Bloggystyle -- The Greatest

A few good authorities have stated that this album may have been the album of the year. And while any rap fan should expect good things out of a Wu-Tang alumnus, I still have to wonder just how tight a guy also nicknamed Noodles and High Chief can be. It doesn't matter if this guy is a member of Wu-Tang or the Charlie Manson Family; either way those names are pretty damn pussy.

But in an age where some kook named Guerrilla Black has videos with Beanie Man, anything is possible, Noodles or not. And who doesn't want to hear some of that old Wu style? That's allegedly what Masta Killa was gunning for in this one.

Born Chamber

Intro skits are generally not helpful. But at least the typical Wu type stuff is innovative. Still, anytime black guys mix with Kung Fu, I can't get that image of Kareem Abdul Jabar vs. Bruce Lee out of my head.

Grab The Microphone

This beat is simple but sufficient. The problem is that Masta Killa doesn't sound like he heard the beat or used it while he did his verses. This beat was produced by "Brock," and I'm assuming his last name was not Lesner.

No Said Date

RZA's beat is definitely tight for this track. As far as Noodles is concerned, this wasn't exactly "Triumph"ant. Better than the job he did on the previous track though.

Last Drink

At the same time, I'm not accusing him of flowing like ODB. Plus this review comes on the heels of the Lil Wayne review.

At the end of this track, as the beat fades out, the theme song for Cheers starts up. I had to play it back to make sure my ears were working. I then took a breathalyzer to see if last night's strain was no longer affecting me.

Wu does some pretty unique stuff, but that is just plain weird.

Love Spell

I'm creating a list of guys who shouldn't make a rap track about love. My list will eventually be lengthy, but right at the top is Ron Artest, Ja Rule and anybody who was in Wu-Tang.

The Future (Skit)

As Byron Crawford so aptly puts it, "Having your kids on your album isn't a good idea regardless of who you are." Unless you're Juelz Santana.

D.T.D., featuring Ghostface and Raekwon

I'm shocked it took this long for guest spots. Raekwon and Ghostface show up for this one. I like this Mathematics beat better than Last Drink.

Whatever, featuring Streetlife and Prodigal Sunn

More Mathematics, and their stuff is getting progressively better. This stuff reminds me of a Premiere beat.

I have no idea who Streetlife and Prodigal Sunn are. Masta Killa actually raps right on the beat, and he's pretty damn tight on this track.

Secret Rivals, featuring Method Man and Killah Priest

What can be said about Method Man that hasn't been said before? His verse on this track is just incredible. The biggest disappointment on this album so far is that Method Man's verse had to end at some point.

Method Man and Masta Killa all but embarass Killah Priest on this track, and Killah was ok on this too. Masta does a good job of making his verses sound like freestyles, but there's no way a verse that good was freestyle.

Skit

I found it pretty amusing that the title of the skit was just Skit. Kung Fu dialogue for 20 more seconds is tolerable.

Digi Warfare

I figured by the title of this track that it would be unique. This didn't disappoint either.

This track sounds like it came straight off of No One Can Do It Better, and it wouldn't have been album filler. Once again, Noodles rocked the mic and didn't stray off beat.

Old Man, featuring Ol Dirty Bastard and RZA

Apparently this beat samples Sanford and Son. Since I'm a relatively affluent white male, I don't really know what that means. I haven't reached the age where I actually watch Nick At Night either.

The late Dirt McGirt aka Baby Jesus aka Russell Jones aka Ol Dirty Bastard aka the weirdest guy of all fucking time, does the hook, or what passes for the hook. Really, what more can you ask for? Hearing ODB order a Big Mac on this track is certainly something no man should abstain from.

RZA and Masta Killa do their thing. Masta easily outshines RZA. After hearing a majority of this album, I do wonder why Masta wasn't on more of the old Wu stuff.

Queen

Why the hell are these gooey love tracks showing up on an album that's almost entirely dedicated to being gully? This is an even better question when taking into account the fact that the Wu diehard fanbase isn't really going to change (and aren't diehards for this type of shit at that).

Lyrically I guess Masta Killa's fine on this, but this is probably the worst beat on the album. Besides, we want to hear Noodles talk about severing spines and cracking skulls, not making passionate love to his queen.

School, featuring RZA

For the first 30 seconds, RZA was really onto something with that beat. Then, for some stupid reason, he throws a Randy Johnson slider and the beat descends into pure obnoxious trash. I haven't been this disappointed by the entertainment industry since Married With Children was cancelled. Masta Killa is tight as usual, but that damn beat.

On the bright side, this album finally gets its Pac reference out of the way on the outro, in the form of a soundbyte where Pac talks about his love for the Wu Tang clan.

Silverbacks, featuring Inspectah Deck and GZA

I'm liking True Master more now that the track's not Queen. This beat is pretty damn tight. The boys can't help but be good on it.

Masta Killa

If you're going to name a track after yourself, it better be tight. And this one can be compared to Method Man.

I love the kung fu inspired beat. Baby Dooks laced this beat. He definitely should have done more than one track on this album. This is my favorite track on the album.

So is this the album of the year? As Vincent Vega would say, I don't know if it's worth that title, but it's pretty fucking good. Plus this wasn't exactly a big year for rap albums. A lot of people claim Kanye's album was the best of the year, but this is definitely better than that. Encore probably outsold this album in two days: I would make that a compelling episode of Unsolved Mysteries. Anyway, this album could maybe win the Album of the Year award by default, especially if you like Wu.

And anyone who doesn't like Wu should have their ears examined.

# posted by Jay Dub @ 4:43 PM