If anyone has come across the couple of other Wu albums I've reviewed, they would know I'm not the biggest fan of them and their associated artists as nothing I've heard I've really loved. Anyway, with this album, given my feelings on past Wu, I'm pretty happy with it. While much of it for me is just okay-good, there is some quality amongst it and I've got out of it what I expected to if not a tad more. It kicks off with the four guys trading lines in 'House of Flying Daggers' and then 'Sonny's Missing' sort of follows the same flow a good song but a bit below the preceding one. After the short track 'Pyrex Vision', it begins to heat up and then the enjoyment intensifies. 'Cold Outside' is good and then you get the best run of tracks to 'New Wu' which are all quality. From there it's a mix of good and okay tracks for me until my favourite in 'We Will Rob You'. I mentioned in my review of Mos Def's 'The Ecstatic', that Slick Rick needs to drop another album and this furthers those feelings. Even by just doing the chorus and adding his Children's Story theme to it, he adds a lot to the track. From there the Dre & Mark Batson produced track is disappointing. The beat sounds like stuff Dre has done a million times and I'm not feeling Busta's verse on it. From there, 'Mean Street' ain't bad and 'Kiss the Ring' is a good way to finish the album and fits into the category entitled best tracks. Overall, 'Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... Pt II' is closer to a 3.5 than a 2.5 out of 5 and would probably get that rating if a couple of the so-so tracks were up there with the tracks below. If you're a fan of Raewkon and the Wu, I think you would enjoy most of this so check it out. If not a huge fan like myself, it's still worth a listen. Best Tracks: Black Mozart, Gihad, New Wu, Canal Street, We Will Rob You, Kiss the Ring

Looking through my ratings there is definitely a pattern of RZA produced albums being rated lower than the average. Others praise him like he is the best thing that happened to hip hop, but his creations do not do enough for me often enough. In saying this, I enjoy a number of these beats more than some other material that I've heard, but there is still something about them that stop me loving them. The rapping is what you expect from a rapper from or affiliated with the Wu, great. 'Verbal Intercourse' kinds of sums it up for me. Some great rapping and verses, but does anyone actually think that this is a great beat? I couldn't give it more than 3.5/5 Best Tracks: Criminology, Ice Cream, Guillotine (Swordz)

Another one of those under-heard west coast gems (these rappers were featured on another west coast hidden gem in Rappin' Ron & Ant Diddley Dog's 'Bad N Fluenz', that is well worth listening to as well. At seven songs, this album should be consistent and it definitely ticks that box with great production throughout the disc and gangsta rap rhymes. People really were spoilt back in the mid '90s for great rap, so it's understandable that you're going to have lesser known projects like this. Best Tracks: We Don't Love Em', The Weekend, Not to Be Fucked Wit

This one is a mixed bag. It begins with a who's who list of rappers but the loop on 'Banned From TV' is monotonous. Five minutes of that? No thanks. I'm not surprised it's a Swizz Beatz beat. 'Mathematics' has another weak beat, sounding like a nursery rhyme and is very late '90s. 'Fiesta' is one of the worst here as well, and the love 'Superthug' gets surprises me. Maybe there's some nostalgia associated with it? Again, it's a product of its time with the beat being average in my opinion and the hook just consisting of "what" on repeat. Aside from those though, it's decent-great. Da dark Asian sounding beat of 'Da Story' is fantastic, and one of, if not the best moment here. 'It's Not a Game' features classically sounding east coast menacing boom bap production. It finishes well with 'The Assignment and 'Body in the Trunk' being other strong cuts. There is also some decent pop-rap on offer with 'I Love My Life' and 'The Way We Live'. I often refer to distinctiveness being important for a rapper, and I don't think Noreaga is that. He sounds like a lot of other rappers. Nas' voice is distinctive. Pun's is distinctive. Nore's isn't. I'd struggle to pick him out of a crowd. Overall, as I started with, this is a mixed bag. The rapping is always likeable but doesn't stand out too much, the skits ruin its flow, and there are a handful of poor beats. Not far from a 3.5/5 though based on its strengths. Beats: ★★★ Rapping/Bars: ★★★☆ Hooks: ★★★☆ Best Tracks: It's Not a Game, 40 Island, The Change, Da Story, The Assignment, Body in the Trunk

After the EPMD breakup, Erick went solo. He was always the more important member of the duo, beat making and providing a bit more feel when on the mic. Sermon has always been an under talked about producer. He has played an important role in a number of careers such as with Redman, Keith Murray, and even made Shaq sound good on his debut, contributing a number of tracks there. The beats here are what you expect from E-Double; Some funk influence beats with many samples that never get boring. Lyrically, Sermon is also fun to listen to, with plenty of humour in his bars and a number of name-drops and references. Tracks for track, while it never falls away a lot, it is definitely front-loaded as most of the first seven tunes are stronger than what comes in the second half. Best Tracks: Payback II, Stay Real, Imma Gitz Mine, Hostile, Safe Sex