Redman – “Muddy Waters 2” review

Newark, New Jersey veteran Redman returning after a decade for his 9th full-length studio LP as a Christmas Eve miracle. A member of the Hit Squad, he later signed to Def Jam Recordings & saw success during the 90s & 2000s as a solo artist & later with Method Man as a duo after his first 3 albums Whut¿: Thee Album alongside Dare iz a Darkside & Muddy Waters cemented his icon status. The latter turned 28 a couple weeks ago & is returning after almost a decade for Muddy Waters 2.

After the “Welcome” intro, the first song “Da Fuck Goin’ On?” kicks the door down with a 77 second self-produced hardcore hip hop joint gettin’ on his grind whereas “Whut’s Hot” goes for a bit of a rap rock vibe instrumentally courtesy of Khrysis talkin’ about not being told what’s poppin’ & what isn’t. “Jersey” produced by Rockwilder goes for a soulful vibe representing his turf & after the “Fat Shirley” skit, “Lalala” by Method Man & Redman moves forward with a fun look at their back-&-forth chemistry although I prefer the DJ Premier remix.

“Don’t You Miss” reflects on the old days since he’s a 90s boy who never gives up & giving everyone exactly what they pay reuniting with his mentor Erick Sermon behind the boards for leading into “Ignant” talking about the fact that there ain’t nobody else around his city like him bringing his classic ignorance using the same sample as “Tearz” by the Wu-Tang Clan. After the “Uncle Quilly” skit, “Aye” takes it to the streets over a funky ass beat while “Hoodstar” brings a disco flare to the table talking about being well known in the streets.

The lead single “Don’t Wanna C Me Rich” samples “Luck of Lucien” by A Tribe Called Quest letting everyone know that he’s been doing alright for the past 9 years just before “I’m on Dat Bullshit” dabbles with trap a bit thanks to Hallway Productionz talking about those runnin’ their mouths behind his back & to get a life. After “Da Trunk” skit, “Pop da Trunk” hooks up some synthesizers & handclaps showing off his mob ties while “Gheddo Motivation” goes trap again to provide street gospel.

“Dynomite” featuring Sheek Louch finds the pair linking up reminding everyone that both of them be movin’ while “Wave” takes a minute & half to discuss being all about real shit & shrugging off anyone who tries to be all up in his business. After the “My Weed’s Been Taken” skit, “Kush” featuring WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg brings the synths back in the fold for a stoner’s ballad while “Booyaka Shot” aggressively talks about fuckboys never winning & that the G’s stay up.

Ke Turner joins Funk Doc on the Mike & Keys laced “Goofy” so they can poke fun at all the weird muhfuckas out here these days & after the “Obama Stick Up” skit, “1:00” ruggedly let’s y’all know the way shit’s going down from the cannabis king’s side of things. “Lite It Up” strips the drums for a star-studded New Jersey posse cut featuring El Da Sensei, Hakim Green, Heather B, Lady Luck, the Lords of the Underground, Naughty by Nature, Nikki D, Queen Latifah, Rah Digga & 4-time NBA Champion Shaquille O’Neal sampling “Rapper’s Delight” by the Sugarhill Gang while “Wudeytauknbout” playfully talks about having a look at all his haters.

“Why U Mad?” featuring Mr. Cream & Runt Dawg sees the trio wanting to know the exact reason for everyone walking around so pissed over a Rick Rock instrumental & after the “Soopaman Luva 7” skit, we are treated to the 7th installment of Reggie’s beloved series of tracks split into 2-parts. “Looka Here” featuring KRS-One nears the conclusion of Muddy Waters 2 with both of them assuring that everything’s in order & “Smoke wit Me” ends by addressing his legend status.

Funk Doctor Spock’s been teasing this for so long to the point where people were calling it the east coast’s answer to Dr. Dre’s mythical Detox album & now that we finally got it after 15 years, it’s his most consistent body of work since Red Gone Wild: Thee Album roughly 18 years ago this spring. I find it to be more well-produced than the commercial Reggie & Mudface were in addition to the Brick City Masher making a returning to form to the humorous hardcore approach he’s known for.

Score: 4.5/5

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Method Man – “The Meth Lab 3: The Rehab” review

This is the 7th full-length album from Staten Island’s very own Method Man. Coming up as a member of the almighty Wu-Tang Clan, he would go on to have a very successful career of his own on top of that whether it be albums like the solo dolo Tical & the Redman-assisted Blackout! or appearing in movies like How High or shows such as Power. He’s already dropped the first 2 installments of The Meth Lab trilogy to mediocre reception & is already closing it out by dropping The Rehab.

“Stop Crying” with Cappadonna is a soulful opener encouraging that there’s no room for bitching in this game whereas “Butterfly Effect” with RJ Payne finds the 2 over some airy boom bap production talking about being in the public eye. Hanz On tags along for the rock-tinged “Black Ops” taking shots at those who thinks they can be a music critic just before the grimy “Guillotine” produced by Rockwilder reminds everyone how raw Meth is with the lyrics.

Meanwhile on “Live from the Meth Lab”, we have Redman & KRS-One accompanying Meth over some dusty drums declaring themselves as the ones leading into Jadakiss as well as Eddie I & 5th Pxwer coming into the picture for “Switch Sides” talking about they can’t be around those who change up over a crooning vocal sample. 5th Pxwer sticks around for the Bollywood-influenced “Act Up” laced by Erick Sermon telling everyone to move back from them, but then “Training Day” takes a more morbid route thanks to the homie Blizzard welcoming listeners to such.

“King of New York” with Carlton Fisk & Chunk Bizza finds the trio on top of an eerie instrumental advising no one wants trouble with them while the song “Find God” with Intell incorporates some more rap rock production talking about either becoming a born again Christian or grinding hard. The penultimate track “The Last 2 Minutes” is a boom bap banger with a haunting sample saying he’ll give you the world & “K.A.S.E.” with Carlton Fisk & Hanz On ends the album with some social commentary over some more traditional East Coast production.

I didn’t go into this album with the highest expectations given how lackluster the previous 2 installments were, but it’s probably my favorite of the trilogy albeit not by a whole lot. The features are pretty uninteresting for the most part & Meth can still rap his ass off much like the predecessors, but the production is a tad bit better.

Score: 2/5

Method Man – “The Meth Lab 2: The Lithium” review

Method Man is a 47 year old rapper known for being apart of the almighty Wu-Tang Clan. He only dropped 1 album this decade, which was The Meth Lab back in 2015. Personally, I found it to be his weakest effort yet due to the cut-rate production & packing damn near every track with features just for the sake of having features. However, he’s returning with his 6th full-length album & it serves as a sequel to that project.

After the “Pilot” intro, we go into the first song “Kill Different. Here, Meth & Raekwon talk about achieving success over a rap rock beat. The track “Eastside” with Intell & Snoop Dogg see the 3 paying tribute to their home coasts over a boom bap beat with some strings & after the “Thotti Gotti” skit, we go into the song “Grand Prix”. Where Meth compares himself to Ricky Bobby in getting money over a gloomy Dame Grease instrumental.

Then after the “Impractical Jokers Pranks” skit, the song “Drunk Tunes” with N.O.R.E. & Mall G perfectly lives up to it’s title over a bland beat. Following the “Emergency Forecast” skit, the song “Wild Cats” with Redman, Streetlife & Hanz On talks about how reckless all 4 of them are over a piano & a guitar. “The Lab” with Spank talks about the drug game over a minimalist beat while the song “Bridge Boys” with Kash Verrazano Talk about hood fame over an apocalyptic beat.

The track “Back Blockz” with Youngin’, Cardi Express & F.R.E.A.K. talks about doing shit by themselves over an eerie beat while the song “Ronins” with Cappadonna, Masta Killa & Hanz On is filled with battle bars over a gritty beat with an organ. After the “Impractical Jokers: Torture” skit, the song “2 More Minutes” talks about being underrated over a rap rock beat. Then after the “Pussy on SoundCloud” skit, the song “S.I. vs. Everybody” is a boring rendition of “Detroit vs. Everybody” off the 2014 Shady Records compilation SHADYXV.

The track “Lithium” with Hanz On & Sheek Louch reflects on their days in the streets over a boom bap beat with a wailing guitar while the “P.L.O.” remix is a lackluster sequel to the song off Meth’s classic 1994 debut Tical. The song “Killing the Game” with Pretty Blanco speaks for itself for a generic trap beat & before ending with the outro, the final song “Yo” tells the listener to respect them over a somber trap beat.

Yeah, I didn’t care for this. Method Man still has it lyrically & the production is slightly better than the predecessor but just like last time, I still feel like it’s packed with a lot of filler.

Score: 2/5