Post by reccollectah on Jul 9, 2010 10:01:25 GMT -5
Overall Rating: 4 stars
Lyrics: 4 stars
Beats: 4,5 stars
Written By: The Reccollectah
Let’s take a dictionary before we start reviewing the Watchmen album. There we can find the following :
A mission = an assigned or self-imposed duty or task; calling; vocation.
Self-confidence = realistic confidence in one's own judgment, ability, power, etc.
Ambition = the object, state, or result desired or sought after
Self-confidence = realistic confidence in one's own judgment, ability, power, etc.
Ambition = the object, state, or result desired or sought after
Now that we got that out of the way and everything is crystal clear , it’s time to start with the following statement :
The Watchmen are on a Mission to restore the faith in the Wu brand, with an exceptional self-confidence and the ambition to single-handedly save the Hip-Hop art form from the commercial coma it’s in at present day…
Which is great news of course but do they have what it takes ?
The answer is : YES.
Hailing from Florida, this collective decided to debut to the world with a double album … which is always a tricky one , no matter what musical genre. As they had more than enough quality tracks to choose from and couldn’t agree on what to leave out, the Watchmen decided to say : “ f**k it, let’s just do this and go double !”
After listening to this album over and over again ( double albums take time to sink in fully as I’m sure you will agree) I can only cheer this brave strategy as they definitely have got enough dopeness under their belt to convince anyone out there of their combined talents.
Lyrically all rappers in this collective hold their ground seemingly effortlessly, not one comes out as being a weaker link: 7th 7ign, BlackMask, Cipher, Eclypse , Pro and Prox … after hearing this album everyone will have a favorite , none will be left out. Personally I had a déjà-vu experience : just as in the early nineties when first hearing the Wu, on every track I’m intrigued to try and recognize each voice, flow and style and put the correct name on it. For once I’m glad you can’t find their lyrics anywhere on the net yet, leaving me the full pleasure of discovering more and more with each listening session. Just one example of how much these guys believe in their talent: “If I needed one” . You might think when seeing the title, this could be about anything really. But it is a great statement as they are simply talking about the chorus/hook. The moment the chorus should kick in , the beat drops, you get an extremely effective organ and flute while Blacmask goes “ This is where the hook would’ve been if I needed one. Watchmen, motherf**kers and we’re number one” . All the while you hear someone in the back desperately screaming : “Where is the hook ? WHERE IS THE HOOK ?!?” Classic from the first time you hear it, believe me.
Production wise they leave a very solid impression: biggest contributor of the group here is Pro, a talent we’ll be enjoying for years to come , with the ability to revitalize mc’s with his inspiring beats. Just listen to Cappadonna reinventing himself on Assassins. ( If you read this, Cappa: get in the studio with the man and kick up an entire album asap: You won’t regret it !)
But not only Pro gets behind the boards, also Blackmask and 7th Sign take up duties . I must say that Blackmask comes out best of the latter 2 as I feel 7th convinces me more behind the mic.
Wu symbolism is to be found throughout this album to any Wu fan’s pleasure: e.g. the group name not coincidentally starting with a W, 18 tracks on each disc giving us 36 chambers to explore, kung fu samples throughout the discs, the Wu-Mama intro on disc 2, Wu and Killa Bee references all over, official approval by Cappadonna on “Assassins, … plus I wouldn’t be surprised if they have aimed at making a 2010 version of the legendary “Liquid swords” track from GZA and RZA when they did “Throw your hands up”. Just listen to the synth intro and the short keys building the musical background just as in 1995 track. Brave ànd dope, what more can one ask for ?
Highlights … Where do I start After extensive listening I can say from all 36 tracks there are about 4 I didn’t really feel and would skip if necessary. The rest of the bunch ranges from good to impressive: covering everyone’s desires with furious bangas, sweet love songs, deep Knowledge tracks, party anthems, summertime jams, …
If I had to name some personal favorites I’d go for “Assassins”, “Touch of death”, “Apocalypse”, “2010”, “Man in the Mirror”, … and the list goes on to be honest.
Final conclusion:
I hope the team behind the Watchmen finally stops postponing the release date, this is something everyone needs to hear as quickly as possible , period ! Cop this instantly upon release, it’s too good to let this pass you by. It’s not yet the classic album I’m convinced they have in them somewhere in the future but it sure gets close enough for now.
Feel free to (dis)agree.