I've given this a heap of spins. It's a concise release that's easy to get through, but I think one of the reasons I've spun it a bunch of times is because I was waiting for something to click with me from these heralded rappers, who I have loved on occassions, but it never happened. At times Mos sounds half asleep or like he just can't be bothered opening his mouth to rap. Talib stands out more to me, but he can say a lot without saying much apart from repeating racial rhetoric where he sounds like he thinks he's smarter than he is. Another issue is the lack of anything catchy or memorable. There are no hooks. I feel like I say that a lot with contemporary hip hop albums compared to those from previous decades.
Beats: ★★★
Rapping/Bars: ★★★☆
Hooks: ★☆
Best Tracks: Supreme Alchemy, No Fear of Time
This starts off strongly. 'Mama's Basement' is the first kind of weak moment due to the lyrics and that can be said for some other tracks with the superhero/comic content. The production on 'Frenzy in a Far Off World' and 'Czarsenic' is average and 'Gatecrasher' would be better without the talking introduction. After that, the synth 'Sirens' gets us back on track. I feel like more rappers should play with synth-pop production. From there, the album never matches the first four songs.
Beats: ★★★☆
Rapping/Bars: ★★★☆
Hooks: ★★★
Best Tracks: Czarchimedes' Death Ray, All That for a Drop of Blood, Sirens
All the 1/2 star reviews making light of the tagline but proving its point at the same time are too good to be true. One of the most favourited reviews has this hilarious line - "This is the Daily Wire's MO. They want you to ignore reality and to only listen to them." I mean...Ignoring the reality that men in women's sport is unfair? It seems like someone isn't in the real world and it's not DO. Anyway, this isn't a great movie, that is based off one joke, the joke of bio men being allowed to compete in women's sport, but movies like this need to be made to show what a ridiculous age we're living in. An age where the fear of being called a TERF (Trans-inclusive cisgender radical) stops people from calling out the ridiculousness when sport is based on fairness. At the same time, as far as comedies go these days, I can't say I laughed or smiled any less than most mainstream comedies. I recently saw some of Bad Moms that is purely humour based on vulgarity. At least there is an important theme being promoted here.
I love AZ on the mic. I think he is one of the absolute best rappers to do it, but while these beats are still good I don't feel many are up to the high standard for the time period this is from. The album starts off very well, but it reaches its peak early and definitely drops off after 'Rather Unique'. The female vocals throughout 'I Feel For You' are too repetitive and bring the song down. In saying that, songs on the second half such as 'Doe or Die' and 'Your World Don't Stop' are still good rap songs. A 4/5, but with the right beats, as AZ is a brilliantly skilled rapper, he could create something even more memorable.
Best Tracks: Uncut Raw, Gimme Your's, Ho Happy Jackie, Rather Unique, Sugar Hill
'Man on the Moon' is nice and a highlight, particularly before the beat change that finishes the song. I like 'Set 'em Free' as well. The other two are decent, but nothing is to the level of Krit's best. A worthy EP.
Best Tracks: Set 'em Free, Man on the Moon