Bloggystyle -- The Greatest

If Masta Killa's album was the album of the year, Amerikaz Nightmare may have been a number one contender. Seeing as how it allegedly came after Infamy (which never happened, understood?), that's actually surprising. By Murda Muzik, Prodigy's flow had pretty much fallen off like Snoop's post Doggystyle days. Havoc the dwarf was never much of an emcee, and he can only pull an Infamous and Hell On Earth out of his ass every so often. People who hold that against Mobb Deep are idiots.

So P and the dwarf took their sickle cell and midgetry to Jive and put out this album. This time, instead of a gay single featuring 112, the boys had Got It Twisted. That was a good start.

Amerikaz Nightmare

Havoc brought his A game for this one. This is the kind of intro track that rap albums need. The boys are kicking some serious QBC ass.

One of the most ironic things about Mobb Deep is that they perfected true gangsta rap in the mid 90s despite being a combined 200 pounds. I don't know how such a scraggly ass dude with sickle cell could have such a murderous voice, perfect for the Mobb's theme. And on the mic Havoc doesn't sound like he's 4 feet tall. It's not surprising that the likes of Jay Z and Pac clowned Mobb Deep because of these facts, but all I care about is the damn music, and the Mobb's grimey style (at least in the 90s) was amazing.

Win Or Lose

Without question, this track and Got It Twisted are the best tracks on the album. This one is just incredible. "Fuck lookin cute, save that for the broads." Damn right P.

The fact that the two of them go back and forth, limiting each "verse" to only a few bars, greatly helps the cause, especially for P. "Our Boy Al" definitely came through on this one. He doesn't look terribly menacing, but he's the best white guy in the game today. And you know you've made it big when rabid cracker hater Ras Kass beefs with you.

Flood The Block

This track is remarkable. I would think it'd be hard to follow up an incredible track like Win Or Lose with something this awful. I hope someone already told them to flood the block with stuff like Shook Ones and Quiet Storm, not this crap.

Dump, featuring Nate

Jesus Christ couldn't save this track.

Got It Twisted

It's a damn good thing the Mobb had the Alchemist rectify that previous mistake with this gem.

Back before I knew the source of the sample, I was at a bar in the middle of nowhere Wisconsin. This bar epitomized hickdom, but this bar was where I heard the Science song for the first time, a few weeks after this single. 10 seconds of confusion ensued, but for a bit I was thinking this bar was one thugged out locale. Once the singing started, 4 minutes of recoiling and revulsion ensued. Byron Crawford even admits that Science won't leave his grill when this track plays.

This hook is tight, and P delivers possibly his best verse of the millennium. Has there ever been a more backhanded compliment than that?

When U Hear The

Like Got It Twisted, a word is intentionally left out of this hook, so you don't really know what you're hearing when "it's on."

What you will hear in this track is another ridiculous Alchemist beat. He really should have saved some of this stuff for his own unfortunately bad album.

P raps that he should hook up with Christina Aguilera because the genie turned STD factory is "dying for a thug." Seriously, who would she not die for at this point?

Would P actually be proud of himself for nailing that hoochie?

Real Niggaz

The only way I could call P successful on this track was if his goal was to break down his own barriers of shittiness.

Havoc actually rhymes confetti with "put em to beddy." I had to play the track back to make sure Ja Rule hadn't snuck into the studio. But at least Havoc was too gully to rhyme beddy with teddy (bear). Can this honestly be the same guy who was talking about half way crooks and nuns in 95?

I often wonder how big of a blow it is to someone's ego when they go from being so trump tight to so average.

The Start Of Your Ending (41st Side)

I dozed off listening to that last track and started thinking good thoughts. Unfortunately, this is not on Amerikaz Nightmare, but something like it sure as hell would have helped right now.

Shorty Wop

This is track 8, but Havoc asks listeners if they "know who we got up in this bitch?" You'll never guess, but the answer is Mobb Deep!

har har guys.

Real Gangstaz

If we were to weigh this Lil Jon beat on a scale of his production the past few years, this one would weigh as much as Havoc.

Mobb Deep and Lil Jon. Cam'ron and Bizzy Bone. Some hookups just should not ever happen, no homo. The video's all right though.

One Of Our's Part II, featuring Jadakiss

Actually, the last two tracks weren't even that bad. If Jada wouldn't do that obnoxious trademark laugh in every track, he would be twice as good.

Putting Jada on a track with Havoc was like matching up Tracy McGrady and Danny Ferry. Thank God for P's self esteem that he didn't have to contribute to this track. Where was he anyway? Was he too busy getting his chain snatched on the scene of his video?

On The Run

I'd review this track but I was too busy wondering if P has reached the Jordan with the Wizards stage of his career. Or is it more like Shawn Kemp in Orlando? Anyway, this beat is sick.

Throw Your Hands In The Air

Kanye should have brought Jamie Fox and the Slow Jamz beat to make this track a complete farce. But this is about as good as Mobb Deep over a Kanye West beat could probably get. There's that backhanded compliment thing again.

Get Me, featuring Big Noyd and Littles

Another Havoc beat, another good listen. Littles is on this track, even though he's now beefing with the Mobb. Littles is a scrub anyway.

I don't know how Noyd continues to spit hot verses when every verse has to rhyme pound, hammer, banger, heat or caliber number. You'd think Noyd would run out of original rhymes but he sticks to it like it's a contractual obligation.

Check out this excerpt of Noyd's verse. This guy is the man.

Know I'm swingin my piece, pocket full of G's, gun in the stash
I know y'all roll with the boys with the badge
That's why when you kick that gangsta rap, homie I just laugh
From the ave, where snitches get blast
They say - no Noyd, you won't blow makin songs like that
I say - homie you sell your soul to glitter, it don't last
I don't get no bigger, I'ma keep it realer to death

We Up

This is probably Havoc's best beat on the album. This beat is hot. I don't care for P's random rambling during the hook, but I guess something had to go there while Havoc just says We Up a few times.

P actually raps on this track. Other than Got It Twisted, this is about as tight as he gets these days. I'll take what I can.

Neva Change

The concept of a jazzy/soul type of beat just doesn't work for a group that's made 5-6 albums full of grit. The beat's not that bad though.

Got It Twisted Remix, featuring Twista

Twista drops a nice verse and the Mobb drops new verses as well. Somehow nobody rhymed biscuit with twisted until Twista ends his verse with that rhyme.

Let's just say lightning doesn't strike twice for P. The following words allegedly leave P's mouth in this order: "Infamous a new label /
Don't confuse our shit with no other labels"

P's real name is Albert Johnson, not William Shakespeare.

The interesting thing about this album is that some of it is really hot, while some of it is just total crap. But at least 5 tracks made my playlist and they have replayability.

In 2004, that was more than enough to be one of the better rap albums of the year.