LG is a young rapper out of New Orleans.

I had never heard of him until I checked out his EP Cinco based on a friend’s recommendation.  Cinco opens up with a Nas sample (from Belly) – and even though LG is from New Orleans he seems much more Nas than Lil Wayne on that release.

I was super surprised by not only this kid’s flow, but his mature subject matter and a great ear for beats.  Cinco was super soulful.  No New Orleans bounce to this.  Had an almost old school NY style sound.

It ended up being one of my favorite releases last year, so I was anticipating new music from him in 2012.

He recently delivered:  Synth Sounds

You can probably tell by the title it has a different sound than the one I described for his last album.  This album is a little more current sounding for sure – not quite as soulful BUT it still works.

LG still has a completely effortless flow and while you can still tell he his young from some of his lyrics, you can also hear the great potential.  Already at a young age he is able to paint a really vivid picture of his life, and the life in the 5th Ward of New Orleans.

While the beats sound more current on this release, he stills showcases a great ear for them.  Considering his idol Nas has only shown that talent in small bursts in his career, that is a good sign.

I don’t know if LG has that break out song on this, but it is another great release from this young rapper out of N.O.    2 for 2 so far, and he is showing growth.  Sky is the limit for this dude.

My Fav Cuts:

• Meant to Be
• Every Summer
• Let It Happen

Officer Rawse is back

Rick Ross dropped his latest mixtape last night: Rich Forever.

Once again – he delivers.

It is really easy to want to hate Ross.  He showed up out of nowhere talking about the Real Noreaga and it looked like he was a one hit wonder in the making.  I thought Hustlin’ would be to Ross, like Neva Scared was to Bonecrusher.

I was wrong.

Ricky Ross survived the potential one hit wonder, he survived being exposed as a jail guard, survived albums being held up, he truly is the Teflon Don.  Nothing sticks to him!

Why?

Because he drops that fire.  Once again he puts out a really good album/mixtape.  You could make an argument that he just chooses hot beats to rap over.  That is half the battle sometimes – ask Nas how hard that is to do.  Ask Lupe how hard that is to do.

Would anyone argue that Ross is a better rapper than Nas or Lupe – no.  BUT you can make an argument that he currently makes better music.  In fact, fuck an argument, that is an unadulterated TRUTH.

Rich Forever is another great release from Ross.   He may not be a “lyrical miracle” type of dude but he has great mic presence and the Rick Ross “Grunt” is classic.  Ungh.

You already know what Ross is going to rap about – but hey he does it well and over banging production!  What more is to be said.

Some of my fav cuts:

Holy Ghost – The opening track has a dark Lugerish beat, and features Diddy but luckily he sticks to randomly talking shit.

Rich Forever – Ross gets a bit introspective on this one.  Great beat and decent hook from John Legend.

MMG The World Is Ours – This is a great laid back beat.  Maybe my favorite on the album.  I like all the feature verses too – thankfully he left Wale off this .  Pharrell kills his verse (been killing verses on the low for a minute now), Meek MIll and Stalley also sound great.   I like Stalley but he can sometimes be lost on big beats, this is perfect for him.

Stay Schemin’ – I like this a lot.  I just wish French Montana wasn’t on it.   Nice to see Drake go at Common on this.   I wish he would have named names, but it is still clear he is answering back at Common for Common’s diss (which came out of nowhere, and is clearly to build some excitement for Common’s latest album)

To sum it up:

Rawse Did It Again.  Ungh.

Drake – Take Care finally leaked.

I have a 192kbp rip here, without bonus tracks.  I will share my initial feelings on my first listen.  Don’t cry in comments if I missed a lyric, reference or guest spot.  This is my very first listen so 95% of this album is completely new to me.

If you disagree with something I said – let me know in comments how you feel. Also let me know if I missed any guests appearances, obvious samples etc….

Over My Dead Body – a nice welcome back intro, the beat is soft but Drake goes in. Kind of like an answer to people calling him too soft IMO.  Good intro – nice way to open the album – Drake spitting and not singing.  Crazy sample at the end….esg I believe?

That goes right into….singing.  Shot For Me – starts off almost completely opposite of how Over My Dead Body ended.  I like Drakes singing tho, and I like the vibe of this song.  Dude kills the melodies on this – and then starts spitting which is nice.

It is funny, for a guy who went from actor to rapper, you’d think you would find the music kind of “fake” but Drake consistently seems like one of the most honest artists out there – especially in comparison to his fame.

Nice transition into Headlines – this is a song most of you have heard I am sure.  A good single. I actually think Drake kills the first verse.

I might be too strong out on compliments overdosed on confidence
started not to give a fuck and stop fearing the concequence
Drinking every night because we drink to my accomplishments

Love that opening.

Crew Love is the next song – and it has my dude The Weeknd on it so I am pumped for it.  It has a Weeknd feel to it for sure.  Clearly this won’t be the last song they do together.  I thought this would be a Weeknd feature for awhile, but Drake breaks up the crooning with a cool verse.   Drake and Weeknd, quite the “Crew”.  Can’t wait to see what else these guys come up with in the future.

Take Care is an upbeat track that opens up with Rhianna singing.  Then Drake comes in with some singing of his own.  Nice drums on this, this could be a hit but it isn’t one of my favorite tracks.  Im guessing this is next single.

Marvins Room/ Buried Alive is next.  Marvins room has been out for awhile, and IMO is one of the best songs of the year.  Definitely one of my favorites.  This is another track that highlights Drake’s honesty.  He is basically admitting to “tricking”.  In the rap world that is a cardinal sin.  The lengthy interlude is very Weeknd inspired IMO. Is that Drake rapping at the end?  The vocal effect sounds makes him sound like Kendrick Lamar.

Underground Kings – This is dope – reminds me of older Drake actually.  In fact the sample reminds me of a track from back in the Comeback Season days (maybe before).  But can’t put my finger on what song it is.  I love hearing Drake like this.

We’ll be Fine - Some nice bass on this track…also the second Aaliyah reference in the past 3 songs.   Pretty minimalistic beat………literally as soon as I typed that the beat changed.  Drake is going in on this too – Im liking his ratio of rapping to singing on this release so far.

Make me Proud is another single Im sure.  I have heard this already and it is not my favorite track, but for a commercial single I didn’t find it bad at all.   I am completely over Nicki Minaj though. She is OK, but I dunno something about her.  Fuck it, I just barely ever like female rappers.

I don’t have the production credits handy, but even if Ross didn’t shout out Blaze, I’d have known instantly this was a Just Blaze beat.  WTF.  Just Blaze is the best producer doing it.  He needs to make MORE beats.  This track is soulful.  Yeah man, Blaze is good.  Drake kills it and any song is instantly made better with a rick Ross grunt.

Cameras/Good Ones Go – Another long interlude/combo song.  Really interesting beat to start and I think I hear Weeknd on it.  In fact the whole beat has a Weekend feel.  Including a Weekendesque beat change.  I don’t mind this but these long interludes are a bit much when it comes to replayablity.  I have heard of Stevie Wonder appearances…and MAYBE there is some Stevie keyboard work on the second half of this?

Doing it Wrong is pretty much typical Drake.  This is the exact kind of song that will make old school rap fans hate him, while at the same time giving girls a leaky basement.  I don’t mind this at all but then again I like RnB.  The horns at end of Doing It Wrong are SO familiar it is  killing me.  Anyone recognize that?

The Real Her comes next and again i can’t help but note the Weekend influence.  Especially with the starts of songs, vocal effects etc…   I am a little disappointed he went into singing mode at the end thus far here.   This track could use some rapping soooooo QUEUE WEEZY AND 3 STACKS!  Weezy is not bad, but of course Andre 3000 kills it.

HYFR – this beat opens up exactly like you would think a song titled (Hell Ya Fuckin’ Right) would.  Pretty aggressive beat.  Drake opens up with a George Strait reference too…didn’t see that coming.  He KILLS the first verse tho – love his flow on that.  Weezy makes another appearance on this track, potentially quelling rumors that Drake and him are on the outs?

Look What You’ve Done is up next, and once again it is Drake spitting about lady troubles.  I guess that bothers some people but it works for him.  He sells records.  Another thing, is he does it in such an honest way it is kind of refreshing.  This track grew on me as I was typing.  Really laid back but Drake is spitting and when the drums drop in – really fills out the beat.

The last track I have now is Practice (there are bonus tracks that should leak later).  This is a bit weird – the beat is “Back That Azz Up” but really slowed down.  it is like if Weeknd remixed Back That Azz Up.   I find this track a bit weird, but maybe it will grow on me.

In general off of ONE listen – this seems like a super solid effort from Drake, and will probably end up in my top 10, or even 5 albums of the year.

This won’t make you like Drake, if you didn’t before.  he still raps about women a lot, he still sings, and of course he pushes the boundaries between RnB and Rap music a bit closer together.   The good news is he does it in refreshing way, and keeps his sound current by obviously working closely with a guy like The Weekend.

This might be too soft for some, but I think it is a very solid release and I am sure it will grow on me with more listens.

This recent EP is one of my fav releases of the year, and while I don’t have the time to review it myself.  Thankfully the world’s biggest music nerd – has handled a review for me AND luckily he hits on the main points I would have made.

I love Black Milk beats, and I have been really getting into Danny Brown lately, so this EP was a no brainer for me.  If you want to hear some great Detroit hip-hop — check it out.  

Also check out the review for a great break down of this album. 

The Dream.

I have tried to put a lot of people on to this guys music and was rewarded with comments like “YOU listen to this?”

Yes I do – and you should too. The Dream is the man. Possible musical genius? And before you ask it – no I am not joking. The dude is great, and even if his voice isn’t amazing his song writing and melodies far far outweigh that.

You might be thinking that you don’t know who he is – but trust me you do. He has been behind some pretty big pop hits. He has written such tracks as:

Beyonce – Single Ladies
Bieber – Baby
Mariah – Touch My Body
Rihanna – Umbrella

Now, I don’t like any of those songs but you can see the man has had his hand in some of the biggest songs in pop music. That takes skill.

His albums, while always having a pop mentality and there share of catchy pop influenced songs, also showcased a different side of The Dream. His albums showcase his lush layered production, amazingly mixed with song transitions that rank with the best of all time. His Yamaha -> Nikki Pt. 2 -> Abyss run on Love King is epic. Reminiscent of Prince even. Crazy right? Just listen. His voice obviously isn’t as good but the production and transitions between songs are.

Now The Dream has released a FREE 10-song album on the net. You can download yours at RadioKillaRecords.com. He released it under his real name. Terius Nash – 1977.

Can a free album he made in a weeks time match up with his other work?

Short answer – yes.

Now the first thing you will notice about this album is it isn’t mixed quite as well as his retail albums. I guess with only a weeks time he didn’t have the chance to mix and master perfectly. Since that is one of the Dream’s strong points it is missed, but the album is still VERY listenable. The next thing you will miss are the crazy transitions between songs. So what are you left with?

A bunch of throwaway tracks while we wait for his new album? NO.

While this free album misses the cohesiveness of his past work, it more than stands on it’s own due to the great song writing and production.

Take Used to Be for example – what guy who has been in a relationship that turned sour wouldn’t feel this?

YOU USE TO BE SO SWEET
BUT NOW YOU ACT ALL BITTER
AND JUST SO I DON’T HEAR THAT SHIT
I DROWN MY LIVER IN THIS LIQOUR
USE TO BE LIKE THIS MAN
USE TO BE MY BEST FRIEND
NOW ALL YOU DO IS JUDGE ME
AND SCREAM OUT FUCK ME
BUT WON’T FUCK ME
OH HELL TO THE NO
NOW I’M ALL UP IN THE CLUBS
NOW I’M ALL UP IN THE MALL
NOW YOU IN MY CELL PHONE
SCREAMIN’ WHO’S THIS BITCH
SHE’S JUST A FRIEND
YEAH THAT’S IT
AND NOW YOU WANNA TRIP
AIN’T THAT SOME SHIT
YESTERDAY YOU DIDN’T GIVE A FUCK
NOW YOU ASKING WHERE I BEEN
AND NOW YOU HATING ON EVERY GIRL THAT WALK BY
TALKIN BOUT WHERE SHE THINK SHE GOIN IN THAT OUTFIT
SHE DON’T EVEN LOVE ME
SHE LOVE THE COMPETITION
EVERY MAN OUT THERE
I HOPE YOUR LISTENIN’

Is anyone else writing like that in RnB right now?

This Shit Real – is just a celebration of all things in excess. In fact, this song could have easily been on the Watch The Throne album. Yes the Dream and Pharrell do their best to match the arrogance of Jay and Kanye. They also do it over an absolutely head nodding beat. Big bass drops over a stripped down beat (by Dream’s standards) while The Dream boasts with the best of them:

NI**A SPENDING MONEY LIKE I JUST WON A SETTLEMENT
EVER SEEN A NI**A BUY A PORCHE ON THE INTERNET
EVER SEEN A NI**A BUY A HOUSE FROM THE TOILET
ADD A BOAT TO THE CART
CLICK YES
BOUGHT IT

LOL!

Wedding Crasher is yet another stand out. This track starts with a nice soft beat, and you would almost think it was a traditional love song – until Dream starts singing about crashing an old flames wedding singing “his drunk song”.

I’M A BE MISSIN’ YOU FOREVER
WE STILL SHOULD BE TOGETHER
I’M ALREADY ON MY THIRD RING
THESE BITCHES AIN’T EVEN ON YOUR LEVEL
I TRIED TO REPLACE YOU
WITH MY EX
AND THE EX BEFORE THAT
HAD ME ALL MISERABLE
WHEN YOU LEFT
EVERYTHING WENT LEFT
STILL GOT SOME OF YOUR THINGS
IF YOU WANT I’LL SEND THEM TO YOU
I’D RATHER SEND YOU MY LOVE
EVEN THOUGH I KNOW IT’S PAST DUE
SEE IT’S GOIN’ ON EIGHT YEARS
BAPTIZING IN MY TEQUILA TEARS
ALL THE LIGHTS OFF I’M ALL ALONE
JUST ME AND THIS BOTTLE OF PATRON

The Dream can run pretty close to corny at times, but he delivers the lines with such sincerity that you can’t help but feel for him. The chorus of this song is also one of the most singable I have heard in ages.

I could talk about this album all day – but it is FREE – go download it now and check it out for yourself. if you like catchy production, clever song writing and real feeling – you will like it. At the worst you don’t like it and you delete it – the only thing it cost you was a couple of minutes.

Highs
Used to be
Ghetto
Wedding Crasher
Rolex
This Shit Real
Form of Flattery (is this a Weeknd diss? :O )

Lows
Silly – unneeded remake by Dream’s artist Casha. No offense to her, but she didn’t have to remake this. She does kill Rolex track though.

Lil Wayne with the 4th installment of the Carter series.  The past Carter albums are all pretty good, with the third being my least favorite. Can Weezy bounce back?  We will see.

I haven’t let this album sink in fully, so I haven’t heard a lot of the lyrics and don’t know for sure what Wayne shows up on this album.  I listened to it once and tried to capture my initial thoughts of each song.  Remember this is likely to change on subsequent listens.

Intro - Love the intro – great start to the album.

Blunt Blowin – yeahhhhh this is the anthem.  Loooooooove the beat on this.  Pumps me right up and Wayne goes in, typical punchline Wayne but I don’t mind that. He kills the hook too. Super catchy.

Megaman - This actually reminds me exactly of Megaman – like maybe a junkyard type level.  The bass in this is nice too.  Wayne sounds good on these tracks, I dunno if it is vintage Weezy, but def good.

6 Foot 7 Foot - Well you know this song already.  I’d be surprised if anyone reading this review hadn’t heard this.  It is great, that is all.

Nightmares of the Bottom - Not feeling the start of this beat, might be getting a bit too poppy or soft for my tastes.  Wayne comes in kind of droning too but once the bass hits once again the song sounds good.   The production so far is a tiny bit generic, but I like all the beats so I am willing to let it slide.  The pianos on this are pretty soft, but the bass is NOT.

She Will (Feat. Drake) - You knew Drake was going to be on this.  This beat has a decidedly Drake-ish feel to it.  The drums kick in nicely tho and Lil Wayne is once again sounding good.  If you don’t like “punchline” Wayne you might have some issues so far.  Drake handles the hook – typical Drake chorus.  Im a fan so I like it.  Reminds me a lot of the Im On One hook

How To Hate (feat: T-Pain) – OK a T-Pain track, im prolly not going to feel this. Autotune – uh oh.  This is too soft for me for sure.   I mean Lil Wayne is going to have to come in like Inspectah Deck on Triumph to save this. He doesn’t.  I know people will like this but it is def not my style.

Interlude: Cool beat with Tech 9 can’t hate on it really. WHOA!  WTF Unlisted Andre 300 verse.  Fire.  Awesome.  Total surprise and the good kind of surprise (like a gift), not the bad (like a shart).

John (feat: Rick Ross): Kind of your typical Lex Lugerish beat that Rick would rhyme over.  People will love this, I think I only like it.

Abortion: A rocked out beat that I am feeling a lot.  Reminds me of something that would be on Jay-Z’s Blueprint 2.  I like Wayne on this a lot as well,

So Special: At first I really disliked this song, but by the end of it I didn’t mind it.  Maybe that is a sign it will grow on me.  I dunno, I just felt it was a bit too soft.

How To Love: I think this is a cool song.  I don’t really wanna hear Wayne sing, but it is super catchy to be honest.  I definitely prefer Crooked I’s version: How To Thug.

President Carter: Love the opening chords on this, sounds epic. Great Jimmy Carter sample to start it off.  This is a great beat, and once again Wayne sounds good.  This might be my favorite track on the album.

Its Good (feat. Jada and Drake): Here is some trivia for you – I am almost sure that the sample for this song is the same as DJ Kno’s AMAZING remix of Jay-Z’s Threats. Incredible, already love the song because of that fact.  Drake has a verse this time and besides rhyming faded three times in a row, he kills his verse. This is right up there for my fav song as well.

Outro (feat. Bun B, Nas, Shyne, Busta Rhymes): I almost have to like this based on the guest list alone.  I have actually heard this beat, and maybe this song before.  It is super familiar.

All in all seems like a solid album.  I am not sure how it will sound after a couple of listens but it certainly didn’t initially disappoint.

CHYEAH!

What a great morning surprise, log onto Facebook – check out my updates and not far down the page – Drake has a link to Weeknd’s latest mixtape – Thursday.  DOWNLOAD HERE

I think his mixape earlier in the year is a strong contender for album of the year…can this possibly live up to that standard?  Time to find out…

The mixtape opens with Lonely Star sampling Kanye’s Robocop – it works, it sounds great and Weeknd flexes the vocal muscles on this and kills it.

Life of the party opens with another Kanye sample (Monster) but it has almost a reggae feel.  I am not loving this track to be honest – Weeknd is good on it but not feeling the production.

The title track is next, and this is the Weeknd I want to hear.  I like the production on this a lot more than the last track.  A really simple hook, but Weeknd sounds great on it.

The Zone is my fav track so far – by far.  I loved the subdued production especially when the beat hits – and Weekend’s vocals at the start of the track are kind of haunting almost.  Just when I thought this song was as good as it gets, that guitar sample kicks in.  Dope.  Surprise verse from Drake at the end too!  He kills it!  T-Dot What!!!

The Birds (Part 1 and Part 2) follow.  Part one is typical Weeknd, until the last 30 seconds when he just shows off that falsetto over an almost acoustic accompaniment.   Part two opens with a familiar guitar sample I can’t place.    Another great song – typical Weeknd vocals over the production you should be used to now.

Gone opens up a bit differently, with a bit of a bouncy beat, of course there is typical Weeknd distortion layered with a couple samples/sounds a few seconds in.  This is as close to a pop record as I have heard him on.  But even then, it is still sooooo unmistakably Weeknd.

Rolling Stone is a track I have heard for awhile – it was one of the first tracks I heard after his last mixtape.  I love it. Probably the most minimalistic song I have heard Weekend on.  No real vocal effects – just his voice (which is great) over a stripped down beat.  Reminds me of the last 30 seconds of The Birds (Part 1).

Heaven or Las Vegas – Very similar to Life of The Party (same guitar licks?) but I think this is a much more successful attempt at this sound.  A nice way to end the album.

All in all another great release from Weeknd.  I really have to check this out more thoroughly.  I just listened to this once, and I think I  need to really let it sink in.  On first listen though – a great follow up.  As of now I like his last mixtape better – but give me a minute to let this one sink in.

Check this guy out, he might be the next dude from Toronto to blow up internationally.

Stand Outs
Rolling Stone
The Zone

Let Downs
Life of The Party

Jay-Z and Kanye:  Watch The Throne.

I have to say – what a crazy job they did on keeping it from leaking.  I think them using the digital only release via iTunes first saved them from leaks.  I am sure a lot of big label albums will do the same now.  it is usually some sloppy work by an engineer creating physical copies that leads to leaks.

So what is the album like?

Well it is a Kanye and Jay album.

It is what you think it would be. Jay and Kanye spitting over typical 2011 Kanye production.  The beats are great of course – some lush samples, some great flips and like his last album, Kanye pushes the boundaries of hip-hop by sampling euro and dupstep tracks.  This album is probably less experimental than Kanye’s last though.  While there is a definite current vibe to the album, I don’t think it is avant garde enough to polarize older fans.

One thing that is great to hear is the rapport between Jay and Kanye – they have no problem going back and forth and feel totally comfortable together.  I guess that makes sense considering they have been linked since Kanye’s early days, but you still wonder how two guys with massive egos will work together.

Jay def sounds better than BP3 IMO too.  He kills a number of these tracks.

I expected greatness from this album but my expectations were tempered because who knows what the final product would be like…but IMO this lived up to expectations.   If you are a fan of Jay or Kanye this is a must cop.

Stand Outs:
Gotta Have It
Murder To Excellence

Let Downs:
Lift Off

Wu-Tang is for the children.

Of all of my young music related memories for some reason Ol’ Dirty Bastard rushing the stage at the Grammy’s is still one of my favorites.  He was right too, Wu-Tang Forever album should have won every award there.  In my opinion that might be the best rap record period, and no disrespect to Pac or Biggie but my favorite double album ever.

Wu-Tang’s 36 Chambers actually got me back into rap music.  Wu-Tang Forever might be my favorite album of all time. Then you have all of the first generation solo records like Rakwon’s, Meth’s, ODB’s, Ghostface’s and GZA’s which are all classic in their own right.

Nowadays, Wu-Tang is certainly not at their peak either artistically or commercially.  That said – when they drop something new I will listen out of respect.  Sometimes I am horrified (see: Raekwon-  Immobilarity ) and sometimes I am pleasantly surprised (see: Raekwon – OB4CLII).

Where will Wu-Tang - Legendary Weapons land?

Well on about 3 days of listens, this is falls heavily into the pleasantly surprised list.  I liked the last Wu project (Chamber Music) but on my limited listens I am feeling Legendary Weapons a lot more.

Much like Chamber Music this album is more of a collaboration type album.  Their is outside production and each song features a couple of Wu members, and maybe a guest spot.  There is no nine verses of hellfire over a RZA banger, but thats OK.

They did a great job on the sound of this album, it has a real Wu-Tang feel to it.

The crowd cheering at the start of Start the Show will remind all Wu fans of It’s Yourz. Laced Cheeba is a totally classic Wu style beat.  Never Feel This Pain has Inspectah Deck sounding revitalized over a funky/soulful beat reminiscent of something Ghostface would have rhymed over.

Another highlight from the album comes from the criminally underrated Killa Sin who absolutely torches a 2 minute boom bap beat, with a definite Wu flair.

If you are a Wu fan this is a must buy IMO.  If you are one of those people who hate the current rap scene you should also download this to get a taste of the glory years.  This might go down as one of the better albums of the year period on subsequent listens. ODB was right, Puff Daddy Is OK but Wu-Tang is Better.

Welll this came out of …nowhere.

I am not usually a Lil B fan – I find him a bit gimmicky.  I do respect his ability to build a rabid fanbase though – he knows how to market himself that is for sure.

I knew his album was dropping soon, but didn’t care.  Then I get an email from my friend:

“Hey you hear “Im Gay” yet?”

Ummm what?

I was a bit confused but as I read on I realized that was the title of Lil B’s new album – “Im Gay”.

I won’t question his marketing methods because they work – but I am surprised he went “there”.  He didn’t go full bore though, as you can see on the album cover he does include (IM HAPPY) underneath.

Regardless of what he meant though – ballsy move #nohomo.  In a musical genre noted for it’s homophobia, is Lil B making a bit of a statement?  Who knows?

Anyways I begrudgingly threw the album into my iTunes.  I did like that one song he had with Jean Grae earlier in the year so I thought “Why not?”.  I start the album and kind of let it play in the background…after the first three songs I was like – whoa – I like this.

Say what you will about Lil B, but if all you have heard his “cooking music” you will be really surprised by the production on this album.  Off of a couple of listens this is one of the better produced albums this year period.

Of course, production alone can’t completely save an album.  I have heard Lil B doing some weird ass rapping off the beat completely.  I guess some people dig that but not me.  On this album though – he is on beat for most of the rapping.  He isn’t the best technically, and doesn’t have an amazing flow – but he sounds more than passable on this.  In fact he has a some nice rhymes on this.

Now I have only listened to this a couple of times so I don’t know if the subject matter is weird as hell – so maybe that effects my enjoyment of the album but as of  now – count me as VERY surprised.

Wonderful production, and the Based God holds his own on the mic.

Highlights

• Trapped in Prison
• Open Thunder Eternal Slumber
• Game
• Unchain Me

(these four songs constitute a great quartet to open an album)

Lowlights

Not a lot sticks out- maybe The Wilderness, but then I also think it might sample some classic SNES RPG (no idea if this is true, or which one but it is real familiar)