Aww, What Do You Mean The Holidays Are Over?

On that note, the 12 Days of Wu-Mas are over for another season. I hope the two of you enjoyed this year's festivities, and I hope to see more of you over on the Patreon, which is where a lot of my writing now resides. I'm not sure exactly when I'll be back over here on the free blog, but it will happen, and I appreciate all of the support and comments I've received from you all throughout the years. if you feel so inclined, let me know in the comments what you liked, disliked, or want to see from me on either page. I read all of the comments, I swear.

I hope you all stick around for Wu-Wednesdays - as promised, that series will continue to run for a while, stretching the holiday out even further with some good music and better vibes. 

Until we meet again,

Max

The Twelve Days of Wu-Mas 2024 - Day #12

Hello! For the final day of the 2024 holiday festivities (yes, I realize we’re now in 2025, shut up, that’s why), I figured that I would treat the readers who have stuck around with something that’s been missing from the blog for a while now: an honest-to-God write-up. Not a former Patreon exclusive, and not a link to older Max’s cringe-y work, but a brand new review for your ass. I’m not sure how many of these I have left for the free site, but I’ve neglected the blog long enough, so I hope you two enjoy!

The Twelve Days of Wu-Mas 2024 - Day #11

The culmination of RZA's successful five-year plan for the Wu-Tang Clan was 1997's double album Wu-Tang Forever, which, in my opinion, is the only double album in hip hop history that has any reason to exist, considering that he had to make room for nine different emcees (along with various affiliated guests) with varying, but complementary, styles. I'm sure the group members who didn't see a solo album released between 1994 and 1997 were kind of miffed, but I'm not sure if RZA knew how to market Masta Killa, Inspectah Deck (who might have made the cut had it not been for the storied flooding in RZA's basement that destroyed much of his work at the time), or U-God to the masses at the time, and likely still doesn't. (Hell, RZA himself didn't even release a solo album as a part of his plan, although I would chalk that up to hesitancy triggered by his experience on Tommy Boy Records pre-Clan.) 

(Of course, there were several Wu-related releases that coincided with the five-year plan that weren't considered part of that path, but are still canonically Wu. Before Royal Fam was ever a thing, Timbo King released a collaboration with producer Spark 950, while child rapper Shyheim dropped two (two!) different projects with minimal RZA assistance. Prince Rakeem's own side project Gravediggaz, a Prince Paul-led satirical take on industry nonsense cloaked in horrorcore garb, also released their debut within this window, which is how Paul managed to put a sample from "Protect Ya Neck" on there. I include that last fact for the completists, as I still fully believe that the Gravediggaz was not conceived as a Wu-Tang-affiliated project, it just became one after Prince Paul scaled back his participation.)

Wu-Tang Forever has sold more than four million copies in the United States to date, and fulfills the prophecy RZA had teased since day one, with the group officially becoming the biggest thing since sliced bread. Primarily produced by RZA himself, although 4th Disciple, True Master, and Inspectah Deck also contribute beats, Wu-Tang Forever is an epic piece of aural storytelling, with each member of the group receiving a turn to unload their fine-tuned boasts-n-bullshit with the confidence of hip hop veterans, which, at this point, they were.

There's much more to discuss with Wu-Tang Forever, so click on the links and share some thoughts!

RZA's Five-Year Plan #7: Wu-Tang Clan - Wu-Tang Forever (June 3, 1997)

Link to original write-up

Link to a Reader Review (written by Niccolo)

BONUS: Link to Revisionist History #1, where shoe-in and myself each create our own single-disc version of the album

-Max
 

The Twelve Days of Wu-Mas 2024 - Day #10

One of the problems with the Wu-Tang Clan becoming as big as they are, or were in the mid-to-late 1990's, anyway, is the mind-boggling number of hangers-on that tried to finagle a casual friendship or even a chance meeting at RZA's lawyer's office into a legitimate career in the music industry. Obviously some of these acts had talent, while others simply didn't, but what the members of the Z-team shared was the likelihood that this particular strategy would actually pay off in the long run. Many of the Wu-Tang affiliates have long since dropped off the board, but several have not only survived, they've fucking thrived by way of creating their own lane and sticking to it. 

Such is the story of Ellery "Buddha Monk" Chambers, a producer, rapper, author, and childhood friend of the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. His entrance into the hip hop game, via Dirty's solo debut Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version, was treated as some sort of mythical unveiling, not unlike the fabled Sheng Long in Street Fighter II (who never existed) or even Reptile in Mortal Kombat (who did). Buddha Monk's own stage name made him sound like a mysterious stranger, an artist only a lucky few would ever get the opportunity to experience if they completed all of the tasks and answered all of the twisted elf's questions correctly and in order during the third blood moon of the century while chanting in some dead language and, I don't know, inhaling Oreos or some shit. Of course, in reality Buddha Monk was simply a dude who wanted to get put on, and lucked into his career thanks to his longtime connections - his unstable flow, similar to his friend's, and taste in darker beats was something we discovered in real time. 

His own solo debut, The Prophecy, has become somewhat of a cult classic, as it showcases the Wu-Tang aesthetic through the lens of an outsider, with all of the posse cuts, kung fu flick samples, and sparse, dusty instrumentals that come with the territory. Ol' Dirty Bastard returned the favor by making a guest appearance, while the rest of the cameos come from various members of Monk's different, somewhat interchangeable crews (older Wu heads will know what I mean). To paraphrase something I wrote two years ago when this review originally ran, if you're the type of Wu stan that gets excited by a Shorty Shit Stain guest spot, then The Prophecy may be your cup of tea.

Click here to read about Buddha Monk's The Prophecy, a Patreon exclusive that is now open to members at all levels! (A minimum of a free membership is required to access - sign up today!)

-Max
 

The Twelve Days of Wu-Mas 2024 - Day #9

After a positively prolific 1995, RZA decided to allow the five Wu-Tang-related albums released during the five-year plan room to breathe, to build the respective audiences for Method Man, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Raekwon, and GZA/Genius. All four artists managed to earn gold plaques from the RIAA within months of their debut dates, with Method Man, the breakout star of the Clan, pushing his Tical to platinum status, even earning a platinum single and a Grammy for his troubles in 1995. The Wu were coming through, as it were, and they were hellbent on world dominance, or at least lording over our chosen culture, with RZA's blueprint seemingly working better than expected for everyone involved.

1996 brought us only one project that was a part of the five-year plan, but that one project was a fucking doozy. Ironman was the debut solo album from Dennis "Ghostface Killah" Coles, another charismatic Staten Island resident whose quirky, insular rhymes and attention to ridiculous detail quickly rocketed him up the Clan standings. (Later in the Wu's timeline, Ghostface Killah would become the guy who essentially carried the brand on his back, keeping the Clan's name alive in an overcrowded market as the rest of the group decided on what they wanted to accomplish as a team, but that was much later.) Mostly produced by RZA, with one beat outsourced to True Master, Ironman represented Ghost's worldview, from his own take on the criminal tales and slang perfected by his partner-in-rhyme Raekwon (who co-stars on Ironman, alongside Cappadonna, much in the way Ghost was heavily featured on Only Built 4 Cuban Linx..., although Ironman arguably showcases more versatility from its lead), relationship issues, challenging childhoods, and, obviously, boasts-n-bullshit with more references to kung-fu than most rappers managed. RZA and Ghost practically litter Ironman with dialogue samples from blaxploitation flicks, The Usual Suspects, and, in one of the more memorable moments in hip hop history, an overused (but still fantastic) loop lifted from the Bob James song "Nautilus" for the posse cut "Daytona 500", which was then turned into a music video cutting footage from the cartoon Speed Racer to match the vocals, a highly influential move that still inspires YouTube content creators to this day. With features from every group member apart from Dirty, who was dealing with his own shit at the time, Ironman surpassed expectations, establishing Ghostface Killah as a lyricist to be reckoned with while building RZA's resume, proving that he was more than capable of crafting beats around the idiosyncrasies of his collaborators, a skill he'd have many more opportunities to prove.

Let's talk about Ghostface Killah's Ironman today, you two.

RZA's Five-Year Plan #6: Ghostface Killah - Ironman (October 29, 2996)

Link to original write-up

Link to a Reader Review (written by A.R. Marks)

-Max

The Twelve Days of Wu-Mas 2024 - Day #8

 

Happy New Year for those who celebrate, but if you're someone who constantly wishes to pretend like it's still 2018, do you, I don't judge. This year, the holiday that commemorates the persistent movement of time, counting down the hours as we all eventually shuffle off of this mortal coil, and the day that we all arbitrarily decide to create "new" and "healthy" habits even though it's just a day, if you really wanted to cut back on your drinking and Fortnite addiction you could have started at any time last summer, Jonathan, happens to fall on a Wednesday, and based on what I wrote a week ago today, I'm hoping you both know what that means!

Correct, it's time for episode two of Wu-Wednesday, RandoMax Radio's limited series shining the brightest spotlight on the Wu-Tang Clan and their various affiliates, with some old, some newer, some very well-known, and some obscure stuff presented for your listening pleasure, along with some other shit I found amusing at the time. Last week's episode received a pretty good response, and I'm hoping we can keep that going for the duration.

Enjoy!

-Max

The Twelve Days of Wu-Mas 2024 - Day #7

For my money, the best solo album from a Wu-Tang Clan member is Liquid Swords, the third RZA-produced project of 1995, from the artist formerly known as The Genius. Of course, this wasn't actually the guy's debut album, which may help explain why the guy felt so at ease behind the microphone - he was already a jaded veteran of the music industry. You see, Gary "GZA" Grice, cousin to RZA (a lot of the Wu is a family affair, which you'll notice if you follow the group's timeline long enough), was already a solo artist, having signed a deal with Cold Chillin' Records, which released his debut, Words From the Genius, back in 1991. That effort never went anywhere, both because The Genius wasn't the most marketable artist out there and because the label didn't believe in such widespread philosophies such as "marketing", so the album died a horrible death on the vine, with the experience hardening GZA so much that he stepped back and regrouped, helping to build the Wu-Tang Clan from its inception, so that when his time came back around, he'd be ready.

Liquid Swords isn't just my favorite Wu solo project, it's many of yours, as well. RZA once again tailored his instrumentals to the artist, GZA's lyrical sniper keen on storytelling, detail-oriented shit-talking, and, on more than one occasion, gimmicky songs that follow a singular theme to their natural conclusion (see: "Labels"). He was also one of the more chameleon-esque members of the group, fully at home within the dark, deep in the dirty dungeon themes of Method Man (see: "Shadowboxin'"), the criminal underworld of Raekwon the Chef (see: "Investigative Reports"), and even the funhouse mirror-shattering audio anxiety of Ol' Dirty Bastard (tell me you can;t hear ODB over the "Liquid Swords" beat and I'll call you a liar to your face), but also in command of his own instrument within a unique chamber of his own, as songs such as "Duel of the Iron Mic", "Cold World", and "4th Chamber" can attest. 

I feel like I could go on and on about Liquid Swords, a project released when The Genius was still transitioning his stage identity from his past life into his Wu family (hence why it's credited to "Genius/GZA", instead of his later work, which transposes the two), but the most important piece is that this album, along with the debuts from Raekwon, Method Man, and Ol' Dirty Bastard, solidified RZA's reputation as one of the finest producers our chosen culture has ever birthed, and while his music sounds absolutely nothing like this today, the dude remains a fucking genius, even if the nickname was already taken by his cousin.

Today, let's talk about Liquid Swords.

RZA's Five-Year Plan #5: Genius/GZA - Liquid Swords (November 7, 1995)

Link to original write-up

Link to a Reader Review (written by Banksta)

-Max