Eminem's "The Marshall Mathers LP 2" -- A Review

Well this has been a long time coming. Eminem hasn't always been a welcome addition to my musical library. When I was 16 I used to hide The Eminem Show under my pillow like one hides a naughty magazine. So I've been a pretty big fan for about a decade, and took the time to listen to every album released.

I offer a brief sketch of his (single) studio works in order of worst to best, excluding of course MMLP2.

Infinite -- while certainly entertaining in a "aww how cute look how far you've come" way, most of the album listens as well as a metal scrub brush.

Relapse -- it may just be me, but this album struck me as incredibly out of place in regards to Eminem's story. Coming out of addiction and depression, and to release this album felt like a bit of a slap in the face. Plus, the really obnoxious accent he brought back wasn't welcome in the first place for me. However, Beautiful is one of my favorite tracks and highlights the needless addition of the other 19 songs.

The Slim Shady LP -- this may get me in some trouble, but I didn't care for this album when I was in my prime immature stage. Despite the borderline obnoxious tone, I still find it in my heart to enjoy My Name Is.

Encore -- most likely the most schizo Eminem has ever been, with half the album sounding like a confession and the other half sounding like a series of raps designed to appeal to children. Still, Mockingbird, Never Enough, Like Toy Soldiers and Yellow Brick Road remain among some of my favorite tracks.

The Marshall Mathers LP -- I didn't listen to the entirety of this album until a few years ago. I must say, listening to this all the way through helped. The Real Slim Shady, The Way I Am, and especially Stan offered a serious of dark tracks packed with emotion. I will admit that much of the content has made me uncomfortable as of late, and I have never been able to listen to Kim; I find it too emotionally traumatic.

Recovery -- this is the album I wish Eminem had released instead of Relapse. While certainly not in his lyrical prime, Eminem nonetheless shows a strong introspection that was sorely needed in Relapse. My favorite tracks include Not Afraid, No Love, Space Bound, Cinderella Man, 25 to Life, Talking 2 Myself and Love the Way You Lie.

The Eminem Show -- frankly, this album was the one that hit me square in the head. Combining the hit-or-miss introspection in his previous works with the aggression needed to hit my adrenal glands, Em simply nailed this one. A perfect mixture of rage and regret. 'Til I Collapse, White America, Business, Cleaning Out My Closet, Sing for the Moment and Without Me are still on my main Em playlist.

Onto the actual MMLP2 review.

The way I structure my film reviews doesn't really work here, so I have created something new. Hope you are able to track with me.

THE CROWN

Flying above the album, judging it from a special perspective, the album is fairly strong. It includes a mixture of tracks and perspectives, and doesn't overstay it's welcome. While I find myself cringing during certain tracks, overall my thoughts are generally positive. I won't be speaking on every single track, as I prefer to focus on the best representations of each category.

THE GOOD

The highlights are several fold. Eminem's lyricism and introspection are welcome as usual, and he delves into deeper territory than before.

Before I can jump into the specifics of the album, I must begin with the opening track, Bad Guy. A sequel of sorts to Stan, this track is the most difficult one to sit through, and is thus the most rewarding. It sets the stage for the remainder of the album. While I don't want to spoil it too much, the finale completely subverts a majority of his rapping career in terms of themes. The homphobia, misogyny, all of it is presented as something he is now entirely aware of. The final two minutes is the most self-eviscerating and scorching minutes of music I've ever heard. Its simply something waiting to be experienced, and you do yourself a disservice if you miss it.

Legacy, with its haunting chorus, is a strong compliment to Eminem's reflection of bullying in his past. Nostalgia suits him well, and we're given glimpses into his childhood.

While Survival isn't particularly innovative like Bad Guy, the rock track works nicely and helped me press twenty extra pounds while at the gym. So it suits itself well, and I find myself enjoying it.

Berzerk, as I mentioned a while back, took me a few listens to get it. Once that happened, its become one of my favorite tracks. The energy and free-falling fun is far too fun to ignore. Rick Rubin nailed this one.

Rap God is another track I reviewed and my opinion has grown. It is lyrically insane and the beat works nicely while running. His 97 minute blitzkrieg in 15 seconds is, well, something to behold.

Stronger Than I Was is an incredibly vulnerable tale of Eminem and his wife Kim. The vitriol is largely absent and this almost reads like a letter of regret to someone who hurt him. The openness reveals the humanity behind the guy who wrote Kim. While hope is in short supply, the track is revealing and the sung chorus is laden with emotion.

In the same way, Headlights (sung by the dude from fun. so don't let that be a negative) nearly had me in tears, I can't lie. My wife, who enjoys some of Eminem, found it incredibly moving. So, just keep a tissue nearby.

So Far … is funny and, well, just damn odd. Its a clear throw back to Slim Shady. It depends on how much you enjoy Slim. I don't like him, but this had me laughing, especially with the country vibe.

While The Monster isn't as good as Love the Way You Lie, Rhianna always sounds nice when paired with Eminem.

THE MIDDLE

Asshole is one of those tracks that probably sounded great on paper, but doesn't lend itself to multiple listens. The throw back to his rapping past where he was, well, an asshole isn't really worthwhile. But, that said, the beat is beastly and Skylar Grey is good as usual.

Eminem sings on Rhyme or Reason. While I enjoyed the chorus interpolation, the lyrics are relatively uninteresting and I haven't found myself listening to the track again. Of course, his references to his father provide a bit of food for thought.

Brainless is curiously listenable, even though I hated hated hated it when I first heard it. The story telling of Eminem's past is intriguing, but the beat really bothers me still.

Love Game is most like the most offensive track in regards to Eminem's view of women. The sexualized lyrics aren't atypical of rap, but they feel out of place. That said, holy crap some of these lines are hysterical. Kendrick Lamar echoes Eminem nicely, and this brings to mind Kendrick's freestyle that got him in hot water.

THE BAD

Parking Lot is annoying, even if one understands the context of the skit. Its simply unnecessary.

So Much Better claims a pretty epic beat, but the tirade against a woman (lover? general women?) is tired and eye-rolling. Likewise, Evil Twin is Slim Shady gone wrong.

CONTEX/NT

While the homophobia and misogyny is unneeded, Eminem shows an acute awareness of this. Instead of being an album that celebrates such things, at most all we can claim now is that he is inconsistent.

END

Despite some severely obnoxious tracks and unfortunate content, Eminem nailed this one. The introspection has been lifted almost to center stage and Eminem's production is unique, curious and most often compelling. Lyrically and technically, he's as good as he's ever been and in the case of Rap God and Bad Guy, far greater.

Where does MMLP2 fit into my above scale of worst to best albums? I'd stick it as better than Recovery and beneath The Eminem Show.

4 stars out of 5.

--Nick

Musings on Woven Hand and Worship Music

Woven Hand's "Winter Shaker"

The circle is vicious of
Thoughts altogether vain
Haunted by battles lost
Still living on Idian land
I clap my dirty hands
Given over to self and left
To own devices
A quaking in the person

All his glory
All his glory

Deep devotion
At the bottom of the sea
Iniquity goes down like water
I have been staff struck
By a finger in the sand

All his glory
All his glory

This circle is vicious
Spoken behind the hand
It is the storm
That brought me in

Hallelujah
Hallelujah

It may not be a secret, but I do not enjoy worship music or what passes for worship music these days. That does not mean I don't find value in it, nor do I think we should be rid of it. I know many who find fellowship and solace in songs and hymns of old.

I considered for a little bit that it could be hardness of heart. The idea troubled me for a little bit before I realized that as a kid I didn't enjoy worship music that much either. Also, Braveheart manages to make me cry like nothing whenever I watch it. Maybe it is something different.

Maybe the painting of a different portrait upon the same canvas is necessary. In Winter's Shaker, you have native American ritualism, but instead the lyrics are perfectly Christian. I have found the song to be a little confusing, though I'm mildly confident that David Eugene Edwards has based the first stanza on the first three chapters of Romans and coupled it with his background.

In some ways, I do wonder if the Holy Spirit is speaking to the person through his own culture, or if the person giving praise is worshiping his own deity. However, thinking about being "star struck by a finger in the sand" harkens back to Daniel's interpretation of the "writing on the wall" and yet reveals something far stronger: what happens after? The recognition of sin or the 'vicious circle.'

'Spoken from behind the hand' could indicate fear or oppression (consistent with how we treated Native Americans) and yet the doxological (new word) statements of praise seem consistent with Paul in Romans 1l.

Either way, the song offers plenty to chew on.

I consider the song to be as pure worship as I can ever imagine, as not only do I find God in the music speaking to me, but I can sense community and fellowship with the original artists. I do not go to worship music to be propped up or torn down, but to get a glimpse of the Divine calling amidst human longing and our often pitiful attempts to communicate the transcendence of God. This in fellowship with others creates community and a desire to listen further.

Or, to put it more personally, I would be terrified encounter David Eugene Edward's God. Maybe that is what worship music should do. Just thinking.

For a snippet of an interview with David:

David I’m curious about your upbringing, I'd like to hear it from you what it was like to be raised in such a conservative protestant church.

We grew up under the law, we grew up in the Nazarene Church. It was a part of the holiness movement, which started out in Texas in the 20’s I think. It was all about your behavior. You didn’t play cards, you didn’t go to movies, you didn’t drink, you didn’t smoke, you didn’t dance, women didn’t wear makeup, women didn’t wear the color red, and so on. From one Sunday to the next Sunday, if you did any of these things you were constantly told you’d go to straight to hell. And so you had every Sunday to re-give your life to Christ. But if you died in the middle of the week, you were going to hell. That’s what I was being thought as a child.

You abandoned this church at one point…what happened?

My mother had a nervous breakdown, she just lost it…and that was it for me.

That’s not a way to live a life...

No it’s not. It’s no way for anyone…no one can measure up to it. And the people who think they are measuring up to it are lying to themselves. Or maybe they deceive themselves to the point that they actually think they are better than others. But they’re not, and I think most of the times they know they are not, and they’re just playing a role because people will think of them as sinners if they didn’t. That’s why you see when a TV preacher or a public person makes a mistake and is being caught with another woman, the world just jumps on that like a lion.

Right, because they’re hypocrites...

But that’s the whole point you see, every man is a hypocrite! Every man! The man pointing at the hypocrite is himself a hypocrite. We are all liars, whether we preach to large crowds or friends. Every one tells other people what they should and should not do, what’s good and bad, as their own set of laws. And then every person in its turn does the same. I’m telling you, there is no end to the laws; you have to drop’em all, you have to drop’em. You have to say to yourself I can not keep the law, I can not do it. The only way to stop sinning is to realize that you’ve already been forgiven. The only way to stop doing evil is to realize that God does not longer hold your sins against you, because of what Christ has done for you. There is no tally up in Heaven as in Oh, look what he did now – that is what the Devil does, and he brings it to God’s attention every time. He is the one who keeps a track of that and brings it up to God every time, Look! And God says I already paid for that with my own blood, thank you very much. It’s a finished deal. This was taken care of on the cross. But we’re still living this creation out, until it’s the time to be done. His kingdom is not of this world, it doesn’t belong to the Catholic Church, it’s not in Rome, it’s not in a building, it’s not in a box hidden in somebody’s crypt. There’s no magic in anybody’s bones, there is no magic in any of this stuff.  There is only you, the complete sinner - and God has completely forgiven you for what you’ve done. And you still have the free will to receive what he is offering to you, which is complete absolution. If you choose not to, then this is the only thing that you will be condemned for, because it is your choice. Everybody’s sins, everything evil anyone has ever done, has already been forgiven. And you can take this to Hitler, or to the best person you know.

For the full interview, enjoy it here.

--Nick

30 Days of Thanks: Day 11

I was up early this morning for a job meeting, and on the drive home, Bruce Springsteen's song "Jesus Was an Only Son" came up on shuffle. I will post the lyrics in a second but I wanted to mention why I'm thankful for this.

I'm thankful that through Bruce's collective experiences that such a powerful and imaginative song came about. The song is staggering in it's simplicity and overwhelming in it's intimacy.

Jesus was an only son
As he walked up Calvary Hill
His mother Mary walking beside him
In the path where his blood spilled
Jesus was an only son
In the hills of Nazareth
As he lay reading the Psalms of David
At his mother's feet

A mother prays, "Sleep tight, my child, sleep well
For I'll be at your side
That no shadow, no darkness, no tolling bell,
Shall pierce your dreams this night"

In the garden at Gethsemane
He prayed for the life he'd never live,
He beseeched his Heavenly Father to remove
The cup of death from his lips

Now there's a loss that can never be replaced,
A destination that can never be reached
A light you'll never find in another's face,
A sea whose distance cannot be breached

Well Jesus kissed his mother's hands
Whispered, "Mother, still your tears,
For remember the soul of the universe
Willed a world and it appeared 

You?

--Nick

The Hold Steady, "Lord, I'm Discouraged"

Lots of good memories behind this song. I heard it while at Biola, and it hit the spot for me. In between being theologically inept and socially self-ostracised, this song helped temper a lot of things.

And when I posted the song lyrics as my facebook status, that was the first time "she" commented.

So I have these guys to thank for that. And her.

Lord, I'm discouraged
The circles have sucked in her eyes
Lord, I'm discouraged
Her new friends have shadowed her life
Lord, I'm discouraged
She ain't come out dancing for some time

And I'm trying to light candles
But they burn down to nothing
And she keeps coming up with

Excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
Excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
Excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
There's a house on the south side
Where she stays in for days at a time

I know I'm no angel
I ain't been bad that way
Can't you hear her?
She's that sweet missing songbird
When the choir sings on Sundays
And I'm almost busted
But I bought back the jewelry she sold

And I come to your altar
And then there's just nothing
And she keeps insisting

The sutures and bruises are none of my business
She says that she's sick, but she won't get specific
The sutures and bruises are none of my business
This guy from the north side comes down to visit
His visits, they only take five or six minutes

Lord, I'm sorry to question your wisdom
But my faith has been wavering
Won't you show me a sign
And let me know that you're listening?

Excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
Excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
Excuses and half-truths and fortified wine
I know it's unlikely she'll ever be mine
So I mostly just pray she don't die 

--Nick

DMX "Undisputed," a review

DISCLAIMER

The structure of this review will not take each track in order, but will instead lump the necessary tracks all into various categories: Hits, Mixed, Misses.


INTRO

I should explain my history with X. I first heard him through the headphones of a movie theater manager named Matt, and when I asked him who he was listening to (I had just heard of this person named 'Biggy') he simply turned and looked at me and said:

"You ain't ready for him."

I really wasn't. I went and asked my best friend Holland who X was, and he gave me the same response. I suppose being known as "the spiritual guru" at the theater may have created a few earned thoughts on my musical preferences.

Well, when I first sneaked a listen to X, I was instantly hooked. Ruff Ryder's Anthem. I mean, the song was deplorable, but every time I heard it was at the theater (a deplorably awesome time in my life) it became a hidden sound track to my life. Since then, I've gotten all of his albums and listened almost religiously.

It's been over five years since X released a studio album. Does X bring it back?

HITS

What They Don't Know brings the heat. X starts barking and growling over the sounds of trumpets and saxophones. The lyrics aren't particularly deep, but references to Deebo and Cee-Lo made me chuckle.

Cold World ft. Adreena Mills is a bomb track. Adreena can sing, man can she sing. The lyrics aren't as probing as I would've liked, but her singing voice is angelic. X tries keeping a low bass rap that works well with the piano and low-end production.

I Don't Dance is a highlight for me, and it features Machine Gun Kelly, one of my favorite rising rappers. The song is X channeling Party Up, setting the club on fire. The song also has some killer lines in the chorus about X dancing. Which had me wondering how that would look.

Get Your Money Up is X back in his natural flow. A barking aggressive track where X finds his groove. What!

Already is another highlight. X's barking works with the beat, the bass booms and the backing synths and tone are a symphony of beauty. X is hot here.

MIXED

Sucka For Love has Dani Stevenson doing a great job setting the stage, with guitar work that reminded me of RHCP. However, X sounds a little tired here, and his voice sounds off. Closer to Scarface than X. Which is cool. And X equates love with big butts. I'm sure the two aren't mutually exclusive.

I Get Scared is a decent confessional, but X's opening barking and growling were, for me, distracting. I half-expected Young Jeezy to pop out instead of Rachel Taylor. She is awesome. X is at his best when he is reflective, but he doesn't come close to A Minute for Your Son. Also worth noting is that the album is notoriously missing a tough female MC.

Prayer is a staple of X's material, often opening and ending an album with him praying to God. As usual, it is passionate but still feels out of place. I wish X had done more of this thematically throughout the album.

Have You Eva is yet another track of X moving slow. X can definitely pull it off, but he sounds like he's trying to write a radio hit here, and it doesn't work that well. The guitar and clapping reminded me of Love The Way You Lie by Eminem. Its a solid if unremarkable track.

MISSES

Looking Without Seein' unfortunately has excellent production, but X sounds like he's trying to pull a Drake. Singing slow has never been X's strong suit, and it doesn't work here.

Slippin' Again doesn't work at all. X sounds tone-deaf. The beat is slow, and X is still growling.

I'm Back is too slow of a song for the energy X puts into it. The production would work better if X wasn't as into it. He sounds too fast for the beat.

Frankenstein's production sounds like it was made on a laptop. The chorus is annoying and X's voice sounds like the volume has been pumped up. By far one of the worst tracks on the album.

Fire, F*ck You B*tch and Love That B*tch all suffer from sounding the same, and being roughly similar in content. Each is boring and unnecessary.

OUTRO

Already is the seventeen track on Undisputed. Three tracks follow, and they are all similar and weak. Already was a major highlight of the album, and the following three tracks needed to be cut and dropped.

Overall, this album is not as bad as Relapse (which had one good track, which was Beautiful), but it is a mediocre album compared to X's previous work. However, there are enough sparks in here to warrant some hope for the future. What is good is really good. What doesn't work really doesn't work. Eminem started with Relapse and moved to Recovery, one of my favorite albums.

I'm expecting X to really come back soon.

3 out of 5. 

--Nick

Meta-Celestial Music Playlist

I'm currently (trying) to write a science fiction trilogy, and these are the tracks that have been lending inspiration to me. Check them out. There are all on Spotify.

• "A Holy Measure" by Wovenhand

• "Get Up" by Korn

• "Beyond the Horizon" by Insomnium

• "Off the Edge" by Rhema Soul

• "Lateralus" by Tool

• "Wretched" by Nine Inch Nails

• "Truth" by Wovenhand

• "Equivalence" by Insomnium

• "Envy" by Chevelle

• "Chaos Lives in Everything" by Korn

• "Vox Populi" by 30 Seconds to Mars

• "Two Words" by Disturbed

--Nick

Bob Dylan & N.T. Wright

I thought this was brilliant.

Wright Does Dylan

Thanks to Relevant for this gem. ;)

--Nick

Dual Impressions; "Thousand Foot Krutch" review

Check it out. It's a solid album. I believe we rated it above average.

TCM/Dual Impressions

--Nick

Woven Hand, "Ain't No Sunshine" Cover

This is gorgeous.

--Nick

Orange Blossom Special, a review

Orange Blossom Special is a special tribute to the power of the Internet, and includes a shot and chaser to the amount of time it takes for a band without a manager to progress up the ranks. They were tapped to open the 1st annual 48 Hours Festival, ”The World’s Biggest Rock n Roll Party Weekend,” in Las Vegas. The festival included Korn, Godsmack, Hollywood Undead and Sick Puppies. Not back for a band with no manager and two cool brothers who work with me at Bevmo. But, with all due respect, a band’s accomplishments, though fanciful and impressive in certain regards, mean next to nothing if the band’s talent is one drink away from ending up in the gutter. 

Justin Bieber has a platinum album and Usher as a mentor. So agent or no agent is irrelevant in regards to talent. Does Orange Blossom Special’s Cocktails & Treasure Maps stand up on it’s own?

In a word? Almost. In a phrase, read below.

Echoing the intensity and party rock of the 80s and 90s, OBS is prepared to party until frizzy hair and Patrick Bateman become relevant again. This is a good thing. Not often have I listened to a pure rock n’ roll album that actually made me want to rock n’ roll.

“Wishful Thinking”: kicking off the jams with a series of head-banging riffs that sound yanked from the better days of Van Halen. In fact, the guitar work reminds me of Joe Satriani. This is a good thing.

“Shooting Daggers”: Lead singer/guitarist Anton reminds me of Johnny Cash mixed with Joe Elliot from Def Leppard. Think of this track as being a snide blend of Bon Jovi’s sarcasm and Leppard’s hyper-extended middle finger coupled with some furious guitar licks.

My fear was that the first half of the album would blend together, but each track stands on it’s own via infectious energy and charisma.

“Bill of Health”: the second half of the album hits a brief break in pacing, with several songs covering the same sort of theme of second chances. I’m all for songs about reflection, but they almost seem out of place on a party rock album filled with good times. The resulting songs “Stuck in a Rut” and “Past Few Years” are adequate for reflective rock, but I would rather see OBS make a killer track that sums up everything they are trying to say instead of stretching it over a series of songs. I had the same critique of Drake’s Thank Me Later in that the entire first 15 minutes of his album could be considered the same track. I’d prefer one dynamic track instead of three decent ones.

More emotional punch in a brief period of time.

“Ashes of Today”: this is the pivotal point of the album; we’ve gone through several decent tracks without hitting the standout yet. Well, listen no further. This track is impressive; excellent backing vocals and bass work from Alan, and Anton delivers his best performance which is whispered through distorted guitars and a swirling cavalcade of intensity.

Simply put, this track is the only one that MUST be listened to. The others are for the most part strong, but nothing exceptional. This track is something I would expect to play on mainstream radio while taking a road trip to the beach. This is a high complement. From me anyway.

For such limited time and resources, Orange Blossom Special has delivered material that is far stronger than most unsigned bands. They are almost there. With refinement, they could go someplace. For a classic rock album, Cocktails & Treasure Maps is not entirely polished, but more than makes up for it by being raw and energetic.

The things I want and look forward to in the future; more prominence from the backing vocals and percussion, and more diversity in Anton’s voice. He’s got the chops, I want to hear him go quiet and reflective.

Keep a drink nearby when listening, and to sum up the band’s mostly consistent ethos: “Any place, anytime, anywhere! Play every show like it’s your last and leave it all on the stage.”

You can find OBS on iTunes, Facebook & Spotify.

For the full review, TCM Full Review

--Nick