Saturday, December 29, 2007

Biggest Disappointments of 2007

These are the top ten “disappointments” of 2007 – NOT the 10 worst albums, although some may actually be up there. This is based on what I was expecting when I listened to the album versus what I actually heard. So, although Soulja Boy, 50 Cent, etc may be some bad albums, they are not included in this list because 1) I didn’t listen to them, and 2) I wouldn’t expect to like them. So here’s the list.

10) Army of the Pharoahs – Ritual of Battle
Can anybody actually tell me who the members are now? Either can I. But whoever they are now, they are not nearly as good as they used to be. Apathy was not on this album at all, the lyrics were boring, and the production was uninspired. The exception was the production on “Seven” by Ill Bill, which was one of my favorite beats of the year. Vinnie Paz used to be one of my favorite lyricists, but he seems to have run out of things to say. This wasn’t horrible, but it doesn’t leave me dying to hear the next AOTP offering, whoever they might be.

9) Cormega – Who Am I
I was always a fan of Cormega, but nothing really stood out on this one. On the positive side, the guest spots were from artists from virtually every region. On the negative side, they weren’t very good. It had been so long since his last release, I thought he would come out with something better than this.

8) Big Shug – Street Champ
“Who’s Hard” brought back that Gang Starr sound that had been missing for a couple years. It didn’t get near the notice it should have. With “Street Champ”, any title Big Shug thought he had he lost. Nothing remotely interesting about this one.

7) El-P – I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead
I know a lot of people loved this album. I was never the biggest fan of El-P, but based on others’ great reviews of it, I gave it a try. I just didn’t like it at all. He gets credit for putting together an original sound, but original doesn’t always mean good.

6) Eightball and MJG – Ridin’ High
PLEASE get away from Bad Boy immediately. They used to one of my favorite groups. Then, in an effort to get a little nationwide notice and make a little extra money, they signed with Puffy (I still refuse to call him Diddy). It’s clear that Bad Boy has no idea how to promote them and, from interviews I’ve read, the group doesn’t seem to enjoy their label either. It shows in their lyrics too, as MJG puts out some lyrics that are on the level of labelmate Yung Joc. Eightball still has his swagger, but any more albums like this and the Space Age Pimps may be stuck in a black hole that they can’t get out of.

5) Redman – Red Gone Wild
I should have known this would be a disappointment when it was consistently delayed from being released. Every 30 seconds he has to yell Gilla House like we have any chance of forgetting. But I guess that broke the monotony of his lyrics.

4) Camp Lo – In Black Hollywood
I keep waiting for that next great Camp Lo album after loving Uptown Saturday Night. I’m still waiting.

3) Dogg Pound – Dogg Ch!t
The title says it all. Neither Daz or Kurupt has anything else to say or an entertaining way to say it. After waiting for years for another good album and being constantly disappointed, I give up on them.

2) Wu-Tang Clan – 8 Diagrams
Part of the disappointment comes from the fact that I was expecting to be disappointed. All of the little kindergarten bickering between members and Ghostface’s whining about the release date, the production , and whatever else was wrong on a given day killed this one for me. It wasn’t horrible, but after hearing the “The Heart Gently Weeps” I had high hopes. Although the production and lyrics were okay, the album felt forced. It seems like this will be the last WTC for a while and that’s disappointing too.

1) Little Brother – Get Back
Whether you liked this or hated it, you had to be disappointed. I figured this would be in my top three of the year. Instead it’s my most disappointing. It’s too bad too because Phonte and Big Pooh seemed to work really hard on this release. They had decent producers to replace 9th Wonder, but the production seemed all over the place and didn’t have any theme. On a positive note, Lil Wayne lovers were finally able to see what the rest of us had been saying for years. Weezy has a decent flow, a decent style, a decent delivery, but lyrically he’s mediocre at best. He was trying real hard to compete with Phonte and Pooh, but his struggles and shortcomings were obvious. “The Listening” and “The Minstrel Show” are two great albums, so maybe LB gets a pass for one boring album. It’s still better than a lot of releases this year.

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Hi-Tek - Hi-Teknology 3


OK. Another Hi-Teknology album. First off, I really liked the production. Also, I liked the Talib Kweli track. Other than that, the tracks range from slightly above average to mediocre. The Ohio All-Stars couldn’t even make the high minor leagues. “Handling My Bizness” with M-1 was okay. The Little Brother track and the Raekwon/Ghostface track just didn’t grab me. The Outlawz come with about their 30th track reminding you they were affiliated with Tupac. It’s starting to be a close competition now between the Outlawz and Afeni Shakur over who can pimp Tupac’s legacy more. The main problem with this album was the artist selection. I’ve seen interviews with Hi-Tek where he said he wanted to keep this album more street oriented. Well, the reason some of these artists are street is because nobody would give them a record deal. It’s a shame he ruined these decent beats with these artists. He has gone steadily down with each of his releases. At this rate, expect Yung Joc and Soulja Boy to be on Volume 4. Hopefully, his mind was on making Reflection Eternal 2 a classic.

Rating 2.5 out of 5

Scarface - Made


This is a typical Scarface album. Normally, a statement like this would elicit yawns. For an artist like Scarface, it brings a smile to my face. You get the same thing from every solid Scarface release. A short musical intro and outro, which border 10-12 solid tracks displaying the vivid storytelling and dark pianos, violins, and other instrumental sounds that take you into his world. I would put this Scarface release right after The Dairy and The Fix. It amazes me (in a good way) that he can continue to put out solid albums, even though there always seemed to be some drama going on with either The Geto Boys or Rap-a-lot. There’s some comfort in getting exactly what you were expecting and still being happy with it.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Murs and The Misadventures of the Nova Express

This might be one the most frustrating albums I’ve listened to this year. There would be two or three really good tracks, then one or two tremendously pitiful tracks. Murs was obviously the driving force here, as to be expected. The rest of the cast really had trouble pulling their weight. Normally, I absolutely hate skits, but “Race Day” skit leading into “She Had a Nascar” was actually pretty funny. On the flip side, the Y.O.C. interlude was one of the most annoying I’ve heard in a long time. “1st Love” is the type of storytelling track that I like hearing artists make. But then came Supreme on the next couple of tracks, which brought the release back to average. It ends with 2 untitled tracks, the second of which borrows from Prince, which was a good experiment.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Wu Tang Clan - 8 Diagrams




There is plenty written about 8 Diagrams already. Everybody has an opinion, including the artists. Ghostface didn’t do himself any favors with his comments. First, he complains about not getting paid for Wu projects, then makes comments that could make the project tank. If you want more money, then the project has to make more money. It may be time for Ghostface to take Finance 101. Second, if you don’t like the beat either a) refuse to rhyme over it or b) if you’re so lazy you’re mailing in your lyrics without a beat to go with it in the first place, don’t get mad with the beat that’s selected.

With that being said, the album is not that bad. The problem is that it feels extremely scattered. Different members on different tracks with no theme to the rhymes is what’s typical of this release. The production is really hit or miss. I realize that RZA was trying out some new things, but sometimes it doesn’t even seem to come close. The beats, while not bad, probably would have been better on a solo album where you know the style of the artists and can mold the lyrics and beats. Ultimately, this sounded more like a producer’s compilation rather than a group album. It ends with what sounds like an old ODB demo track. Although it was great, they put him on here, you would think with the technology available, they could have cleaned up the sound a little better.

With all that being said though, this is still worth a listen. I tended to like The Heart Gently Weeps and Stick Me For My Riches, but by looking over the internet, everybody seems to like different tracks, so the listener will have to decide for himself. Since this appears to be the last Wu album we’ll hear for a long time from the interviews, it can be considered a disappointment, but there are some solid tracks to go back and listen to. Maybe it’s fitting that the album ends with a track from a deceased member from their glory days.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Cunninlynguists - Dirty Acres


I first heard Cunninlynguists with the A Piece of Strange album, which led me to Southernunderground and Will Rap For Food. All of these albums were solid albums, so when I saw the Dirty Acres album, I decided to give it a listen. Wow. It is rare nowadays that a group will show progression from one album to the next. Part of this is the fact that major labels will drop the artist if he doesn’t immediately go platinum. Which in today’s rap music means creating a mindless track talking about your jewels and rims and making a stupid dance to go with it. Luckily, Cunninlynguists aren’t on a major label and so they have the latitude to mature as artists.

Cunninlynguists have developed to sound like the Goodie Mob of the Soul Food days. Weaving through tales of the south and current political issues, they are able to put thoughtful lyrics with top notch production from Kno. Even with the obligatory shout out to their region “KKKY”, they are able to stick with this concept. Not since Little Brother have 2 MC’s seemed so in sync with the production from the DJ/producer. That isn’t to say they are on Little Brother’s level quite yet, but if their development as artists continues on this path, they’re on their way. In a year with few high quality albums, this stands out prominently. Even in a great year, I think this would stand out.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Beanie Sigel - The Solution


One of the things you either like or hate with Beanie Sigel is that you know what you’re getting when you listen to his albums. You will get one or two pretty good tracks, one or two that sound like filler, and the rest slightly above average thug raps. This was no exception.

The thing is that Beanie has never claimed to be anything else. However, even though other Roc-a-Fella (or former Roc-a-Fella) artists never seemed to have the skills to make this enjoyable, Beanie Sigel seems to know how to put it all together to please his core audience. Although there are plenty of guestspots, few seem to actually add any additional flavor to the recipe. Jay-Z stops by with his typical feature spot and R-Kelly delivers a typical R-Kelly hook. However, they still seem to work with the flow of the album, even the Ozzy Osbourne featured track.

This was nothing special, but if you’re a Beanie Sigel fan you’ll probably like it. If you’re not, this album won’t convert you.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Throwbacks

Every once in a while, I like to go back and listen to albums from the early 90’s that I hadn’t heard before or hadn’t popped in in a while. So here’s the result.

First up, Capital Tax – The Swoll Package.

Simply put, this is not a bad album, but nothing really stood out for me. Their style reminds me of Das EFX if you took out the Diggidies. The production was nice. Kind of a jazzy feel that reminds me a little of early 90’s Pete Rock. Every track blended nicely into the next. However, that was the main problem for me. I could of sworn I was around track 10 or 11 when the 16 track album ended. All said, a good listen but nothing to write home over. If you see it for a bargain, it’s worth checking out. You won’t be disappointed but you won’t be dying for a reunion album either.
Rating: 3 out of 5


Next up, Rough House Survivors – Straight From the Soul. This is another one that I remember seeing but never buying. The funny thing is I felt like they were reading my mind while I was listening to this. When I was trying to find a comparison to them, I originally thought of Pete Rock and CL Smooth. The next track that came on featured CL Smooth. Later, the production and style reminded me of Brand Nubian. Two minutes later, Sadat X came on the track. This one is definitely worth a listen if you’re a fan of the aforementioned groups. They rhyme very smoothly over the beats and show some real talent. Too bad this is all they released.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Group Home – Livin’ Proof
I bought this album shortly after it first came out when I was in one of those CD clubs and needed to find something to buy so I could cancel (since after getting the initial free CD’s I didn’t want to get their mail anymore). So I got this even though I hadn’t heard anything about it. This is one of those albums that stands the test of time. DJ Premier is at the top of his game on the beats. Malachi and Lil Dap (who has a lisp that gives Kool G Rap a run for his money) come off very well. Although they’ll never be confused with Rakim or Nas, they rhyme nicely over the production. This makes the album that much better. DJ Premier has the ability to make mediocre lyricists sound like legends if they rhyme with the beats instead of against them. Hell, I thought his track was the bright spot of that extremely disappointing Pitch Black album a few years back. But there are always artists that feel they can outdo the production which just makes the whole project a mess. Group Home plays it smart.

At a point of time when hip hop is getting flooded with 20 track albums that consist of an indecipherable intro, the same for an outro, guest appearances on every track, and 4-5 skits of the either the rapper talking with his friends or two girls talking on the phone about how great he is, Group Home’s simple album of 13 tracks, including an intro and one remix, is refreshing. It doesn’t matter if your album is 79 minutes and 48 seconds if it sounds just like everything else out there. That is why this album and others from the early 90’s still get played today and why I appreciate this album more each time I listen to it. Solidly put together album in every sense of the word.

Rating: 4 out of 5







Friday, November 16, 2007

Guilty Simpson – Stray Bullets Mixtape (DJ Rhettmatic)




OK. The only reason this is the first entry is because it was what I was listening to when I decided to create the blog. Just a coincidence.

When I saw this mixtape was out, I was looking forward to hearing it. I liked Guilty on the Dilla and Black Milk tracks I heard. But I have to say, I was very disappointed in this release. He never seems to find a style that suits him. One track he’ll talk about how hard he is, the next is a more laid back hip hop track. I was actually going to give up on this about halfway through but decided to tough it out. Glad I did because between tracks 18-25, he starts to put out some quality material when he rhymes over Dilla beats or pairs with the aforementioned Black Milk (whose Popular Demand album is worth checking out by the way). Unfortunately, he reverts back to the same uninspired delivery of simple lines that ruined the first half of the mixtape.

A second problem is DJ Rhettmatic. He seems to leave most of the mixtape alone, but every 3-4 tracks he has to remind everyone he’s there by repeatedly mixing the track back so you can hear the first two bars of the verse a few extra times. Whoever told him that this was a good idea is not a friend.

I’m not sure who decided on the arrangement of the actual tracks, but the “stray bullets” concept probably comes from this. The tracks follow no flow at all. It feels like one of those homemade mixes where the person just wants all of the tracks on there and doesn’t listen to it as a whole. Hopefully, he has more to offer next time. I’d give him another try because I’ve heard better quality from him in the past, but another offering like this and I would probably give up on him.

Rating: 2 out of 5

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