As I pointed out in my review for the Man with the Iron Fists Soundtrack review, if there is one thing I have learned in my life is to never, under any circumstance, trust a big butt and a smile. If there is a second lesson I have learn it is Wu-Tang Clan ain’t nuthin ta (expletive deleted). Just when the Golden Age of Hip-Hop seems likes it was starting to come to the close in the early nineties thanks to gangsta rap and hip-pop, the nine New York collective dropped Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) , this month’s induction into the Scooter Hall of Fame.
The album just sounded like New York City (or at least it sounded like that to this teenaged suburban white kid), it was grimy, dirty, and menacing with plenty of kung-fu sounds (of course the guy went on to write, direct, and star in a kung-fu movie). With beats by RZA, the music somehow managed to sound sparse and big at the same time. And the Clan managed to assemble the greatest crew in the history of rap by a country mile. Ghostface Killah and Raekwon are two of the best lyricist in the game. Method Man brought in a commercial aspect, and Ol' Dirty Bastard was just unhinged bringing in an element of anything can happen.
Oh, and the songs. Three of the songs from the album made my list of the 100 Greatest Songs from the Golden Age of Hip-Hop. As the intro would have you believe, the teenaged version of myself ran around chanting the Wu-Tang Clan ain’t nuthin ta (expletive deleted) wit , even the present day version does the same thing occasionally. My favorite line remains, “I’m causing more family feuds than Richard Dawson.” (R.I.P. Richard). C.R.E.A.M. was a stroke of genius, and another chant worthy chorus. And the song is just pure paranoia, and the second most paranoid songs ever after Mind Playing Tricks On Me (with all due respect to Black Sabbath). Then Method Man why the M.C. ended up being the breakout star of the Clan and featured maybe the most memorable opening of any song ever which was hilariously parodied by Dave Chappelle.
Who knows when we will get the next proper full length We-Tang Clan album, if ever? It is not the easiest thing to get these guys at the same place at the same time (I know from experience from the massive delay of the Wu-Tang Clan / Rage Against the Machine concert I went to because the members were too busy playing basketball and started their set a full hour after the opening act finished). But hopefully it gets done soon.
No comments:
Post a Comment