Album Review: Nas- Untitled

Nas is my favorite rapper easily. It is my stance that he has the most impressive catalogue in the history of rap between his solo joints, guest features, unreleased material, mixtape shit etc. However, his solo albums have been spotty pretty much since It Was Written, and I thought that his last album, the critically acclaimed Hip Hop Is Dead, was only mediocre. This album has generated some buzz because it was going to be called the N word but it wasn't until I heard "Hero" that I realized that this may be a good album and not just Nas' latest attempt to stay contreversial. Is it though?

1. Queens Get The Money

So this album is obviously going to be full of contreversial, racial statements and whatnot so I'm just hoping for some good beats and concepts not just slavery references and name drops of Civil Rights activists. I wonder if Jay Electronica would have put drums on this had he never met Erykah Badu.

2. You Can't Stop Us Now (Feat. Eban Thomas)

Salaam Remi is only one of many to use this sample, but its worse in this instance because The RZA flipped it just this year and in the same exact way. I guess this is Nas' theory of how "N words" have evolved through history. It's anyone's guess really, not that its all that important anyway.

3. Breathe

This is that smooth shit I love to hear Nas over. This sounds more like The Hitmen than the mid 90's Trackmasters but I'll take what I can get. There's really not much rapping on this track or the last one necessarily which is worth pointing out.

4. Make The World Go Round (Feat. Chris Brown & The Game)

This beat is better suited for Nas' wife then the man himself. Kind of like a Chris Brown track featuring Nas and The Game. Very wack.

5. Hero (Feat. Keri Hilson)

Just some great verses over an epic banger from Polow Da Don. One of the best tracks in years.

6. America

This is basically the story of Nas' career recently. This beat is so boring and ametuerish and the hook is so god damn annoying that the greatest verse evar could be spit over it and the outcome would still be wack.

7. Sly Fox

Rock inspired hip hop songs usually are skipped but the metal guitar kind of fits the revolutionary tone of the song. Not that the beat is anything special though. This one's about Fox, as in the news network and their political agenda.

8. Testify

This is honestly one of the most boring peices of music I've heard in some time.

9. N.I.G.G.E.R. (The Slave And The Master)

This reminds me alot of the song Toomp did for Jay-Z on American Gangster in that the beat is technically good, but there are no drums to make it bang and maybe the sample isn't all that good for rappin over.

10. Louis Farrakhan

Nas compares himself to Louis Farrakhan as far as I can tell. Not a standout by any means.

11. Fried Chicken

It's kind of sad that the best producer on a Nas album is Mark Ronson but this beat is pretty good. Nas and Busta rap about how much they love fried chicken but I guess the message is that black people are unhealthy. Or maybe they just really love fried chicken.

12. Project Roach

Nas rhymes from the perspective of a roach over a another (pretty good) beat with no drums what the hell is that about.

13. Y'all My Ni***s

This beat is more interesting than most of the others but it still sorta sucks.

14. We're Not Alone

A certified snoozefest

15. Black President

Of all the songs from that Green Lantern mixtape this is probably the one I would have least preferred to make the album. It's not a terrible track but the beat is mediocre and the indie rock white guy on the chorus is nearing the AutoTune in the annoying fad department.

Overall:

This was just a huge letdown. I'm sure Nas is aware of the "wack beats" criticism he gets, yet, aside from Polow and Toomp who I guess are "hot" right now, he continues to reach out to the worst producers for the worst beats. I've stopped hoping for Premier and Large Professor, but least his last album had Kanye West and Dr. Dre, even if not on top of their games. He even left that heater from DJ Khalil ("What It Is" or "Esco Let's Go") off the album for no good reason. This is the last time I am getting excited for a Nas album.

Best Tracks: "Hero", "Breathe", "Fried Chicken"

Album Review: G-Unit- "Terminate On Sight"

Since the height of their popularity in 2003, G-Unit has gradually fallen off the radar. Surely some of this has to do with the public's preference for hip hop with no trace of musical value but 50 and the crew are also to blame as they have pretty much put out half-assed music since then, the singles from this album notwithstanding. This album isn't gonna do Weezy numbers, but will it at least deliver as an album?

1. Straight Outta Southside

Gully. A surprisingly tasteful remake of the original too. My bootleg replaces those horns in the beginning and on the "hook" with some synth but I heard the version with the horns on the radio saturday I wonder what the deal with that is.

2. Piano Man

Tony Yayo's verse which kicks this off is comically bad. This uses only a few notes of a piano sample and the rest is just a shitty synth beat which makes me believe that G-Unit made the song as an excuse to laugh at Tony Yayo later.

3. Close To Me

A track about the hoes not unlike the single except over a synth filled version of "Lollipop". Yikes.

4. Rider Pt. 2

50 Cent, whose most lasting quality was his ability to write memorable and catchy hooks, sings on the AutoTune about who knows what in what is the most irratating 35 seconds of rap I've listened to in a while. Fortunately (I guess) it's not exactly like it ruins a classic song, its pretty terrible.

5. Casualties Of War

Another annoying hook and synth beat though this one is more listenable than the rest. Lloyd Banks boasts that he "shits like a dinosaur". Tony Yayo of all people makes up for it with the powerful lyric "fist full of stones/fingers glowin like E.T.".

6. You So Tough

Calling out the fake gangstas I guess. 50 Cent goes after T.I. (kind of) at the end but save yourself the time its not very dramatic.

7. No Days Off

This is just aight which sounds great compared to the rest of this garbage. At least it has a guitar and not just noisy synths.

8. T.O.S.

Same deal with the last one in terms of song quality but this one sounds like a sped up sample of a busy signal.

9. I Like The Way She Do It

The synthy lead single about strippers or something.

10. Kitty Kat

What the fuck, is G-Unit even trying anymore? I swear to god they come up with these ridiculous songs just to make Tony Yayo sound stupid.

11. Party Ain't Over

This sounds like any one of those first couple tracks. In other words, this is awful.

12. Let It Go (Feat. Movado)

As if this album wasn't annoying enough this one's got some Raggae guy yelling about being "gahngsta".

13. Get Down

Swizz Beatz' career resurrection is all that's wrong with hip hop today.

14. I Don't Wanna Talk About It

The other day Tony Yayo was on Shade 45 with Whoo Kid talking about Young Buck and he was like "Game fucked up, he got a mohawk". I LOL'd.

15. Ready Or Not

This is the grimey sound that "Beg For Mercy" had and this album severely lacks. Maybe its the absence of Dr. Dre?

16. Money Make The World Go Round

This one's kind of grimey too but not as good as the last one.

Overall: Well that was awful. I can't say I didn't see it coming. As much as I liked "Beg For Mercy", the singles more or less indicated the direction this album would take which was a very bad thing. I mean as far as I know, the best producers on the last album (Dre, Hi-Tek, and Jake One) didn't contribute anything to this album.

Best Songs: "Straight Outta Southside"

PropsOverHere Presents: Classic Rock

Download

From the god who brought you "T.R.O.Y." and "The World Is Yours", a collection of unheralded, Pete Rock produced joints.

Tracklisting:

1. Give It To Y'all- The U.N.
2. Nothin Lesser- The U.N.
3. Boston To Bucktown- Special Teamz w/ Buckshot & Sean Price
4. The Rap Game- Pete Rock w/ The Large Professor
5. Death Becomes You- Pete Rock & CL Smooth w/ The YG'z
6. Shout (Remix)- Onyx
7. Long Time Coming- The U.N.
8. Specialize- Pete Rock & CL Smooth
9. Greenbacks- Pete Rock
10. To My Advantage- Pete Rock w/ Nature
11. Beats & Rhymes- Grap Luva
12. Chunky- Ghostface Killah

Verse Of The Year?

Having been listening to Nas and DJ Green Lantern's "N- Tape" mixtape on repeat for about a week now, I have concluded that, the best verse on the mixtape, and thus of the year so far goes to Joell Ortiz. This is not to say that Nas is whack or anything he drops gems all over the album, but Joell, an Aftermath outcast and Brooklyn native just went in on the "Ghetto Remix" which is just a gutta song all around. Here is a link to the track and the lyrics to Joell's verse.

Ghetto (Remix)

Planet earth

The land of the worst

Handle your turf

Canons'll burst and break the wrist of ameteur jerks

Damn it'll hurt to know your man in that hurst

I seen it ten times

They get a small article never the headline

Candles in the lobby next to empty gnac bottles

N*ggas talkin shit like when they see this mack nozzle but

Nothin ever happens

Even if it do, nothin ever happens

We don't talk cuz that ain't gutta if you yappin' in the ghetto

You can ask a n*gga mother what happened and get an echo

Where I'm from, it's so bad

Bunch of ignorant mahfuckas with no dads

Or he did but he didn't care cuz he nursin his dope hab

And when him and they moms argue we always throw jabs

So they grip a chrome mag and walk around like 'who want a toe tag?'

Fiendin' to leave a head see-through like a coat bag

If your life's slightly somethin like the one that Joell had then you (ghetto)

Group of p's (?)

Scoop G's

Duck D's and squeeze

Breeze in old hoopties

Bumpin new Ortiz

And the hoochies please G's by gettin on they knees and givin the part the scarecrow needs

I'm livin that life

The shit that I write is from my heart, my word

Open your pocket grab a sharpie homie, mark my words

If, anybody in the field with me and these bucks

I ain't only endin careers dog

I'm beatin' you up

I'm still ghetto

It's That Time Again: PropsOverHere's 5 Most Anticipated For '08

Last year I actually had to do this twice because only the #5 album on my list actually dropped, but I have been building up my false hope since then in order to bring to you the albums I'm looking foward to this year.

5. DJ Revolution- King Of The Decks

DJ Revolution is a world renown DJ with a fairly unimpressive track record as a producer, given Ed O.G's "Revolution" (which is a nice track) is his finest work as far as I can tell. He is set to showcase his production skills with this producer album on Duck Down which is rumored to include Sean P, Crooked I, Bishop Lamont, Royce 5'9", and Planet Asia amongst a long list of nice MCs.

4. The Game- L.A.X.

Not only is The Game one of the most skilled mainstream rappers (if not the most), he has consistently gets some of the best production. I expect nothing else from this album after the Cool & Dre banger "Big Dreams" and probably one of the more meaningful and creative hip hop tribute songs "Game's Pain". Set for a July release date, this should be the shit for the summer.

3. Raekwon- Only Built 4 Cuban Linx 2

Here is where I start to set myself up for a letdown. That grimey "Jihad" track with Ghost has me hoping that the album is on its way but I probably thought the same thing when "State of Grace" leaked like three years ago.

2. Nas- [Untitled]

Who knows what this album will end up being called, but I have a good feeling that it's gonna be serious. Nas has gone over my head with this N word message but the tracks I've heard thus far are all quality especially the epic "Hero". Plus, the new mixtape lives up to all the hype. All the signs point toward the next great Nas album.

1. Saigon- The Greatest Story Never Told

This album will be my most anticipated until evey copy of the master is gone from the face of the earth. Most recently, Sai and Just left Atlantic and have full control over the destiny of the album and there are rumors circulating that he'll end up with Jay-Z at Live Nation. Whatever the case, I think (in the right hands) his new track "Better Belive It" with Justin on the AutoTune could blow and that the album may see the light of day in 2008.

The New Nas Single Cranks

Download "Hero"

Unreleased Ghostface

Download: "Ghost Deini" (Original, Uncleared Sample Version)

We all know the Ghostface classic "Ghost Deini" off Supreme Clientele, but did you know that a better and gullier version of the song existed? I didn't until I downloaded acompilation of unreleased music (mostly due to sample clearence issues) made by Think Differently mainly for the original version of "The Champ" which was kinda weak. Anyhow, I was pretty blown away by this. Highly recommended.

Ahmad Jamal: The Grandfather of Hip Hop

This is the first post I've made which could be considered informative and interesting, so fucking read it. To the best of my knowledge, the breaks and drums heard in early hip hop songs were sampled from James Brown and Parliament Funkadelic. But fuck early hip hop songs, right? The best hip hop in my opinion was made in the early/mid-nineties, and the guy responsible for many of that era's (and other era's) greatest beats was legendary jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal. Jamal's compositions have been sampled extensively by some of the games greatest producers.

Here is a catalogue of his sampled work to the most of my knowledge:

1. "Misdeameaner"

Hip Hop Uses: Gangstarr- "Soliloquy of Chaos" (DJ Premier)
Black Moon- "Black Smif N Wessun" (DJ Evil Dee)


2. "I Love Music"

Hip Hop Use: Nas-"The World Is Yours"(Pete Rock) (at 5:00)



3. "The World Is A Ghetto"

Hip Hop Use: Fat Joe-"Shit Is Real (Remix)"(DJ Premier)



4. "Awakening"

Hip Hop Use: Shadez of Brooklyn-"Change"(Mr. Walt)



5. "Swahililand"

Hip Hope Use: De La Soul-"Stakes Is High"(J Dilla)(at 7:30)



6. "Pastures"

Hip Hop Use: Jay-Z-"Feelin It"(Ski Beatz)(at 1:11)



7. "Dolphin Dance"

Hip Hop Uses: Deda-"Can't Wait"(Pete Rock)
Common-"Resurrection"(No I.D.)



8. "Theme Bahamas"

Hip Hop Use: Nas-"I Gave You Power"(DJ Premier)(Can't really here this one, but its in there)



9. "Poinciana"

Hip Hop Use: Binary Star- "New Hip Hop" (?, Decompoze maybe)

Album Review: "Operation Take Back Hip Hop"- Craig G and Marley Marl

This is the second Marley Marl album in as many years that would have been good in the 80's, this time with freestyle legend Craig G on the mic. The album with KRS-One was pretty much garbage but its also been obvious for some time now that KRS has lost his marbles. In any event, Craig G and Marley are far too irrelevent to ever "take back hip hop," but will this at least appease the purist types on the internet?

1. Intro

I thought Craig G and Marley Marl were going to take back hip hop with some old school flava but apparently they've built a robot to do it for them.

2. Reintroduction

Wow this is just bad all around. The beat hurts my ears, the lyrics suck, and the hook is laughable.

3. Quality Work (Feat. Will Pack & Rakaa)

I swear this is exactly like the last song, all the way down to the shittyness. An extremely annoying beat (this one full of goofy, space-sound-effect noises) and rhymes about how rap sucks now (Craig actually says "monkey see, monkey do" on both).

4. Made The Change

This one uses the Biggie voice sample. Couldn't have seen that coming. This one has a fruity flute sample on it too. What the fuck happened to Marley Marl? Or should I say, who the fuck does he send to the record store to find samples for him?

5. Deep Down

This could pass for a song from the early 90's. Not a good one, but still.

6. We Gets It In (Feat. Talib Kweli)

Talib Kweli spits the same verse he's been spitting his whole career (you know, about the "institution" and shit). For what its worth this is maybe the best song eyt.

7. Just What I Need

This is the first beat that wasn't hard to listen to. Craig G raps about the state of hip hop again. Believe it or not, "Dey Know" > shitty tracks by old rappers about how hip hop sucks.

8. All Seasons

The beat is mostly pretty bad on this its just like the same note of an organ keyboard every four beats but I like the piano that kicks in there. This song is also about money and seasons or something but most importantly not about bad rap music which is a plus.

9. War Going On (Feat. Cormega)

For this one, I'm actually gonna predict the Prodigy voice sample. I can't prove I did that, but needless to say, I was right. Cool I know.

10. Skates

This beat is kinda chill but holy shit Craig G is bad.

11. Stay In Ya Lane (Feat. Sadat X)

Ah back to the whining about hip hop. This time, let's bring in Sadat X, because that guy sure can still rap.

12. Open Ya Eyes

This beat is alright I guess. The raggae inspired hook and Craig G yogurt references, not so much.

13. Regrets

This is just that same, over used, obnoxious horn sample over and over again. Craig G doesn't really even rap over it at all.

14. Not A Word

Pharoahe Monch would kill this shit.

15. Rock Dis (Feat. KRS-One)

KRS and Craig G trade rhymes. This would be pretty good for an interlude type thing. I'm just trying to find a silver lining at this point.

16. Don't Make Me Laugh

A failed attempt at an intimitating, gully sounding track.

17. The Day The Music Died/How About The Mic (Feat. Cold Heat)

This one I actually enjoyed and not just in a hypothetical scenerio way. The first song is about what it would be like if artists from other genres acted like hip hop artists, kind of like that one Ghostface song where cartoon characters are fucked up druggies and whatnot. The second is on that same, thug rappers can't rhyme premise, but the beat is good and Cold Ice is kinda nice. A good way to end an album, albeit such a bad one.

Overall:

Well that was just awful. The worst album I've reviewed on here by a long shot. In 17 songs it has one that I'd listen to again and about 13 that I'd kill myself if I heard it again. Neither of these guys, especially Marley, have anything to prove at this point and should just hang it up.

Best Songs: "The Day The Music Died/ How About The Mic"

Another Roots Post

Download: "The Grand Return" (Feat. Dice Raw & Wadud Ahmad)

Some heat rocks from the legendary crew. This would have been one of the best songs on the album had they put it on there but I guess since it all goes to iTunes anyway it doesn't really matter.