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Review: Jack Foley
LAST week we had the debut album from young upstart, Eamon
- now we have the real deal, D12 World, the second long-player
from the self-styled super groups of the
new millennium.
With a lineup that includes the crazy cat Bizarre, beatmaster
Kon Artis, laid-back Swift, chilled-out Kuniva and freestyle king
Proof, not to mention sharp-tongued Eminem, the D12 posse is hip-hop
for adults, and there's no messing around.
The usual themes are back - everything from murder, fucking,
rape and betrayal, to some more lighter issues, such as fame and
courting - but while Eamon doesn't really carry the sound of anything
authoritative, the D12 crew feel as though they have earned their
spurs.
Take Good Die Young, for example, a tribute song about
a young rapper, named Bugz, who didn't live long enough to sample
the success of the Detroit crew.
Bugz was killed shortly before D12 was signed to Shady Records,
but, according to Proof, his last request was that Swift be put
in the group - in a cruel twist of fate, Proof's son was born
the same day Bugz died.
The track is probably the closest D12 will ever get to becoming
poignant, but it rates among the better efforts on the album -
a track made all the more powerful by the cold truth behind it.
Elsewhere, the opening track, Git Up, features another
set of bouncy chants, from Eminem, complete with a frantic beat,
which is neatly offset by some creepy gothic strings - as though
setting the menacing tone from the outset.
While 6 In The Morning is another standout moment, featuring
another adrenaline-fuelled beat and some more Eminem vocals -
the early part of which come uncannily close to his solo effort,
Lose Yourself.
My Band taps into some nice self-depracating humour, and
lightens the tone considerably, breaking up the heavier moments
of opening tracks, Just Like U and I'll Be Damned,
which represent the album at its nastiest.
Such moments do threaten to drag things down, courtesy of lyrics
such as 'if your wife is pregnant, I'll call her a whore',
and 'I'll rape you on a sink, from day one I knew you was a
whore, I put a rubber on my toe and fucked you some more',
which are a little unpalatable.
But then what more can you expect from the king of the controversial,
Eminem and friends? If such lyrics strike you as offensive, then
steer well clear; if not, then D12 World should rock your planet.
It is, for the majority of the time, a good album.
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Track listing:
1. Git Up
2. Loyalty
3. Just Like U
4. I'll Be Damned
5. Dude (skit)
6. My Band
7. U R The One
8. 6 In The Morning
9. How Come
10. Leave Dat Boy Alone
11. Get My Gun
12. Bizarre (skit)
13. Bitch
14. Steve's Coffee House
15. D-12 World
16. 40 Oz.
17. Commercial Break
18. American Psycho 2
19. Bugz 97
20. Good Die Young
21. Keep Talkin'
22. Barbershop (UK bonus track)
23. Slow Your Roll (UK bonus track)
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