head with dance hall banger after dance hall banger. Unfortunately, the album gets off on the wrong foot with of all things, a gospel tune. Although praising the higher being you believe is never wrong, it is odd and out of place on a dancehall album. But after the first track, this thing is done well.

Just what you'd expect from Beenie Man, joints like Let Him Go, Bad Man Nuh Flee featuring Mr. Vegas and Bookshelf gives your body automatic gyrations and is exactly what dance hall is all about.

In Better Learn, a song about social differences (not political correctness either) or burning fire (Jamaican slang for calling out another's foul) Beenie chants "Imagine, you dress up in your latest wear/ put on your Versace, 'cause a tight pants dem wear/you come out, you hear a Rasta man a say burn down the queer/ you feel like you want disapear." Pure fire dat!

On the downside, the anticlimactic Tell Me Remix with Angie Martinez elicits yawns especially from Angie's corny raps. One More Time featuring Little Kirk and World Gone Mad aren't too hot either.

All in all, this is a solid project from the self professed king of the dance hall. Tight production and fantastic dancing rhythms make up for some sub par material.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs.
Buy or Copy: If you host dance parties, buy it, why not?

Beenie Man, Art and Life (2000)

2004-10-06T01:42:00.000-04:00

Beenie Man is this country's biggest dancehall star. This is evident in the release of Art and Life which has many radio friendly songs such as Love Me Now featuring Wyclef and Redman and Girls Dem Sugar with Mya.

The closest thing to true dancehall, on this album, would have to be Analyze This. To a serious dancehall groove, Beenie Man chants "Analyze this, every child and tourist/ dem ya gal have the face, the figure and dem have the hip/ analyze this, how them ya gal a so fit, me have to wonder if dem gal body play the music/analyze this, them ya gal a cry for the whip, and the Jamaican man when them want the ever fit." Other noticeable dance hall tunes include the off the boat Crazy Tunes where Beenie tells us how he never goes down. "Gun shot inna de air, no gal never sit in a man face like chair, she hafta find herself some other guy," says Beenie in this bass heavy banger. Another ruckus dance hall joint is the uptempo Trus Me.

Although the dance hall songs keep this album on my hot list, its downside is how often it works my skip button. Beenie records some true stinkers in Best That I Got, which is actually up there with his worst, and the downright boring 9 to 5. Beenie, leave that shit to the likes of Dolly Parton (no disrespect to Ms. Parton).

Beenie's Art and Life is a near miss. However, his guests might make you check it out. Featured on the album are Kelis, Tanto Metro and Devonte and Canadian rapper Choclair in addition to the forementioned Mya, Redman and Wyclef as well as some others.

Rating: 6 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: You could spend your hard earned money on better, copy.

Beanie Sigel, The Truth (2000)

2004-10-03T03:16:00.000-04:00

The toughest beat Kanye West ever blessed a track with was possibly the freestyle artists' classic, The Truth. Beanie rips it up too, rapping about how he raps about what he really does. This is a classic record, building expectations from the Roc's general.

The rest of the album may disappoint many hardcore rap enthusiasts as it sounds overly commercial. Still, somehow, Sigel managed to keep his lyrics away from the corny, soft stuff you wouldn't expect Beans to produce.

On the intense Die, Beanie talks about the ways death visits many people who might live his lifestyle. This is on repeat in my disc player, it's heavy. With no hook, Beanie spits "die 'cause a nigga pulled his Roscoe out quicker/ I was high of vodka, hydro and malt liquor/ die, cause I knew I should've layed that man/ die 'cause the cops tricked me to say 'that man'/ die, 'cause I hesitated to spray that man/die cause I hesitated to pay that man/ die cause my man passed me an empty tool/ die cause I panicked, I couldn't keep my cool/ die cause I mixed all them pills with Hennessey/ or die cause them niggas was jeal and envied me/ die trying to seal the fate of my enemy, I could go out from a case of mistaken identity."

Then there are the obvious radio friendly tracks featuring Jay-Z. There's also a sing-songy track with Eve and the bonus track is a Jay-Z joint that played on the radio for a couple of weeks. Mac And Brad, featuring Scarface, is a battle track where the two go back and forth apparently freestyling. Nothing to write home about. But some saving graces to the album are What A Thug About and Who Want What, featuring Memphis Bleek.

Not a bad first album.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs.
Buy or Copy: Buy, tracks like Die, The Truth and Mack Man are definately worth your dollars.

Beanie Sigel, The Reason (2001)

2004-10-03T02:52:00.000-04:00

Beanie is at his best in The Reason, starting off with Nothing Like It. The song starts off the album with a serious beat fully equipped with the Ashford and Simpson Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing sample. A great footing for the rest of the project.

"Shit, I don't do much, I just chill and relax alot/ I don't hustle, I just tax the block/ shit, I don't do much, I just roll out and play with tools and make you fagots obey the rules/ shit, y'all don't do much, but drink 40's, look dumb on the block/ damn near 40 still running from cops..." brags Sigel on I Don't Do Much, to a slow, bass heavy beat.

On Mom Praying featuring Scarface, Sigel opens up and professes his love of his mother and grandmother. He talks of his struggles as a youngster and his folks' faith. It makes for a great track, and Scarface laces a tight verse to boot.

Lyrically, all throughout this record, Sigel shows serious talent. This album's only flaws are a corny beat and/or subject here and there like on Gangsta, Gangsta featuring Kurupt on the hook. But all in all, you couldn't have asked for more as Beans delivers the goods on his sophmore effort.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Copy, as good as it is, purchasing it may be going a tad bit too far.

Erykah Badu, Worldwide Underground (2003)

2004-10-03T02:12:00.000-04:00

In Worldwide Underground, Miss Badu ventures into the realm of wierd with many of her tunes just a mess of sing-song babble. As usual, her production is tight and her beats are excellent and easy to groove to. A relatively short album (billed as an e.p.), it is not necessarily sweet.

Bump It is the second track and comes off as a sort of ode to playing Erykah's music "well." We love it when they play your shit sky high too Erykah! This song is mellow yet sends a pervasive message that every music lover can appreciate; good music should be played loudly.

Track 4, the nearly eleven minute I Want You, also has a nifty groove to it. You have to wonder though, why eleven minutes boo? First she plays with then tempo, then she freaks out! After two and a half minutes she stops singing "I I I I I I I want you you you you you you you," it doesn't sound as bad as it may seem though. But by this time she sings actual song lyrics, beautifully! Before long though, we're back to the hum along. The track ends with a snip-it of a Santana-esque rock guitar taking us into the next song.

Danger is a hip-hopish fun song that Erykah does well. It's about holding down the block (if you know what I mean) while her man is in jail, or something. Erykah is funky. This song is bass heavy and the cadence is real mesmerizing. A true head banger.

It's a good cd to throw up in the player on a long car ride, it keeps the brain going. I wouldn't recommend it for everyday listening though, not my cup of tea.

Rating: 6 Gold Teefs.
Buy or Copy: Copy unless you're a BIIIIIIG Erykah fan.

Erykah Badu, Mama's Gun (2000)

2004-10-02T01:54:00.000-04:00

Erykah Badu's funky, soul sister rhythms are in abundant supply in Mama's Gun.

The guitar and drum heavy Penitentiary Philosophy has Erykah giving us a taste of how she can rock. Throw in some discriptive lyris of life behind bars, and you've got a bonafide urban hit!

Other hits on the album, although calmer, are that much more melodic and seductive. In Love With You is one such joint, a duet with Stephen Marley, that you'll play over and over again. It's remeniscient of another great duet, Lauren Hill and D'Angelo's Nothing Even Matters.

Of course there's Bag Lady, the joint that rocked the charts for weeks. The album's version is more rhythm and blues as opposed to the hip hop oriented mix the radio was playing back in 2000, though.

Green Eyes takes us through three or four decades of rhythm and blues with the way Erykah seamlessly incorporates different styles and sounds onto the one track making you groove the way only Ms. Badu can.

Her voice is so mellowing for most of the album until she starts rapping, and killing it too! On ... & On, she gets witty on that ass like one of the more heavier metaphor spitters in the game.

For you R&B heads, this one is a must have.

Rating: 9 Platinum Teefs
Copy or Buy: Buy

AZ, Aziatic (2002)

2004-10-02T01:28:00.000-04:00

With this attempt, AZ stays consistent and does what he's known for doing best, spitting! From first track to last, Aziatic is a pleasure to listen to. In my opinion, maybe he's lost a step since 9 lives but his music is still top notch.

The album's highlight, for me, has got to be Fan Mail. It's a creative cut where AZ raps some of the fan mail he's gotten. One part goes "Peace Allah, I hope this scribe reaches your hands in good health/as for self, no sense in worrying, my cards have been dealt/ sunk in a cell, Fishkill, fifth year in my bid/ finally got the chance, recent, to connect with my kids/it's kind of hard, through the carelessness I scarred they moms/ on temporary I was barred, voluntary the bond/nevertheless, theres issues I need to address/ pertaining to certain statements that made me confess/faced with life, advice when reality hits/ and with crime comes alot of technicality shit." This is obviously a fan imprisoned, appealing to AZ's urban audience.

The beats are no slouches either. Professionally done, this album lacks for nothing. Hopefully, before long AZ gets the airplay and spins he deserves. This project is certainly a testament to the fact he's earned more exposure.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Buy, then listen to number 7 immediately, twice.

AZ, Pieces of a Man (1998)

2004-10-02T01:06:00.000-04:00

A sophmore album, but what AZ puts forth is far from a sophmore effort. With this project, AZ has surely solidified himself as a master of lyrical composition. The biggest part of this album is how masterful AZ's lyrics are. I can't stress this enough; lyrics, lyrics and lyrics. Some of the beats are excellent, some are mediocre, and some are eh. But AZ saves almost every last song with lyrics.

This album thrives off of words like "Born a Baptist but moved on to higher practice/ my fire ashes, only macks I interact with/we all dons, strong arm, along calm/ but if it's war we on, I'm coming for niggas who cross me wrong/ select features, sit back connect the pieces, inject the thesis/ spoke to my pops and left him speechless/ he saw me sprout, going through worlds that wore me out/ never call me out, bitches and money, that's what we all about/ through all the routes landed here/ beach house with the chandliers/ me and my crew, mad cans of beer..." from the banging How Ya Livin' featuring Nas. Other album highlights include a banger by AZ, Half A Mil and Nature called Love is Love, and a lyrical masterpiece that features the Rza called Whatever Happened (The Birth). On it, the Rza says "heart is bleeding, stress has got my hairline receding/ God degree feeding, leading my seeds back to Eden/ and stay suspicious of promiscuous bitches, who don't wash and do dishes, too big for your britches/ lusting riches, fucking the next man, mistress/ you wonder why your pussy itches?/ fat ass, sample without the glitches."

All in all, maybe the worst songs are Betcha Don't Know, and Trial of the Century, featuring Foxy Brown and both of these songs are way better than most albums' best songs.

Rating: 8 Platinum Teefs
Buy or Copy: Buy it, 'nuff said.

AZ, 9 Lives (2001)

2004-10-01T03:53:00.000-04:00

AZ has got to be one of, if not the most under rated mc's alive. 9 Lives just reaffirms this. A short succinct album, much of the production is done by unknowns. This project also brings the most guest appearances to date on an AZ album with the likes of Beenie Segal, Ali Vegas, Foxy Brown and Joe to name a few.

From the short but sweet Intro to Love Me, the second to last track (not including the Outro), the only swing and miss is Quiet Money, the last track, where AZ introduces us to two lack luster rappers. Animal and another Quiet Money loser are just garbage.

The album's the best cut, Problems, has AZ spitting "Streets relax me, good cheeba keeps me nasty/ lower the smoke when I see the d's creeping past me/ ducking the narcs, born busting dutchies apart/ love pussy with pretty lips when you fuck it, it farts." Classic!

AZ gets my nod of approval for solid, consistent rhymes and serious, mellowed, and melodic beats.

Rating: 8 Platinum Teefs
Buy or Copy: Your call, if you're an AZ fan then run cop this! If not, listen to it first... but I must warn you it is gooooood.

The Representatives, Angels of Death (1999)

2004-10-01T03:41:00.000-04:00

Supreme and Lidu Rock from Brownsville, Brooklyn try to bring us some hard core fire and continue the Duck Down quality line up with this album, but come up short with a bland attempt at best. There isn't much to be said here. The production is weak with simple, soft beats that do not warrant second listens. Very few highlights and a lack of quality lyrics make this easily one of the Boot Camp Click's weakest showings to date.

The subject matter is questionable too, like on News Flash featuring Steele and Rock where the Representatives run up in the offices of Hot 97 to tell them some silly message about the music they play.

On Do The Math, Lidu Rock spits "now who the livest in the crowd, nigga tell me it's you/ and these raps will be that ass 'till you black and blue/ peep how I do, keep your eyes shut, nigga don't rise up/ I'll bust you down like some chicken wings with fries, what?!" Supreme spits "I got 12 bar for 12 jewels/they should of locked us up in Bellevue/these niggas is crazy, I'm trying to tell you/don't let me find out, I got brothers causing a time out, I stay coming with on time with rhyme blowing you mind out" on the catchy Jewels. These are certainly two worthy wordsmiths, in my opinion, who just fell short.

I didn't like this album, I held high hopes for the Reps and I was let down.

Rating: 5 Gold Teefs (out of 10)
Buy or Copy: Copy, then copy over that copy.

Amil, All Money Is Legal (2000)

2004-10-01T02:44:00.000-04:00

The Amil project looked like it had much potential with all the exposure she was getting from her Rocafella label mates. Her guest appearances, although nothing particularly stelar, were everywhere a Jay-Z or Memphis Bleek song was. Apparently she was primed to succeed. This album, although for some reason not a big seller, is well put together with supreme production and great lyrics, everything you'd expect from Rocafella. However, subsequent to this album, Amil was dropped by the label. Go figure.

The subject matter went away from your typical braggadocio, rims and diamonds, that we're used to hearing from the Roc. Mostly, Amil raps about her personal struggles with trying to survive and get on emotionally. Some ill Jay-Z verses and a couple party tracks like I Got That featuring Beyonce, give this album a little bounce.

On Heard It All, Jay-Z freaks, "I thought you ain't like rap, you was deceiving me/ All you do all day is watch BET/ Act like you ain't recognize me when you met me in the ride/ mispronouncing my name and squinting your eyes/ you shouldn't play games with a pimp like I/ now that I gamed you I'm supposed to sympathize?/ yeah I know you hate parties and never go out/ yeah I know you a nun and you stay in the house/ yeah I know well, can you please do me a favor?/ how you been with three rappers and six ball players?/ tell me that shit, we both gaming each other/ lying through our teeth just for blaming each other"

Amil is no slouch with the pen either. She says " I'm 98 a gram leaving addicts nice/ I get 5, you don't get half a mic/ been known to cut ass for the added hype/ and I pop too much shit to be the marriage type/ get spoiled even when I'm not acting right/ can't nobody come with the style I bring/ piece hanging from the chain just dangling/ Motorola 2-way so the cell don't ring/ crush R&B and I don't even sing" on All Money Is Legal, the album's title track.

This album has some groove and it is a little sleeper, but it tires quickly. It's not something that will stay in your player, but you won't want to throw it away either.

Rating: 6 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Save some bread, find a copy.

Aaliyah, Aaliyah (2001)

2004-09-30T04:43:00.000-04:00

Aaliyah's finest album was released just after her untimely death in 2001. Aaliyah (the album) has no shortage of great songs, and the magnificent production by Timbaland doesn't hurt either.

Aaliyah brings her typical R&B subject matter on things like love and pain with songs like the stand outs I Care 4 U and More Than a Woman which were chart toppers for weeks. Pop this one into your player and you can be promised the fruits of the long, hard hours Aaliyah must have put in the studio to get these results. From the very first song, We Need a Resolution, you'll be singing (or humming if you're singing impaired) along. This has got to be one of the better contemporary R&B albums ever and I am positive there were, and will be, many a new person conceived while their parents were listening!

On Extra Smooth, Aaliyah relates to us about overly suave men trying too hard to push up, saying "coming on strong, six pack showing/ he's too cool for his own shoes/ nothing rude but way to sure for me" Okay, I get the message shawty (good thing I didn't opt for the six-pack)!

All tolled, Aaliyah is hands down a great R&B LP.

Rating: 9 Platinum Teefs
Buy or Copy: This is definately a buy! If you don't buy it for the love of the music, then get it for the absolutely gorgeous pictures of Aaliyah on the insert.

Tha Alkoholics, Likwidation (1997)

2004-09-30T04:02:00.000-04:00

The funky west coast mc's gained some east coast appeal when they released Hip Hop Drunkies, featuring the 'Ol Dirty Bastard, or whatever name he goes by these days. The mass appeal the song brought still didn't make things any better for the rest of the album. Loaded with guest appearances like Nas, Xzibit, and Keith Murray, the only Alkoholic that showcases any lyrical talent is Tash.

"It ain't no sunshine in the midnight hour, a 3 day shower couldn't wash away my soul power/ stop look and listen, that's the way of the world/ I turn Cowboys to girls, lions to squirrels" says J-Ro on Off the Wall. An album about drinking and bullshitting fits his style well, unfortunately he needs a ghost writer (hopefully a sober one) or some help from Tash when it comes to the lines.

Tash, on the other hand brings the fire with lines like "So bounce to the lyrics of the noble liquid warrior/ then stress out and try to maintain like X and Gloria/ Pounding your surroundings, stepping at you from the lics/ with styles harder to decode than graffiti on the bricks/ so read my tag and weep while I drive you off the deep/ with that alchy style I rock that make Quantam want to leap/ cause Tash and his peeps play for keeps on micros/on a never ending quest for west coast rap titles" from Contents Unda Pressure. The success of this album is all in Tash's abilities and keen rhymes. Not that J-Ro makes Likwidation unlistenable, because it is not an aweful album, but Tash is much better as a solo artist in my opinion. E-Swift's skills behind the turn tables and in the production booth are up to par and there are some shining moments like Killin' It and Contents Unda Pressure.

I have to say that while I wouldn't recommend you run out and buy this, it is worth a listen.

Rating: 6 Gold Teefs
Buy or Copy: Get a copy!

2 Pac, R U Still Down? [Remember Me] (1997)

2004-09-30T02:54:00.000-04:00

After Tupac died, I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto hit the radio waves and everybody began to appreciate the hip hop musician the east cost loved to hate. This track went against almost everything Pac, as a rapper, stood for as we thought we knew. "If you're not from the town then don't pass through, 'cause some O.G. fools might blast you/ it ain't right but it's long overdue/ we can't have peace 'till them niggas get a piece too/ I want G's so you label me a criminal and If I die, I wonder if heaven got a ghetto." Then we all started to absorb lines like these from Pac and realized exactly who we had just lost. Then it all made sense, this IS what Pac stood for, great music.

This album is everything you expect from a Pac album all except for a couple misses, like Lie To Kick It and the corny as all hell Fake Ass Bitches. "They want to bury me, I'm worried/ I'm losing my mind, looked down the barrel of a nine and my vision's blurry," is just one of those lines I can't get out of my head from the head nodding Only Fear of Death. Joints like this are scattered all over the 2 discs included in R U Still Down? and it begs you to say "yeah Pac, I'm still down!" This is one of those rare albums that you can pull out of your collection years later and it will still feel fresh.

Rating: 7 Gold Teefs (out of 10)
Buy or Copy: A couple of weak songs might make you want to give this a listen through first so you can just copy the songs you like, but it's worth a look-see.

2Pac, Greatest Hits (1998)

2004-09-30T02:45:00.000-04:00

Reviewing a greatest hits album is a breeze, the only thing there is to gauge is the selection of "great" hits that were placed on the disc. Tupac had a lot of hits, as his music career was a long one.

The selection on Tupac's Greatest Hits are the usual suspects. If you remember songs like I Get Around, 2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted, and Dear Mama, you will no doubt be mad if I don't give this album 10 platinum teefs! Included, also, are I Ain't Mad At Cha, the song about inner city reminiscing and forgiveness, and Hit 'Em Up, a dis track aimed at east coast rival Notorious B.I.G. and his Junior Mafia Click.

Even if you didn't love Tupac but just liked him, you have to run out and buy this masterpiece. 2 discs of great hits, what more could you have asked for?

Rating: 9 Platinum Teefs
Buy or Copy: Buy!

2 Pac, Better Dayz (2002)

2004-09-30T02:16:00.000-04:00

Vintage Tupac! Post Humous Pac is at his best in this double-cd album release. Every last song on this album has melodic head nodding beats and fits Tupac's cadence to perfection. Some are remixes of songs we've previously heard from Pac, others come for the Pac vaults and are true showcases of Tupacs ability to flow.

On When We Ride On Our Enemies, Tupac quotes "You was heartless after your hits/Niggas love to scream peace after they start some shit!" Classic Tupac braggadocio, it was his formula that made him famous. Disc 2's infectious My Block Remix switches moods for an album that makes no use of your cd-player's skip button. A solemn Pac chants "Blackmens living in hell when will we prevail/fearing jail but crack sales got me living well/ In a sense I'm suicidal with this thug's life/ staying strapped forever trapped in this drug life/ God help me 'cause I'm starving, can't get a job/ so I resort to violent robbings, my life is hard"

Aside from a single that got incessant airplay on the radio, Thugz Mansion - Nas Acoustic, Better Dayz has some great long lost Pac cuts deserving a sincere listen like Military Minds featuring Black Smif-N-Wesson. This song was recorded years ago on an album that featured both Pac and the Boot Camp Click, called One Nation. That album was never released, so we have got some other great gems to look forward to if they ever see the light of day! I thoroughly enjoyed this album and it is definately worth the price of a double cd. It has great production, tight lyrics, and premier guest appearances including Trick Daddy, DJ Quik, and Mya to name a few.

Rating: 8 Platinum Teefs (out of a possible 10)
Buy or Copy?: Buy this album, not the bootleg either.