Album and Concert Review Thread

[Dave]

This is my review of Flo Rida’s R.O.O.T.S album that was releases on the 30th of March 2009. I know it is a bit late but here goes anyway. The thing that got me into Flo Rida in the first place was the song “Low”. Everyone knew this song and it automatically made me pick up “Mail On Sunday” on the off chance that the rest of the album would be good too. I like that album and so when “R.O.O.T.S” was released, I automatically thought to pick it up.

Here is the track listings:

1. “Finally Here”
2. “Jump”
3. “Gotta Get It”
4. “Shone”
5. “Right Round”
6. “R.O.O.T.S”
7. “Be On You”
8. “Mind On My Money”
9. “Available”
10. “Touch Me”
11. “Never”
12. “Sugar”
13. “Rewind”

Just like most albums, this album has it’s share of songs that will be released because they have real quality. Then there are songs that are basically filler to pad out the album a little but. The stand out songs on this album are: “Right Round”, “Jump” and “Sugar”. Some other songs that are worth a mention are “Mind On My Money” and “Finally Here”. The rest of the songs are OK but obviously don’t have the same quality of the previously named songs.

Overall this is a decent album but in my humble opinion, if you are going to pick up just one Flo Rida album it would be “Mail On Sunday”.

Album Score: 7/10

 

[Freddy4190]

I think it's pretty great. He's never gonna make another album that can compete with the Slim Shady LP or Marshall Mathers LP, that stuff was pure greatness. Insane was greatness, the lyrics were classic Slim Shady and it made you feel like he was trying to channel some of the old Eminem. I liked Underground too, along with the return of Ken Kaniff which was pretty great. Beautiful's a great track too.. I really like the whole CD, I'm such a big Eminem fan I can't really diss any of his work.

 

[Pimpin]

Alright people I believe it's time for me to post another album up in here.

Ice Cube-Raw Footage

Track Listing

1. What Is A Pyroclastic Flow? feat Keith David- 0:55
2. I Got My Locs On feat Young Jeezy- 3:43
3. It Takes A Nation- 3:26
4. Gangsta Rap Made Me Do It- 4:41
5. Hood Mentality feat Keith David(Only in Intro)- 5:11
6. Why Me? feat Musiq Soulchild- 4:01
7. Cold Places- 4:13
8. Jack N The Box feat Keith David(Only in Intro)- 4:23
9. Do Ya Thang- 4:04
10. Thank God- 5:28
11. Here He Come feat Doughboy- 4:33
12. Get Money, Spend Money, No Money- 4:08
13. Get Use To It feat WC, The Game & Keith David(Only in Intro)- 4:25
14. Tomorrow- 3:41
15. Stand Tall- 3:46
16. Take Me Away feat Butch Cassidy- 4:03

I thought this was a really good album as Ice Cube never releases bad material to the public. My favorite song from this album is Hood Mentality as the message to the song is don't do the bad things that Pacman Jones, Mike Tyson & Michael Vick have done. This album is a political base album as this is the first Ice Cube album to have a political base to it since The Predator. Overall I give this album a 9 out of 10. If your a rap fan & a fan of Ice Cube's then I would definitely suggest that y'all go out & get this album as it is really good.

 

[Nate DaMac]

Venturing into new sections..... I loved it. i love pretty much all of his work. the video from 3am is awesome, and strikingly similar to Twiztids video for HA HA HA HA HA. look it up. as a juggalo, its usually bad for me to admit it, but i love eminem. cant wait for the second disc.

 

[Mr. TM]

AFI- Sing The Sorrow

1. "Miseria Cantare- The Beginning" – 2:57
2. "The Leaving Song Pt. II" – 3:31
3. "Bleed Black" – 4:15
4. "Silver and Cold" – 4:11
5. "Dancing Through Sunday" – 2:26
6. "Girl's Not Grey" – 3:10
7. "Death of Seasons" – 3:59
8. "The Great Disappointment" – 5:27
9. "Paper Airplanes (makeshift wings)" – 3:57
10. "This Celluloid Dream" – 4:11
11. "The Leaving Song" – 2:44
12. "...but home is nowhere" – 3:52
"Untitled/The Spoken Word" (hidden track)
"This Time Imperfect" (hidden track)

This album was released around the same time that I first started listening to the band. To say the least, I instantly fell in love with almost every track on the album.

The first single that was released from the album was Girl's Not Grey, which remains to me one of my favourite songs by them.

[youtube]nvSNbmxdjDA[/youtube]

This single went on to be highly successful, and remains one of the calling cards of the band. That wasn't call for the band, as they went onto release two more singles off the album that did quite well. Silver and Cold received heavy airplay, and The Leaving Song Part II received moderate success.

[youtube]cVMWLDePrBM[/youtube]
Silver and Cold

[youtube]g48BtaKt6X8[/youtube]
The Leaving Song Part II

CM Punk would go on to use the song The Beginning/Miseria Cantare in his time in ROH.
[youtube]RCWRbZGAXVk[/youtube]


My favourite song off of the album is actually a hidden track found after "...but home is nowhere". The song is entitled "This Time Imperfect"

[youtube]mAy03CLfoFw[/youtube]

 

[Carter121]

I personally believe that eminem is greatly overrated. But I do tend to listen to a few of his tracks every now and then because I do respect and applaud his lyricism and am a huge fan Dr.Dre as a producer. I heard some relapse songs and was not impressed. He delivers using that same old annoying little slim shady voice which makes him hard to take seriously seeing that he is in his 30s. Is relevant? Yes, but not as much as he was before. The game has changed completely and Eminem's songs just don't click like before.

 

[Blade]

Vintage album suggestion:

The Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream

1. "Cherub Rock" - 4:58
2. "Quiet" - 3:41
3. "Today" - 3:19
4. "Hummer" - 6:58
5. "Rocket" - 4:06
6. "Disarm" - 3:17
7. "Soma" - 6:40
8. "Geek USA" - 5:13
9. "Mayonaise" - 5:49
10. "Spaceboy" - 3:
11. "Silverfuck" - 9:12
12. " Sweet Sweet" -1:38
13. "Luna" - 3:20

Siamese Dream is the second album from Chicago based Alternate Rock band The Smashing Pumpkins. Released in 1993, this album became the band's breakthrough album, catapulting them to superstardom.
The album took elements of classic heavymetal, shoegazer and dream pop to create a beautifully crafted album. Despite what many people think, Siamese Dream was not Smashing Pumpkins' attempt to make a grunge album to rival Nirvana's Nevermind. In fact, Singer/Guitarist/Songwriter Billy Corgan once said in an interview "This was an album to try and sway people away from the grunge that was taking over. Grunge was a fad, and we wanted to prove that by making a great album using elements of Rock that had been around forever and would be around forever.
Upon it's release, Siamese Dream debuted at number 10 on the Billboard Chart. The album went on to sell 4 million copies.
The album spawned 4 singles, "Cherub Rock", "Today", "Disarm" and "Rocket". Despite Cherub Rock being the first single, it was Today and Disarm that made the album famous. The fan favourites off the album are generally considered to be "Mayonaise" and "Soma" due to those using so many elements of what made the classic Pumpkins sound.
Siamese Dream ranked #360 on Rolling Stone's 500 greatest albums.


I'm thinking I might make this vintage album suggsetion a regular thing here in this thread. What do you guys think?

 

[The Rob]

I bought Relapse about an hour ago and I've only listened to these songs so far:

• Dr.West (skit)
• 3 a.m.
• My Mom
• Insane

The only song out of these I don't like is 3 a.m. but everything else is great so far. I really love the Dr.West skit, it's actually a very interesting skit.

So far so good really.

 

[Dave]

I downloaded it a couple of days ago and like all new albums that I get, I gave it a good shot at impressing me. So far though it has not really ben that great. Don't get me wrong, there is a few good tunes on it but not the same blockbusters he was churning out before he retired. My peronal favourites on the album are "We Made You", "Crack A Bottle" and "Bagpipes from Baghdad". Also, lets not forget he ahs a second album coming out later this year. I hope that it is a bit better than this one. After a good few listens, I have liked some of it but I am kind of let down a little. I was expecting just a little bit more from him, given all the time he had.

 

[Big Sexy]

My peronal favourites on the album are "We Made You", "Crack A Bottle" and "Bagpipes from Baghdad"

If those are your favorite songs from the album then your opinion really doesn't mean much. You ask any hip hop fan what the best songs on the album are and probably 2 percent of them say one of those songs.

 

[BooCocky]

If those are your favorite songs from the album then your opinion really doesn't mean much. You ask any hip hop fan what the best songs on the album are and probably 2 percent of them say one of those songs.

Wtf do you mean his opinion doesn't mean much? I found every single one of those to be enjoyable. The whole CD was very good, and reached my expectations. He had some classic verses, every song was enjoyable, his skits still own, and his intro to the cds are always good. My Mom was actually my favorite song on the whole entire CD behind Underground. I also enjoyed insane, his verse that goes " I was born with a dick in my brain, I'm fucked in the head" was some good shit.

Anyways, saying someones opinion doesn't mean much because he finds those songs to be good is fucking ludicrous, he has his taste in music, he likes those songs, so be it... That's what he enjoys, but by saying his opinion doesn't mean much is flat out, wrong, and TBH, saying those comments make your opinion not mean much at all...

 

[Dave]

If those are your favorite songs from the album then your opinion really doesn't mean much. You ask any hip hop fan what the best songs on the album are and probably 2 percent of them say one of those songs.

My opinion doesn't mean much? My opinion means just as much as yours does. I understand that the songs I chose as my favourites are not the most "rap-ish" songs, I realise that. But I have the right to listen to any song I like and enjoy whatever I like. Also, I like a couple other songs on that album too but these are just my favourites. I dunno what makes them my favourites, but they are. I'm sure you have your favourites from the album and I would consider myself out of line to say that your favourites meant nothing.

 

[The Rob]

Everyone is allowed to have an opinion of their own. I personally don't think much of 'Bagpipes From Baghdad' but 'We Made You' and 'Crack A Bottle' are two enjoyable songs, even if their unoriginal. The best songs on Relapse (in my opinion) are 'Beautiful', 'Underground', 'My Mom', 'Same Song & Dance' and 'Insane'. My personal favourite is 'Beautiful' with 'Underground' a very close second. My least favourite song on the album is probably 3 AM. It might grow on me but as of right now, it's my least favourite song on Relapse.

 

[Dave]

I dunno if a review has already been done of this album but I am going to do my own regardlessbecause it is always good to get a couple of views on something.

This time I am going to review Green Day - 21st Century Breakdown.

Let me first start by saying that I am green day fan. I have been since American idiot was released. Before that however, I did not care much for their music. I am one of those people who is really caught up in newer music and I find it hard to appreciate some band's older material. Green Day is one such band that falls into this category. I have listened extensively to the older stuff that they did, in the hope that it might grow on me, but it never did. American Idiot was quite different though. I loved most songs on it and it gave me a new found respect for the band. So with that album fresh in my mind, I ventured cautiously into the band's newest album, 21st Century Breakdown...

5 years have passed since American Idiot was released and the band allegedly had been writing new material since the January of 2006. Now, one would think that with over 3 years of writing time this album would be a very good one. Sometimes this is not the case however with some bands. Who, after a while being out, find it difficult to write better stuff. One such example of this that I can think of is Guns n' Roses. Chinese Democracy was probably one of the worst albums I have heard. I say that with utmost honesty. Guns n' Roses ahd been out for almost 15 years trying to put this album together. Did it work? No. Fortunately though, Green Day has managed to keep their music sharp and relevant through their time out. Green Day had said about this album,

"21st Century Breakdown is a snapshot of the era in which we live as we question and try to make sense of the selfish manipulation going on around us, whether it be the government, religion, media or frankly any form of authority."

I must admit thatwhen I was listening to this album, which I have now done three times, since I got it, that there is a lot of political stuff on it. However, it is mainly just the idea of freedom that they are supporting so please do not be scared off by political messages. In saying that, it was only after I had read the tagline, that I started listening out for political messages. The music that they use to convey it is so good you do not notice it.

This album also has a quite intersting little story running through it. It is divided into three different 'acts' which has different musical styles etc involved with them. They are "Heroes and Cons," "Charlatans and Saints," and "Horseshoes and Handgrenades". For me, this is inspired. I realise that this sort of thing has been done before but in my opinion never as well as Green Day have managed to pull of in this album. It's like there is a peice of string connecting all the songs together, telling a story.

On to the music then. I personally think that this album is one of the most diverse albums I have ever listened too. So many sub-genres are covered in it under the the main genre of Rock Opera. As you would expect there is a lot of punk and rock in this album. The stand out songs for me so far are 21st Century Breakdown, Know Your Enemy, Viva La Gloria? and See the Light. All of these songs are amazing examples of how good the punk genre can be. No one does punk like Green day and their efforts at punk in this album are unsurpassed. However, and I was very surprised to say this, there is some slower songs in it and they are good too! When I heard that there would be a couple of slow songs on the album I was a bit confused and afraid. Confuse becuase it is not really their style and I wondered if they could do it well or as well as their punk stuff. Again though, they have really pulled it out of the bag. Last Night On Earth is an amazing song. Slow and politically charged. It really helps get accross the message that it is trying to convey. Vocally too Billy Joe Armstrong has really impressed me on this song. Another slow song is Viva La Gloria!, which is a different song that Viva La Gloria? by the way. It is a mix of slower stuff and punk. It is good to see a transition like this. It also helps the audience too. No one wants to hear the same stuff over and over in any album, or at least I don't. This helps me feel like the album is fresh. Another of the slower songs on this album happens to be my favourite song on the album. 21 Guns. This song is just amazong. The vocal performance and the musical accompanyment is astounding. It somehow manages to keep the tempo of a slow song but keep the core of a great punk rock song.

I sit her listening to it as I write my review for you guys and I am still blown away by it. Ihave listened to it three times all the way through and am half way through my fourth. It may not mean a lot in the long run but the last album that I felt this strongly about was Viva La Vida by Coldplay. Coldplay are probably my favourite band of all time and Viva La Vida just rocked my world. It too was just a joy to listen to. So diverse also. Since it was released, te songs on Viva La Vida has played over 1800 times on my iTunes. I listen to a lot of music and I think I know what constitutes a good song for me. Let me tell you this, I know iTunes play count is not the end all and bee all but I can see 21st Century Breakdown going close to that amount. Even if you do not like political music, or you do not like Punk rock, or you just don't like band. Please give your prejudices a miss on this one and give it a listen. I promise you, you will not be disappointed!

Rating: 10/10

 

[Big Sexy]

Del the Funky Homosapien- Funk Man (the stimulus package)

01.) Get It Right Now
02.) And They Thought That Was Hell
03.) Fit Like a Glove
04.) Go Against the Grain
05.) Hardcore Punks Can’t Take It
06.) I’m Smellin Myself
07.) King of Fighters
08.) News Alert
09.) Simple Satisfaction
10.) Sometimes I Gotta Get Stupid
11.) Straight From the Big Bad West Coast
12.) Land of the Funk
13.) Young Adrenaline

This is the 7th solo album that Del has released and although he is not very well known, it's hard to deny his ability to make great music. The beats on his albums are different from that of most hip hop artists, and they really compliment his rhyme style well. There's only 13 songs on the album, but they are all good. The best songs on the album are probably Simple Satisfaction, Go Against the Grain, and Hardcore Punks Can't Take It. If you want to get away from the normalcy of a lot of today's hip hop then this would be a great album to get. He has a unique style, a very good flow, and he is a very underrated artist.

 

[shafe_41]

I personally don't find ANY standout songs on Relapse because they're all great solid tunes. It's easily the most SOLID Em release yet and definately his most personal. Em sounds like a cracked out cartoon character on the album and it's very original that has more traces from the Slim Shady LP than anything. All the songs on the album have their bright spots. If I had to choose my 3 favorites I would have to pick in no certain order...Underground, Beautiful, and Same Song and Dance. SSaD is just a great flashback to Slim Shady with dark violent lyrics and a pretty stripped down beat. Sometimes less really is more and that track is great. Beautiful and Underground are just great Em songs. Very personal. If you look for songs like "Without Me" and "The Real Slim Shady" on this album, you're going to be disappointed and you'll probably shit all over the album and call it stupid and horrible with really no basis for that opinion at all except for the fact you can't hear any of these songs at your local high school dance. In turn, that weeds out the true Em fans and the ones who just follow him because he's popular or something.

This is a GREAT Em album. I believe it's his second best behind the Marshall Mathers LP because we all know Em probably won't top it. However, this is a VERY close 2nd. I can't wait til the 2nd album drops this year because I could listen to a new Em album every 6 months all the time. We're really spoiled this year as far as Em goes and let's enjoy his brilliance while we can because he will probably take another 3 yr. break after that 2nd album.

 

[X]

Super random album suggestion time.

Jimmy Eat World - Bleed American

Now, normally this isn't my preferred brand of music these days, but lately I've been going back and listening to some of the albums I used to love when I was growing up, and this was definately a huge influence on me at a certain point in my life. I was in the midst of that oh so cliched first teenage love, the one you think will last forever and which you think is the most important relationship you'll ever have. Y'know the one. This and Placebo's "Without You I'm Nothing" were constantly on my CD player in those days.

Alot of the music you like growing up doesn't stand up well when you get older. I'm glad to say this album is a definite exception. This album is a perfect mixture of classic power pop songwriting and modern pop punk (with dashes of emo thrown in). One of those few classic albums where every song is great, and you never hit the skip button on your CD player.

From the opening blasting chords of the title track, you know something is up. Jim Adkins snarls "I'm not alone because the TV's on, yeah. I'm not crazy 'cause I take the right pills, every day" with all the viciousness of a nubile Johnny Rotten. You find yourself thinking "Well I'm glad he's on his pills, because I wouldn't want to see this crazy motherfucker off of them". The opening song is definately more hard-edged then anything else on the album, but man does it rock.

Next up we've "A Praise Chorus", a song that manages to conceal it's emo/pop-punk punch with beautiful lyrics (an odd mixture of original angst-ridden thoughts and lyrical homages to the likes of Madness and Tommy James among others). When the bridge comes in and Adkins croons "Crimson and clover...over and over" you're lost in the bittersweet beauty the song has brought you to.

The real crowning achievement of the album however is the song "Sweetness". Maybe I'm biased because this song was on constant repeat whenever I was dealing with love problems/break ups. I mean, this song was my go-to song, I must've listened to it ten million times. Mixing jagged bursts of frenzied guitar with simple lyrics that manage to hit you straight in the heart, it's a pure masterpiece of emo-pop/punk. When the music breaks for only a moment around 2:35 and suddenly Adkins declares, no demands to know "Are you listening?!" and the guitars kick back into overdrive, my brain just about explodes every time. Fantastic.

Other highlights include "Your House", another intensely beautiful ballad that should be on any recently broken up depressed loser's playlist (like myself), as well as "The Authority Song", "If You Don't, Don't" (yet another beautiful ballad) and of course the hit single and irresistibly catchy "The Middle".

Honestly I don't really even like much of J.E.W.'s other material, but this album right here is just amazing. It punches you right in the gut, and then whispers beautiful things into your ear while you're on the ground clutching at your sides.

Rating - 5/5​

I can't believe I haven't posted in this thread before...I'm going to try and make this a daily, or atleast weekly thing.

PS: Totally agree with the Del tha Funkee Homosapien and Smashing Pumpkins suggestions.

 

[MattMoses]

A very quick review of one of my all-time favourite albums, Criminal Minded by Boogie Down Productions.

01 "Poetry"
02 "South Bronx"
03 "9mm Goes Bang"
04 "Word From Out Sponsor"
05 "Elementary"
06 "Dope Beat"
07 "Remix For P Is Free"
08 "The Bridge Is Over"
09 "Super-Hoe"
10 "Criminal Minded"


"Without yelling over a drum roll, that style is old"​

This was KRS-One calling it the end of the Beastie Boys/Run-D.M.C era. It was time for new production styles and new ways of rhyming. The simplistic production from Ced Gee and Scott La Rock works fine here. KRS offers a classic performance here with diss tracks and street stories. This was definitely the more violent album of his career, though really, this seems inoffensive with all the gangster rap we've been exposed to since. It's both the fitting samples and lyrics which make this album, with KRS dropping many fresh lines. This is an essential hip-hop album to have, I'd put it right up there with Paid in Full.

 

[Pimpin]

Well it's been a bit since I have done one of these, but anyways I am here to post a great album in here.

Scarface-Emeritus

Track Listing

1. Intro feat J.Prince
2. High Powered feat Papa Reu
3. Forget About Me feat Bun B & Lil Wayne
4. Can't Get Right feat Bilal
5. Still Here feat Shateish
6. It's Not A Game
7. Who Are They feat K-Rino & Slim Thug
8. Soldier Story feat The Product & Z-Ro
9. Redemption Song
10. High Note
11. We Need You feat Wacko
12. Unexpected feat Wacko
13. Emeritus
14. Outro

This album has high profiled guests such as Lil Wayne, Bun B & Slim Thug, but also has successful rappers like Z-Ro & Bilal. This was a really great album as all of the tracks were enjoyable. My favorite track off this album is Forget About Me cause not only does it have Bun B on the track & Lil Wayne not singing like a dying cat is in heat, but everybody did their part on this song. I thought it was truly great that Scarface put up one great album before ultimately deciding to end a legendary career as this album was truly a great album.

 

[TwistofRKO]

It was done a few posts ago, and pretty well, but this is from a different perspective. The last was done in an American Idiot-present mindset, I enjoyed their older work so that's in my mind.

Track Listing:
1. Song of the Century
Act I: Heroes and Cons
2. 21st Century Breakdown
3. Know Your Enemy
4. ¡Viva la Gloria!
5. Before the Lobotomy
6. Christian's Inferno
7. Last Night On Earth
Act II: Charlatans & Saints
8. East Jesus Nowhere
9. Peacemaker
10. Last of the American Girls
11. Murder City
12. ¡Viva la Gloria! (Little Girl)
13. Restless Heart Syndrome
Act III: Horsehoes & Handgrenades
14. Horseshoes & Handgrenades
15. The Static Age
16. 21 Guns
17. American Eulogy
18. See the Light
-----------------------

After a huge curveball with American Idiot, Green Day throws a change-up with 21st Century Breakdown, just not as well. Overall a very good album, but lacks the Green Day auora that makes them special. There's not a bad song on the entire album, I can promise you that. Listen through the 70 minutes and you wont hate anything, or grow tired of anything. There's just nothing that grabs you by the throat. It's unfair, but you have to judge this relatively to American Idiot. It doesn't stack up, and is the lesser of the new Green Day albums. That being said, it's still my third favorite album they put out (Dookie, American Idiot). I enjoy seeing them progress and not sit in the same spot, from Longview all the way to Holiday, so that's always a positive. I didn't want this to be American Idiot 2.

Let's look at this part by part:

Act I: Heroes and Cons
Best Song: ¡Viva la Gloria!
Grade: 8.2/10
-I enjoyed this section overall. I like all the songs, but Know Your Enemy gets the push out of this, and it's probably my least favorite of this section. Don't mind the song, but it's not the best song here. Viva la Gloria sounds fantastic and Billie Joe's lyrics are on right here.

Act II: Charalatans and Saints
Best song: East Jesus Nowhere
Grade: 7.5/10
- East Jesus Nowhere is great lyrically and sounds great, very catchy. The rest of the songs are what I was talking about before. Not bad, but nothing special. Recycled lyrics and music. Restless Heart Syndrome is also a good song.

Act III: Horseshoes & Handgrenades
Best song: 21 Guns
Grade: 9.5/10
-Best section of the album. They revert to some of their trademark punk(Horseshoes and Handgrenades), they have their catchy tune (Static Age), they have their serious song, very well written (21 Guns), and overall it's the most fun part of the album. The biggest downside here is that a major portion of Ameican Eulogy is the exact same as their Warning song "Deadbeat Holiday", which is probably the worst part on the album. Overall though, the song is still pretty good, and it has no effect on the pre-Idiot fans.

Overall 8.5/10; It has some good songs on here, Billie Joe's vocals are great on this album, and it follows the rock opera style American Idiot laid out. I like how they arrange their songs, meant to be listened to as an entire CD rather than picking songs out and ignoring the album, which is why Green Day has very good non-singles. Much like American Idiot and it's theme of the two characters of St. Jimmy and Jesus of Suburbia, we have Christian and Gloria here, and they are fighting through the messes of the world. It's fun to follow through and see where they are going with everything.

Another big plus is, in addition to evolving their music, they did keep their punk roots in some of their songs, which is a major thing to a lot of people including myself. There aren't as many great lines of lyrics like every other album had, but it's very well written overall.

Like mentioned in the first review, the entire thing is composed of religious and political elements, many of which I don't really agree with. The thing is though, they aren't really trying to convert you to anything. It's just their way of letting their voices heard. I'm a born-again Christian, conservative politically, but I can still enjoy the music because it's very entertaining.

Definitely recommended.

 

[Pimpin]

Well I figured since this is the official hip-hop thread after all. I figured I would review & suggest a hip-hop album that is in my collection.

II by Bun B

Track Listing

1. II Trill feat Z-Ro & J. Prince
2. That's Gangsta feat Sean Kingston
3. Damn I'm Cold feat Lil Wayne
4. Your're Everything feat Rick Ross, David Banner & 8Ball & MJG
5. I Luv That Shit
6. Swang on Em' feat Lupe Fiasco
7. My Block feat Jazze Pha
8. Get Cha Issue
9. Pop It For Pimp feat Webbie & Juvenile
10. Good II Me feat Mya
11. Underground Thang feat Chamillionaire & Pimp C
12. If I Die II Night feat Lyfe Jennings & Young Buck
13. Another Soldier feat Mddl Fngz & Cobe
14. If It Was Up II Me feat Junior Reid
15. Trill Talk
16. Angel In The Sky feat Razah
17. II Trill Talk
18. Keep It 100
19. City Of The Swang feat Mike Jones & Slim Thug(Bonus Track)
20. Some Hoes feat Bulletproof, Chino XL & Killer Mike(Bonus Track)

This is another solid album by Bun B as this is only his second solo album & it was released only one month after Pimp C's unfortunate passing. Unlike his debut album Trill which was a great album by the way, this was a more emotional album as alot of the songs reflect on the impact that Pimp C had on not just Bun B, but the entire rap game as well. If your a fan of Bun B or a UGK fan for that matter then I suggest that you check this album out & I promise you that you will not be disappointed.

 

[Ty Burna]

I want to go in a slightly different direction with the album suggestion portion of our thread here, and I'm going to go with an old school album.

Wu-Tang Clan - Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)

Track Listing:

1. Bring Da Ruckus
2. Shame on a *****
3. Clan In Da Front
4. Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber
5. Can It Be All So Simple
6. Da Mystery of Chessboxin'
7. Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthin ta Fuck Wit
8. C.R.E.A.M.
9. Method Man
10. Protect Ya Neck
11. Tearz
12. Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber Part II
13. Method Man (Skunk Mix)

This album is a classic, and I really really hope I don't need to say why, but I'm going to anyways. This was really the breakout of the infamous Wu-Tang Clan. They brought a style that was unheard of to hip hop, lead by the great producer/rapper the RZA, with members such as ODB, Method Man, GZA, Inspectah Deck, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, and Masta Killa. Looking at that listing there, Protect Ya Neck, Method Man, C.R.E.A.M., and Da Mystery of Chessboxin' are all classic songs that any true hip hop fan can enjoy. The whole album was a masterpiece and RZA really showed his ability to create beats and produce songs.

I highly HIGHLY recommend this album to anyone that's never listened to the Wu-Tang Clan, because if you love hip hop, you got this album.

 

[Pimpin]

For my second album suggestion of this thread. I have decided to go to an album that brought an influence to the rap game & helped changed the rap game completely.

NWA-Straight Outta Compton

Track Listing

1. Straight Outta Compton
2. Fuck Tha Police
3. Gangsta Gangsta
4. If It Ain't Ruff
5. Parental Descrection Iz Advised
6. 8 Ball(Remix)
7. Somehting Like That
8. Express Yourself
9. Compton's In The House(Remix)
10. I Ain't Tha 1
11. Dopeman(Remix)
12. Quiet On Tha Set
13. Something 2 Dance 2

This is by far one of the greatest albums of all time as it redefined the direction of hip-hop. Despite receiving almost no airplay at all, this album went platinum. The theme of this album was about freedom of expression & the constraints that were placed on rappers cause of radio censorship(see the song Express Yourself for example), the treatment that african americans received from the police(especially white police officers)(see the song Fuck Tha Police for example) & the danger & violence in South Central LA(see the song Gangsta Gangsta for example).

Also to note that this album helped form Gangsta Rap & helped start the careers of many young MC's from the areas such as Compton & South Central LA.

This album is by far one of the greatest & most influential albums of all time.

 

[Rizza]

For my very first album in the suggestion portion of this thread,I will do the first(and the most classic) record from my favorite gangsta rap duo ever.

Heltah Skeltah - Nocturnal

1. Intro (Here We Come)
2. Letha Brainz Blo
3. Undastand
4. Who Dat?
5. Sean Price - (featuring Illa Noyz)
6. Clan's, Posse's, Crew's & Clik's
7. Therapy - (featuring Vinia Mojica)
8. Place to Be
9. Soldiers Gone Psyco
10. Square, The (Triple R) - (featuring The Representativz)
11. Da Wiggy
12. Gettin Ass Gettin Ass
13. Leflaur Leflah Eshkoshka -(Featuring OGC)
14. Prowl
15. Grate Unknown
16. Operation Lock Down

One of the best underground albums to come out of the 90's,and definitely the measuring stick of gritty basement made beats. The album is pretty much about what most rap albums were about in the 90's, that being it was violent as hell with the lyrics, and sick as hell with flow. Most of the beats are very basic, but for this album is was a great thing seeing as it made their voices stand out over the beat, and really gave it a raw, real gangsta feeling to it. Every song on here is great but the real stand out tracks are, Letha Brainz Blo, Da Wiggy, Soldiers gone Pyscho, and Clans, posse's, crews and cliks. I really recommend the album to anybody that is a fan of the East coast underground scene, or anybody thats still living in the 90's hip-hop like myself. I truly do consider this album to the definition of a hidden gem.

 

[Big Sexy]

First off, Enter the Wu-Tang and Straight Outta Compton are two of my favorite albums of all time. Now I'm going to review the best album from a group that paved the way for groups like NWA and Wu-Tang Clan.

Run-DMC - Raising Hell

1. Peter Piper
2. It's Tricky
3. My Adidas
4. Walk This Way - (with Steven Tyler/Joe Perry)
5. Is It Live
6. Perfection
7. Hit It Run
8. Raising Hell
9. You Be Illin'
10. Dumb Girl
11. Son of Byford
12. Proud to Be Black

Everyone obviously knows about Walk This Way which was the first rap/rock collaboration, but this album is filled with classic songs. It's Tricky, My Adidas, You Be Illin, and Peter Piper are all great, influential songs.

Rev Run and DMC on there own are great emcees, and when you put them together along with the best DJ ever in Jam Master Jay this group is arguably the greatest of all time. Every album they put out was a classic, but Raising Hell was definitely their best album. This album is a must have for any true hip hop fan.