Um, so U-God has a second solo album, called Mr. Xcitement.That's all I got.
1. BLOW YO MIND INTRO
The music on the track (provided by DJ Homicide, who's probably most successful for his work with Sugar Ray, even though he's produced songs for Chino XL and Aceyalone) isn't too bad, but Lamont's attempt to record his own blaxploitation theme song falls flat.
2. IT'S A WRAP (FEAT LEATHA FACE)
I gotta be honest: this song isn't that bad. The interchange between U-God and his main potholder Leatha Face is pretty good, and DJ Homicide's beat is halfway decent. Songs such as this one might have made Baby Uey's debut, Golden Arms Redemption, a much more entertaining listening experience.
3. HIT 'EM UP, ROLL OUT (FEAT LEATHA FACE)
The first person that starts teaching aspiring rappers how to write a good hook for their songs will retire a fucking billionaire. Seriously. I'm talking Diane Warren money. My first lesson: if you decide to name your song "Hit 'Em Up, Roll Out", make fucking sure that you actually use the phrase "Roll out" in the chorus, instead of "Ride out", idiot.
4. GET DOWN (FEAT MC EIHT, BOO KAPONE, & SQUEAK RU)
Oddly, U-God actually sounds more comfortable collaborating with West Coast artists than Ol' Dirty Bastard ever did. Does that mean this song is any good? Hell no, but I felt that saying something positive would help offset how bad this shit sounds.
5. DON KING SPEAKS TO U-GOD
Annoying as fuck. I realize that Baby Uey was on the outs with the Wu-Tang Clan at this point, which is why there is zero Wu input on Mr. Xcitement, but including the mispronunciation of the word "Wu-Tang" multiple times is just fucking disrespectful to your own legacy, dumbass, regardless of how small your contributions were. As if you would have somehow managed to get a record deal of your own without The Rza's help, motherfucker.
6. I'M TALKIN' TO YOU
This shit is a mess. A hilarious mess, not unlike one of those direct-to-video Jean Claude Van Damme flicks, but a mess nonetheless. The delivery of the hook is fucking comedic gold all by itself.
7. KICK AZZ
Producer The Produkt provides a sound that is as far removed from the Wu-Tang standards of kung-fu samples and dusty basement drums as one can get. A different, much better rap artist might have made this instrumental work for them, but U-God isn't that man. He may not even be living on the same planet as that man. The hook is really fucking funny, though.
8. YOU DON'T WANT TO DANCE
Surprisingly, U-God doesn't entirely fuck up this song, which is shocking, as the hook completes the title phrase with "...with a gangsta". If U-God were a child, he would get a gold star and a cookie.
9. GO GET PRETTY LIKE ME
Um...were you coked out of your mind when you came up with this one, Lamont? Because I would need some powerful shit to not find this hilarious.
10. A LONG TIME AGO (FEAT EBONY BURKE)
Longtime Wu-Tang producer 4th Disciple sneaks around The Rza's back and slips Lamont the only link he has to the Clan. U-God uses the beat to air out his daddy issues in a musical forum, and while the song itself isn't very good, it isn't bad enough for me to make fun of.
11. STOP (CARRY ON) (FEAT EBONY BURKE)
Meh.
12. BUMP
This stripper anthem is actually offensive to exotic dancers the world over. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that the union has barred any dancer from providing U-God with a lap dance of any sort, leaving him to beg the waitresses for a favor.
13. DEDICATION SKIT
...
14. DRUGS
Is it bad that this anti-drug public service announcement only makes listeners want to seek out some illicit materials even more so?
15. HEART OF STONE
Stupid me, I was halfway expecting a cover of the Rolling Stones song. Actually, that would have been preferable to what I'm actually listening to. Sigh...
16. JENNY
Well, I would never actually sing on a record, so U-God has one up on me. However, this song is laughably bad, so the universe maintains its balance.
THE LAST WORD: While, as a Wu-Tang stan, I've been sitting on a copy of Mr. Xcitement for quite a while, I had never actually found the time to listen to the fucking thing prior to today. (Life kept getting in the way: there were always newer, better CDs to listen to, or I would need to go to work, or I would be taking a nap, or I just didn't like U-God that much, stuff like that.) Now that I've finally heard it, I can honestly say that my life is a little worse for wear. While I will admit that a couple of the beats are decent, and U-God occasionally sounds like someone who resembles an actual rapper, there is no fucking way that I will ever listen to this shit again, Wu-Tang affiliation be damned. I would complain that I want that hour of my life back, but I kind of brought this on myself: since I wrote about the first U-God solo disc, I kind of forced my own hand here. But maybe I can save my two readers the trouble.
-Max
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The record company actually cut a check and paid U-GOD for this project?
ReplyDeleteDamn, another U-God diss review and still 0 comments? Am I the only one visiting it every day? And back to the topic; I just love your reviews, especially if you disrespect U-God, because it's always funny. Keep it up Max.
ReplyDeletesilence is consent i heard e'm say, so i guess it means that his Two Readers agree that U is ass crumbs on the solo tip...despite being a member of the greatest mc outfit in the history of hip hop...it doesn't make sense, unless you enliken it to the dude that did'n get much playing time but still share the trophy and wear the ring, which would'nt be entirely true cause U threw up some decent boards on the first album...
ReplyDeleteFuck that U-God is the GOAT and you are a bitch ass cunt, Max.
ReplyDeleteWhat's with the album title? I thought he might have been claiming an insult like with the grouch, but 'mr excitement'...seriously???
ReplyDeleteThere is no way anyone really believes that U-God is the Greatest Of All Time. Not even U-God. No fucking way.
ReplyDeleteI listened to "Bump" online and died. Several times. This album is utterly indefensible and is probably one of the worst things this poor world has EVER witnessed. Slightly below the Ebola virus.
ReplyDeleteRap superstar, U-God (best known as an original member of the Wu Tang Clan) is poised to take the music industry by storm with the release of his second solo album, the aptly titled Mr. Xcitement. The release marks his first project with Free Agency Recordings, nationally distributed by Navarre. Building off the success of his debut solo album, "Golden Arms Redemption", (which featured the top 10 Billboard Hot Rap single "Bizarre" and the action sports/video game classic "Rumble") and his numerous artist features, Mr. Xcitement continues the U-God musical odyssey. Reaching deep into his personal influences of The Temptations, Isley Brothers and Sinatra along with Kojak, Goodfellas and classic Pam Grier movies, the album reflects a maturity and understanding unprecedented in today’s rap world - a hip-hop opera of sorts about relationships and street tales. In the words of U-God, "Mr. Xcitement ain’t just about partying. Mr. Xcitement is a drug dealer/killer/pimp. I spent four years writing this album, I took my time - I didn’t rush the shit."
ReplyDeleteHis lyrical prowess is demonstrated on the lead single "You Don’t Want To Dance," which warns posers to stay clear and features U-God’s trademark "slanguistics." Unlike others in the game who seek to play it safe, U-God ventures back into the "Rumble" arena with the head bangin’ anthem "Kick Ass" and the rock-flavored "I’m Talkin’ To You" that introduces his unrivaled sound to audiences not already familiar with his body of work.
On "Jenny," U-God weaves an intricate story line of a relationship riddled with deception and greed. After taking listeners through matters of the wounded heart, he offers an uplifting tune about the importance of not taking one’s life for granted on the "Carry On." The diversity of sounds and themes is a testament to U-God’s continued viability as an artist in an industry where flash in the pans are all too common.
"[People] don’t realize the U in U-God stands for universal," the rapper explains. "It means no boundaries, infinity, it goes on forever." And indeed, with an album as well crafted as Mr. Xcitement, the industry will be hearing from U-God for many years to come.
http://www.hiphopgalaxy.com/u-god-mr-xcitement-hip-hop-2360.html
The above review made me laugh even more than the album itself.