Musings From the Back 9: Music Edition III

Ludacris - Release Therapy
Before Release Therapy dropped, Ludacris declared that this would be the album that the rap game would take him seriously not just a jester who would sport five foot afros and The Hulk hands in videos and even shaved his trademarck braids in the process. Then he goes and releases Moneymaker as the first single off the album with such thought provoking lyrics, “Took yo momma nine moths to make you, might as well shake what yo momma gave ya.” Okay, so Rakim he is not. But trying to be may not have been the best idea because the Luda created a nice niche for himself in rap but with this album, without the usual wit, he just sounds like everyone else. Then when he tries to grow out his boundaries, like with his soft diss track War with God, it just falls flat. And who exactly is he dissing here? He includes the line “Just do what your song says and shut the (expletive deleted) up” which is a line from his own Get Back. Being a rap album there are plenty of guests rappers including Young Jeezy, Field Mob, Pimp C, Beanie Sigel, and C-Murder along with hook singers, Pharrell, Bobby Valentino, R. Kelly and Mary J. Blige on the way too sentimental Runaway Love. Luda does save the best for last with church inspired Freedom of Preach where Luda takes the pulpit with Bishop Eddie L. Long. But it’s too little too late to save the album.

Release Therapy gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.


Sister Hazel - Absolutely
Remember the musical landscape of the nineties? It started out with the dark and bleak Grunge era and end with the onslaught with the uber-fluff of boy band. But somewhere in the middle there was a few years where rock music that were reminiscent of old time rock and roll ruled the charts with bands like Hootie and the Blowfish, Toad the Wet Sprocket and Better Than Ezra. One of the best songs from this period of music was All for You by Sister Hazel that was pretty much their only hit. And much like other bands from that era, are releasing an album to try to get back past success. But much like all those other bands (Better Than Ezra excluded), their new album entitled Absolutely sounds very nineties and is just a rehash of previous work granted with nothing as catchy as All for You. That doesn’t necessarily make it a bad album, This Kind of Love should be included on your next mixtape for a significant other, but the retro sound does it make a good one. Give it another decade before the nineties sound comes back in style.

Absolutely get a on my Terror Alert Scale.


Method Man - 4:21… the Day After
Method Man was always the breakout star of the Wu-Tang Clan. But to his credit, whenever the troupe reconvened for an album or tour, he was always there and would routinely recruited Clan alums to appear on his album or produce his tracks. But something seems different with his new album 4:21… the Day After, name after, well, just think of what the day before 4:21 is, and if you still don’t get it, the opening starts off with a “make marijuana legal” chant. But the album sounds overproduced thanks to weak tracks from Scott Storch, the guy who brought us Paris Hilton and Brooke Hogan. And for a guy from the dirty slums of Shaolin, his music should never sound overproduced. Bad production aside, Meth can still spit some quality although he lets his guest outshine him occasionally like the late great Ol’ Dirty Bastard on Dirty Mef and running mate Redman on Walk On, the standout track, and Red even has the best line on the album with “I’ll blow your mind like Kurt Cobain.” Lauryn Hill also makes a great appearance on Say. But some of the guests, like Morbidly Obese Joe on Ya’Meen, turns what should be a great track into a mediocre one.

4:21… the Day After gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.