Whether or not any of that shit actually happens is a mystery, but for now, I'll focus on his follow-up to last year's awesome Twelve Reasons to Die.
Ghostface Killah is one of the nine original members of the Wu-Tang Clan, and has slowly but surely become he most consistently entertaining member of the crew, which is no small feat considering the magical hooks courtesy of Method Man, the genre-defining coke raps of Raekwon, the lyrical genius of, um, The Genius, and all the insanity that was Ol' Dirty Bastard. But Ghost is also the busiest. This album, 36 Season, is the second of five (!) albums that could be released in one calendar year. Along with the Wu album released earlier this month, Ghost plans on dropping his long awaited collaboration with MF DOOM, another collaborative effort with Badbadnotgood, and Supreme Clientele 2.
Whether or not any of that shit actually happens is a mystery, but for now, I'll focus on his follow-up to last year's awesome Twelve Reasons to Die.
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It's Tuesday night, I'm finished with all my homework, the Nuggets dismantling of the Warriors has made for a lackluster night in the television universe. I'm bored, I have a blog, that blog just happens to have a glaring problem in the form of the first wu solo album, Tical, missing from site. What to do, What to do?
Well I'm sure as hell not reviewing Tical if that's what you wanted, I'm not letting my reviewing partner get a pass on that one. (I know the title of this post kind of gave all this away but just play along) No no, instead I'm here to provide a review of Ghostface Killahs debut album Ironman. I don't have all that much to say about the album, so I'm continuing to ramble on so this intro looks like I put some effort into it. But yes, Ghostfaces bizarrely consistent career had to start somewhere, which is exactly where we find ourselves now. Ironman serves as the final solo album before the wu tangs second full length album. Because it seems as though all the solo albums gradually got better and this was coming off the heels of GZAs classic Liquid Swords, Ironman was released to considerable expectations. Im on record of being a huge ghostface fan, but most of my fandom actually came from ghosts later work. All though I remember enjoying the album, it has easily received the least amount of spins among the first solo wu albums. For the first time in my reviewing process of the wu, I'm listening to an album that I truly haven't heard in a while and could have possibly formed a new opinion. So lets see how this turns out. Oh yeah almost forgot, RZA produced the album in its entirety 1. Iron Maiden (Feat. Raekwon & Cappadonna) Incredibly cool track name aside, Ironman starts of with a sample from a movie that I'm too tired to try and find the name of. I've always loved this because of my obvious bias I have towards wu skits. After it has passed, we flow right into a banging RZA instrumental. Its just classic wu. After the well received combination of Ghost and Rae, the two capitalize as the chef hops on this and complements ghosts flow nicely. As indicated on the cover, Cappadonna makes his first appearance. I guess he was alright. 2. Wildflower (Feat. Scotty Wotty & Jamie Summers) If you've already heard this then you can take this out of context and make me look just a terrible person, but this song cracks me up every time I hear it. Its incredibly brutal, mean, and offensive to everyone, but just lighten up guys. Ghost finds out that his girl has been cheating and makes the song uncomfortable for everyone, by stating his thoughts in shocking detail. 3. The Faster Blade (Feat. Raekwon) As Ghostface did on Rae's debut, Raekwon takes up a whole song for himself, as this is a solo track by the chef. Rae definitely sound up to par and sounds confident but the instrumental was the best part of this track. Probably should have been used on a different track, as this is just begging for Ghostface to spit a few bars. 4. 260 (Feat. Raekwon) As Raekwon makes yet another appearance, it is clear that this is connected to OB4CL, or the two just realize how great their chemistry is. Anyways, this starts off with another movie sample from "Iron Maiden". Ghost and Rae rap about one of their crime tales about robbery over a beat that is extra heavy on the horn, which I'm always a fan of. Ultimately, this is alright but not at the level of the two's later robbery track such as, "The Hilton". 5. Assassination Day (Feat. Inspectah Deck, The RZA, Raekwon, & Masta Killa) The first real wu posse cut of the album, although Ghostface is unfortunately left off his own song once again. This sounds slightly out of place, but that's only because it was supposed to appear on Deck's studio debut, until most of the material was washed away in a flood. Deck was at his peak at this point of his career and he shows here as he beats out everyone else's verses. RZAs instrumental sound great, especially when it first kicks in. I would have liked to have seen our host on here, but this is still one of the best songs on the album. 6. Poisonous Darts Only really remember this one because it contains the first and only Kung fu sample of the album. Ghost rips through the song with only a short hook to take his breath. He's talking about nothing really, which is when Ghost is at his best. The beat on here is beautifully complex that takes a few listens to really appreciate. This sound much better today. 7. Winter Warz (Feat. U-God, Masta Killa, Cappadonna, & Raekwon) One of the more well known and received tracks of the album just happens to be a personal favorite of mine. One reason I love this so much how U-God and Masta Killa completely destroy the shit, which is weird considering who they are at this point. Then Cappadonna arrives. Cappa raps, and raps, and raps, and, raps, and I think you get the point. I promise its the longest verse I've ever heard and reaches the point to where its just pure comedy. The beat is fairly raw as well. 8. Box In Hand (Feat. Raekwon, Method Man, & The Force MDS) I'm actually surprised how great this instrumental sound nowadays, considering I remembered exactly none of it until now. Piano and scratches are always winners in my book. Most of the rapping of here is only average, but Method Man does steal the show in fairly decisive fashion. Pretty nice track. 9. Fish (Feat. Raekwon & Cappadonna) I was actually wrong about RZA producing the entire album, as this is actually a True Master produced song. Its very similar to a RZA beat, which is always a good thing and makes for another good appearance by the master. The cover boys take care of the rapping, with none of them doing anything memorable. And holy shit the warriors are coming back. 10. Camay (Feat. Raekwon & Cappadonna) I'd say this is the weakest track on the album. The beat has a nice baseline and percussion if you pay attention, but only if you pay attention. For someone that's not a hip hop freak, this comes off as a pretty boring instrumental. Most disappointing of all, this is a sex track that ghost fails at, an area that he traditionally excels at. Yeah, no one else is very good either. 11. Daytona 500 (Feat. Raekwon, Cappadonna, & Force MDS) I don't dislike Cappadona at all, but is there any real reason that he has to be the third member of this trifecta. There are plenty of other under appreciated and more deserving artists available. Not that it matters in this track though, because it knocks. I mentioned earlier that I loved scratches, which makes this a favorite for me because they certainly take that shit to an extreme on here. Hook is annoying as hell, but this was a good song overall 12. Motherless Child (Feat. Raekwon) I've never liked this one very much either. Never understood what the whole process was by slowing the tempo, taking it back up, and then slowing it again with this. This actually is pretty good by it self but gets lost in the middle in the context of the album. RZAs beat is actually top notch though. The vocal sample, keys, and continuous humming are a great effect. 13. Black Jesus (Feat. Raekwon, U-God, & Popa Wu) And Popa Wu has made his mandatory appearance, which only leads into a decent track. The chanting mixed with the soft acoustic strings played sporadically throughout the song is downright epic. U-God also thinks its okay to appear again, although I will admit defeat as he lays down the best verse. Now if we can get down that whole consistency thing we might have something. 14. After The Smoke Is Clear (Feat. Raekwon, the RZA, & the Delfonics) This songs obvious shared characteristics of "Camay" are one of the main reasons this song isn't very good. None of the rappers sound very engaged or like they want to be there. Hook is terribly sang and only hurts the song. Next please. 15. I That I Got Is You (Feat. Mary J. Blige) Easily the most known and successful song off the album. The beat is incredibly dramatic as Ghostface reminisces over the childhood hardships. You feel it bit bad for him but its not that tear jerking. With that being said, I do enjoy the song because I've il ways though ghost excels in the R&B environment. Still don't like Mary J 16. The Soul Controller (Feat. The Force MDs & Popa Wu) So I was actually looking on Wikipedia and read that this song has since been removed from print, which is a goddamn tragedy considering its the best song on the fucking album. I mean are you serious. I guess this is where all Ghostfaces sample troubles started. Anyways, it takes all of five seconds to find this on the Internet so I highly suggest you check this out. 17. Marvel (Feat. The RZA) I have no idea why this closed out the album. I enjoyed the track, but it sound more like a mid track album if not a RZA experiment. The beat sound very similar to some of his current work and doesn't really for this setting, asides from the hook. Not bad, just simply interesting. Rating: 4/5 As I said at the beginning of the review, I had no real plan on this rating or what to give it. This is a thoroughly enjoyable album that deserves the wu label on it. I can't see too many wu Stan's that don't already own this, but if you're new to Ghostface or the wu in general, there are more entertaining and just frankly better Ghostface (which says a whole lot about the man's catalog) albums out there. All in all, a quality debut that just unluckily follows two of out genres classics. After a brief hiatus, we're back with a new review that I know you've all been craving. As for why, that whole school nonsense takes a lot of time and sometimes the blog needs to take a backseat. Once summer hits you can expect to get more frequent review, but I really wanted to get this one up for the readers and to get myself back into the habit of writing. But enough of that, lets get to the album.
For those who don't already know, Ghostface Killah is one of the original nine membered Wu-Tang Clan. After receiving a decent amount of critical praise on the groups debut, ghost has carved himself a niche and become the most consistent member of the crew. We will eventually get to all of his albums, but for now just know that he is one of the only members not to release an album that's complete trash, as well as dropping the undisputed classic "Supreme Clientele." Ghost has a well documented battle with his record labels including Def Jam, his current label. The result has been years of delays for his highly anticipated sequel to Supreme Clientele (I doubt it actually is released, but a man can dream, right.) So Pretty Tony did the thing any logical man would do: hook up with R&B/Soul composer Adrian Younge to create what I guess you could call a side project. Ghostface is no fool though folks, turns out Younge is a damn good producer and takes his talents to give this the ultimate cinematic feel. Oh, and while he was at it, ghost got RZA to executively produce the album. Mix all of that together and you have Twelve Reasons to Die, a hardcore gangster story with a twist that I will not spoil at the moment. Ghostface goes by the name Tony Starks (they could have been a little more creative, considering he's been calling himself that for twenty years, but whatever), who has risen to the top of the drug world, with only a rival gang in his way. That's all I'm going to go into now because I'm ready to get this started, so lets go! Just kidding, I forgot I'm obliged to covered the production of the project. The album was released on on RZA's record label Soul Temple Records. (There's no way that man sleeps, he's produced at least six albums, released a full length movie, and now a record deal in one year. Please stand up and give the man a round of applause, I'll wait.) Adrian Younge provides a very Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...-esque backdrop with the cinematic feel, while still sounding fresh and unique. And now the review. 1. Beware of the Stare The songs starts off with some nicely sung vocals contributed by an unknown female artist. You get the immediate feel that this is like the opening credits of the album. Ghostface lays down two verses that definitely introduce you to the Tony Starks character, but he's mainly just warming up and laying down some vintage Ghostface bars. The instrumental here is absolutely awesome and continuously changes throughout the song to fit the moods. So yes, even if the rest of the album is terrible, at least it had a top notch intro. 2. Rise of the Black Suits Ghostface portrays the way he made it to where he is today over another interesting instrumental by Mr. Younge. I'm on record for liking the organ in a beat and this is no exception, its dope as hell. Everything about this is incredibly vivid and paints a picture in your mind, which is from combination of ghosts flow and Adrian Younges fantastic beat. Yeah, this shit was nice. 3. I Declare War (Feat. Masta Killa & The RZA) More organ, more better. The instrumental hits you right in the face with this one, as the drums and vocals provide a perfect opportunity to further develop the story. This is an opportunity that ghost capitalizes on, while introducing the first of his henchman that appear throughout the story: Masta Killa. He sounds awesome and plays right along with the story line. I've always thought Masta Killa was very underrated, although most would argue that he fell off after the success of his debut. He sounds right at home here and flows right into the spoken words of the RZA, who narrates the the album. 4. Blood On The Cobblestone (Feat. U-God & Inspectah Deck) The song jumps right into our hero in battle, of course ripping apart all enemies. Ghost sounds good and all here, but the real star of the track is U-God. Not because he had the best verse, but because I was so shocked that he actually sounded up to par with his partners. If you're not familiar with baby U, he is unanimously the worst rapper in the wu-tang clan (he's not that bad, its just fun to make fun of U-God). Yeah, Inspectah deck is just as good a fighter as ghost, he kills everyone. 5. The Center Of Attraction (Feat. Cappadona) After the really long, but weirdly fitting build up, we are finally treated to the words of the Ghostface Killah. At first, this is a regular love song to Ghost's lady friend, an area that he excels in. Ghost is having a great time until Cappadona comes in and try's to convince ghost that she's setting him up and she's part of the rival gang. Cappa sounds pretty good on here and genuinely sounds concerned about ghosts well being. From a musical standpoint, Younges instrumental is awesome and highlights the song. 6. Enemies All Around Me (Feat. William Hurt) The wise words of Cappadona have taken a tole on Ghostface. He's beyond paranoid and fights with himself on what he should do in regards to his girl. Younge provides another really good instrumental and William Hurt provides a pretty bad hook, but it was still kind of enjoyable. Overall though, this song is only decent and doesn't really contribute to the story of the album. Ehh, next song. 7. An Unexpected Call (The Setup) (Feat. Inspectah Deck) I'm going to tell you something shocking and you could never tell by the title: Tony Starks is set up by his girlfriend. Word of advice, never doubt the wise words of Cappadona, although I doubt you'd doubt him if you were in a position where he is giving you advice. Anyways, Starks is taken hostage by the rivals gang, killed, and compressed into twelve vinyl discs, one for each member of the family. Yep, halfway through the album the main character is completely dead. We never actually hear it happen, but Deck takes control and explains the situation in a great verse. 8. Rise Of The Ghostface Killah After the tragic death Tony Starks, he rises again as the *gasp* Ghostface Killah. As great as Ghostface sounds on this beauty, the star is Adrian Younge. His beat is absolutely awesome and is conveniently my favorite of the album. Ghost is going around just wreaking havoc and killing everyone in his way of his journey for redemption. Sadly, this song actually leaked weeks before the album was dropped. I mean c'mon, how are you going to let the climax the damn story leak. Anyways, I highly recommend everyone check out the video to get the full effect. 9. Revenge Is Sweet (Feat. Rza, Inspectah Deck, & Killa Sin) The Ghostface Killah has risen and now its time to get serious and take out any and everyone. The instrumental matches the tone of the song perfectly. It's haunting and to the point, so this certainly has the blueprint for success. The singing in the first minute in the half are a nice touch that help the overall mood. Along with Ghostface, his army has come to his side as well including Masta Killa, who sounds just as good as he did earlier. After a brief RZA narration, we hear from the criminally under appreciated Killa Sin, who steals the show. 10. Murder Spree (Feat. U-God, Masta Killa, Inspectah Deck, & Killa Sin) And here, we've reached the first "single" of the album. Not sure why exactly they picked this one out of the pack to release as a single, other than the fact that its fucking awesome. Ghost continues his murder spree, hence the name, while Inspectah builds upon his earlier work this year. Best of all Killa Sin appears again, and I have even more good news: he sounds great. Feel free to drop an album or something man, I'll buy it four times. Oh yeah, U-God describes the way he kills his victims in the most vile way possible, but honestly sounds pretty damn good. 11. The Sure Shot (Parts 1 And 2) Conveniently enough, the other "climax" of the story leaked as well. (Damn you Internet) I've heard numerous people say this sounds like it was performed by the roots, which is extremely accurate and well said. On the first part of the song, ghost is on the verge of taking his final revenge and ultimately finishes off the last of the gang members. The second half of the song is Ghost thinking back on what just happened and where he goes from here. This is done remarkably well, as you can feel the sadness in his voice that he's lost his friends and you start feeling bad for a guy that just come back from the dead and killed multiple people. I'd be committing a crime if I didn't point out the brilliant work done behind the boards by Andrian Young. It's a terrific beat that makes the story all the more clear. 12. Twelve Reasons To Die And with this title track, we close out the project with a spoken work narration by the RZA until they just let the beat ride out for the rest of the song. This was a great way to end the album and serves much better than an actual rap outro. It has a real cinematic feel to it and you can almost see the credits. (If you actually see the credits, please get checked out or just lay off the acid) Rating: 4.5/5 Yeah, I just gave this a 4.5. It's possible that I've just gotten caught up in it because its new, but this is easily one of the most entertaining Wu-Tang albums I've heard that has been released in the last two years. Ghostface sounds good as always on hear, but the amazing production provided by Adrian Young and the consistently good feature lift this album to the 4.5 status. Moving forward, I will probably start reviewing the wu-tang solo albums in chronological order. If that happens, stay tuned Method Man fans, Tical is coming up next. There is also the chance that I blow off some steam and just completely destroy the new Kid Cudi album. Either way, its in your best interest to come back for more reviews. Until then, peace. |