Like a lot of '80s hip hop, the beats just don't do it for me. Due to this, for me Ice-T albums get better and better with each release up until O.G. Original Gangster/Home Invasion. ' Squeeze the Trigger' is dope and sounds a bit like something from an '80s action film and some of the storytelling is well done (see '6 'n the Mornin''), but as mentioned, the beats get repetitive partly due to some of the song lengths being too long as well.
Best Tracks: Intro / Rhyme Pays, '6 'n the Mornin', Squeeze the Trigger
1 Super OG (Intro)
2 Arrest the President - I like the beat and the hook here, given the title and the lyrics in the hook though, the content is severely lacking. I know it's only one bar, but who gives a damn about Trump's 'orange' skin colour? It's quite hypocritical given what so much of Cube's content has been about too. A lot of it just feels like brag rap.
3 Chase Down the Bully - He calls out right-wingers for talking about law and order but then beats up reporters on a song with this hook...[i]'String his ass up by his nuts with the pulley'.[/i] Similar to the previous song, catchy hook, decent beat. One of the better bangers due to the bridge and hook.
4 Don't Bring Me No Bag - An eerie like trap beat, anti-drug/trap house song. The rhyming of the hook reminds me of 'Ring the Alarm' by Naughty by Nature. The song works. I like.
5 Bad Dope - Brag rap with a tenuous anti-drug theme here, that is present on the run of songs.
6 On Them Pills - Despite still condoning weed, I love hearing this message. Anti-drug/prescription pills. Catchy hook. Probably my favourite here. I could do without the weird outro though.
7 Fire Water - Brag rap. Nothing much more to say. Some decent bars. I don't love the beat.
8 Streets Shed Tears - Brag rap, with some slight introspectiveness about his connection to the streets. The second verse begins with 'Sorry, y'all, I ain't got no haters'-a prelude to the following track.
9 Ain't Got No Haters - And this begins with 'Sorry, y'all, I ain't got no haters'. Anti-drug songs and now he is saying he 'doesn't have haters'! This is like the antithesis of most rap you'll hear. Laidback beat here with Cube and Too Short telling us about how they get love from all and they don't have/worry about haters.
10 Can You Dig It? - One of those throwback songs. Cube talks about the decades of the '70s, '80s and '90s in each verse.
11 That New Funkadelic - The sequencing of this album makes sense with more throwback feels here. Cube came up rapping over dope funk samples and this feels like a throwback to that. The lyrics are a bit repetitive and it's no match for greats like 'Bop Gun'.
12 One for the Money - This feels more like some older production Cube would've been on during the War and Peace era with some moving keys. It's mostly about 'bitches' trying to get his money.
13 Still in the Kitchen - Another brag rap track with different metaphorical language about Cube still creating and doing what he does.
14 Non Believers - Yep, more brag rap with one or two lines of commentary in here. One such example being about Zimmerman and racism. I like part of the chorus but it's one of my least favourite here.
15 Everythangs Corrupt - This was first released in 2012! One of maybe three songs with 'On Them Pills' and 'Good Cop Bad Cop' that is actually bars full of consciousness without the brag bars in between. Another banger.
16 Good Cop Bad Cop - Released about 18 months ago to coincide with Death Certificate's 25th anniversary. At times these days, I'm finding Ice Cube's rhyming too simplistic but parts of the wordplay in this are top-notch. The topic has been done to death but he does say things in a different way here providing a different take on the topic. Good beat too. Probably the most fresh-sounding of the 15.
Before I get into summing up my thoughts on this, I must ask where is the WC feature!? I expected a verse! I've enjoyed listening to this and have given it a number of spins. Everything is decent or better and nothing is too poor unlike his last album that had songs that really didn't feel like Ice Cube, but I'm not sure if there will be much to take away from this in the long term. Its biggest issues are that there is too much brag rap, the songs that should have more lyrical depth like 'Arrest the President' don't, and the beats feel safe and none go beyond that 4/5 star good level. I Am the West gets hate, but there are 4-5 on that to this day I enjoy going back to.
There isn't a 'Gangsta's Paradise' here, but this is more consistent than I remember his previous album being. The beats were well chosen. It's another funky, well-produced west coast album from the mid-'90s. This is one of the reasons why when asked I put west coast hip hop above the east. It's the funk! There are so many underheard albums from the west.
He isn't the most amazing rapper. On 'Let's Do It', Coolio picks up the pace but he isn't a great natural fast spitter. The final song, 'C U When U Get There', samples 'Canon in D Major' by Johann Pachelbel that will likely be familiar to you as may some other samples throughout the album.
Best Tracks: 2 Minutes & 21 Seconds of Funk, Hit 'Em, Can U Dig It, Can I Get Down One Time, My Soul, Let's Do It
This podcast and the earlier radio programs are amazing. I revisit them with regularity and they always entertain. The laughs often come from Ricky and Steve's responses to Karl's thoughts and stories. He had an amazingly unique childhood that makes his recounts hilarious. Kids who chase cars, horses as pets, Scruffy Sandra, the only goal he ever scored in soccer being due to his fear of a bee... The list goes on. One of the greatest trios in entertainment.
"What do you think Drag-On is up to?"
That quote from The Eric Andre Show is why I checked this out. There are some decent moments but it never reaches great heights. One of the better tracks is the story-telling 'Groundhog Day', with 'Snipe Out' being similar, but there wasn't much else that stood out during my few spins. If you've listened to anything from the Ruff Ryders family from the late '90s-early '00s the production won't be much of surprise. Swizz Beatz handles many of the beats, and as I've said many times, while he's created some classics, when he handles most of an album, it almost never (if ever) works. A 2/5 at the most.
Best Tracks: Groundhog Day, Spit These Bars, Snipe Out, Get It Right
