I had this at 3.5 / 5 for the longest time but upon revisiting it years later I think it deserves more. Jeru's rapping is quality, with a unique voice and flow, and the tracks I like I love which all but earn this its 4/5. The production doesn't do it for me on a few tracks, which is surprising as Premo did it in his heyday. It's probably Premo's most experimental/original production though, and I can see why so many people dig it, it has a certain dark rawness to it. While his follow up may not have as good standouts, it's a more well rounded consistent album in my opinion. Beats: ★★★★ Bars: ★★★★☆ Hooks: ★★★★ Best Tracks: Ain't the Devil Happy, My Mind Spray

A banging album where the energy never stops. While the first and final tracks are new, this is basically a remix album of their previous release, 'Grip It! On That Other Level'. I have heard the aforementioned album but I can't remember it well enough at the moment to make comparisons. At first I wasn't really feeling the sample on 'Gangster of Love' but it has grown on me and the 'gangsta boogie' part kind of makes up for it. 'Assassins', which is probably the most '80s sounding rap song in terms of the production (edit: it's the only song taken from their debut, so that makes sense), has a couple of what seems to be added/badly sampled vocals in the final verse that almost ruin that part of the song. I'll have to check the original to see what has happened there but it just sounds unprofessional. Best Tracks: Do It Like a G.O., City Under Siege

The best stuff on this is straight fire and years later I can still go back to it and enjoy it as much as ever. Lyrically, there is some controversial stuff but at the same time humorous, and while the beats do sound a bit dated, most still bang. The weakest portion of this album is 'What?' to 'Nothing 2 Show' with all three lacking in the production department, but then it finishes fairly well with the funnily overly misogynistic BushWick solo 'Dirty Bitch' - "I wouldn't care if you burned in a fire, Crashed in a plane or got hit by a motherfuckin train." A solid banging album from the hip hop vets. Best Tracks: Declaration of War, Yes, Yes, Y'all, I Tried, G-Code, Dirty Bitch

At its heart this isn't a bad album. The beats are unique and wild and Cakes can rap, but almost every song has something to make it worse. Cringe-worthy lyrics, a bad hook or some bad vocals like the moaning on the first track. 'Currency' is another pertinent example. A dope song if it finishes at about 1:47. Instead, the beat comes back and we have some strange laughing/moaning... Not for me. Best Tracks: Break 'Em Off, Currency, The Eulogy

While nothing much stood out for me early on with this release, I kept going to back to it, and it was a frequent feature in the airwaves in my house for quite some time. And while I don't find much of it amazing, the beats are all well produced from Apollo, and from front to back it's an enjoyable listen. One of the better producer albums in a while. Best Tracks: Hungry, Beauty of a Day, Streets Won't Let Me Chill, Brainwash, Just Think