The key to the Wu-Tang Clan's earliest successes is easily The RZA's atmospheric beats. Yes, it is a group made up of some of the most unique and best rappers the east coast can provide (and U-God), but each individual rapper (except Ghostface) seems sapped of some power when divorced from RZA's cinematic orchestrations. Here, they recall the score of The Godfather movies with a touch of 70s soul. Yet, not all the credit for Raekwon's only great album (pending Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II next month) can go to RZA. Raekwon's rhymes set the atmosphere ablaze with his tales of hustle. His style is very low key, so often on the Wu-Tang albums, Rae can get overshadowed. Here, his flow is limber and occasionally astounding. Ghostface Killah appears on the vast majority of tracks here as a more high-octane counterpoint, solidifying Raekwon/Ghostface as the best tag-team in hip hop.
No comments:
Post a Comment