Back in the Bronx

Actually, I had Fat Joe, as a serious artist almost written off by the incredibly embarrassing Autotune Kirmesrapalbum "JOSE 2" to make the most desperate of all tests on former successes. Since "What's Luv" he came so constantly with these dubious radio singles, where he was chasing Kramp way the current trend without actually reach its destination. They took these derailments date with a grin out as the rest of his albums for the most part consisted of tried and true Bronx Tales on heavy BoomBap device what Joey Crack is so popular with its loyal fan base. While it having on the already considerable Verschleiserscheinungen "Elephant In The Room" were still to hear a DJ Premier-Reunion and KRS-One on Alchemist beats, you can "JOSE 2" up to half Exceptions confidently approve a prime example of "intercession every-which-case "-Poprap and the most disgusting form of sell-out call.
"Hits" wanted to do, "select sample beats with hooks and gescratchten about spitten" would be "the easiest" to do something "in his sleep." May well be. Only when that for which it is valued and what is best simply give up, do not be surprised about possible economic damage to itself. Not that I want Joe deny his sense for hits, after all, he has produced with "Lean Back" one of the biggest club banger the past decade. But "Lean Back" was just "Lean Back": raw, authentic, on a gut level - not designed weichgespühlt and unaesthetic. The masses in any case thanked Joey his "evolution" with devastating 8,800 units in the first week of sales. As the oft-quoted Jay-Z-Line fits "You lie, women lie, numbers do not" like the fist on the eye. Don Cartagena's altitude flight was abruptly ended, He must have immediately after the publication of figures packed his bags in Miami and taken the next plane to JFK - home in the South Bronx, where it belongs. Accordingly, is again the Fo-Fo polished on his ninth solo album now with the unmistakable title "The Darkside Vol. 1" and instead of "Cupcakes" again simmered pure crack. Thank heavens.

The simply with "Intro" titled opener makes at the beginning ever good pressure with hectic percussions, haunting strings and operatic vocal loops from Scram Jones' Bastelstube that since his outstanding work on "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Pt. II", the address for banging NeoBoombap appears to be. Joe spittet in its aggressive, intrusive flow ignorant announcements like "More coca to taste, more b * tches to beat up / Got Lips Like Meagan Good and at a * s like Vida / n * Most ggas'll go down if she'd Tell 'em to eat her / But she do not love me no more, she saw my episode of' Cheaters '"and fired back towards 50 Cent:" We gon' throw the biggest party When the Curtis ". How mean. The longtime companion and Miami-neighbors Cool & Dre are expanding The Mont Clair's '' Do I Stand A Chance "a very soulful and for the title" Valley of Death "rather leaning back piece of music on the Joe it consistently keeps hardcore. Strong track, I would have him more later when placed in second place, however.
For "I Am Crack" Just Blaze came thankfully down from his Euro Dance-trip and lacet a sinister NY-Stomper with the rock sample of Jada's Street 08'er single "Who Run This", which has been flipped here even more effective. On hissing hi-hats and dark sounds Joe picks up the old-fashioned concept of personalized intoxicant original on by itself plays the role of the drug, and shows the way, more hängengebleiben from Finesse'schen metaphor school. High is "I Am Crack" the first Just Blaze / Fat Joe collabo "Safe To Say" in every way, the two should spend definitely more studio time together. Also on a sample already used based "Kilo" with ticker colleagues Clipse and Killa Cam, unfortunately this time Joe's version draws the short straw: Ghostface and Raekwon have four years ago for a song by Ghost's "Fish Scale" exactly the same hook from the children's song "I Weigh With Kilos "used. Their earthy version is dearer to me than a lot of slightly soulless synth track by DJ Infamous, despite Cam'Ron's entertaining vocal performance. The second solid Infamous contribution "Rappers Are In Danger" also do not really skin off your feet. If the song to KRS-One's eponymous 95 turns Premo-Banger is ajar, I wonder why he has since produced not by Preem.
After the first album thirds rather rugged follows a handful of notorious radio singles and club songs. For the latter, Kid Frost's junior Scoop DeVille is responsible, the fatness Joey and young Jeezy with "Slow Down (Ha Ha)" even gave something like a hit. This time Joe did not commit the error, easy to pack a Jeezy song on his album, but picked a stylish fit to two collaborators instrumental, particularly the constantly draws attention to the lately beyond itself monitored Young Jeezy a good figure. In the "TM 103" I'm looking forward like a Cheshire cat. Somewhat arbitrarily, "No problem" with Rico Love, Scoop Deville for the drum pattern from Snoop's "I Wanna Rock" seems to me almost one-to-one accepts without even begin to achieve its energy level. Between them still romps mandatory LL imitation "If It Is not About Money" with Trey Songz at the Hook and Cool & Dre on well arranged synth beat. "How Did We Get Here" with R.Kelly Although sprayed by Raw Cut's powerful drums and vocals pitched a certain appeal, but can not do anything against "We Thuggin '" or Kells' other classic Rapkollabos. Very pleasant is the playful, the legendary "Pain" track samplende 2Pac tribute "Money Over B * tches", produced by Raw Cut, with TA and Too $ hort on guest rhyme. All those involved are burning with inspiration, Joe gathers diligently sympathy points with a loud Pac-references and $ horty The Pimp shoots with "Nah b * tch, It just will not happen / I'm just like Joe - I will not stop rappin 'the bird from.
The since 2006 gefeaturete on each Fat Joe record Lil Wayne makes this time the hook for the introspective "Heavenly Father", waived kindly to Autotune and instead it uses very effectively to Low Pitch effect a. The instrumental is by Street Runner, as always creates an elegant floating between ATL and NY-aesthetics sound image with the fusion of synthesizers, rapid-fire Snares, soul samples and -Vocals. Joe showered on inter alia abrechnenden with Big Pun's widow song so artfully and authentically also his soul, almost forget that Chris Young to beat previously used together with Weezy-Hook for itself. Among other things, it says: "I paid n * ggas rents, even paid n * ggas bails / Gave n * ggas jobs, so They would not go to jail / Did so much dirt, n * ggas knew I would not tell / Paid for some funerals, They propably went to hell ".
To my great joy shall, after Joey Crack only two years after his long-awaited meeting with DJ Premier on the Board About "That White" with "I'm Gone" the next Premo-Banger. Just one day after MC Legend and second half of Gang Starr, Keith Elam aka Guru (RIP) died, was this six-minute song that captures the atmosphere of those days for eternity. Accompanied by melancholy cellos and a sad Pianolick, Joe Guru devoted the first few lines of his 32 bars: "Premo on this beat, yeah I know it sounds different / But his man's just passed, his soul's just risen / A Cold, Cold World is the Word That was Given / Ace he'd seen me, fifteen with a burner out of prison / gangster, f * ck that, I'm Gang Starr / Tell Nas Hip Hop's dead now, my man's gone ". The last three and a half minutes of the Beat simply runs and Joe are Shout Out's to DITC, Chris Lighty thanks that he got signed him from Sraße, etc. In this form, the piece would complete the album perfectly, were it not for the subsequent plan clapped Bonus Track "At Least Supremacy" with a maniacal Busta Rhymes on the hook. The threatening Cool & Dre-monster from nasty strings, spooky background choirs and mighty bassline devours the thick Josef times just on the whole, as if it were hungrier than a North Korean gulag inmate. Crude track, but unfortunately totally out of place. In the first half of the album, he would have improved the already pleasing positive overall impression considerably.

He seems to have it well understood. With the return to his hardcore roots Joe beats at the last moment of a fatal collision at the helm. With such album even disastrously low sales figures are not too embarrassed, as a record full of supposed "chart hits". Since this is in "The Dark Side" also to "Volume 1" can accept reassured that Joe will continue this direction in the future. Nevertheless, this again leaves the aftertaste from the opportunism of a desperate order Relevance struggling artist. If you think about time: In the nineties Fat would have been "2 JOSE" radically ended Joe's career after an album like. '98 Roared some "Real keeper" after Puffy-feature on "Don Cartagena" already something of sell-out, although by far the best song to hear what Joe has ever published. But the rap fans today have meanwhile rumschlagen with rapping FBI V-men, be stripped and snogging Bloods and incidentally jobbing as prison guards drug lords because stimulates a something not even on.
The promised classics is "The Dark Side" nevertheless not become qulitativ commutes that thing somewhere between "All Or Nothing" and "Me, Myself & I", which is due to the beat choice especially. With twelve songs simply everyone has to be a grenade, unfortunately a bit average commodity has once again slipped. Where are actually LV & Sean C go? Their style would fit perfectly with the the plate. Why never goes Joe actually around the corner at Buck Wild or Lord Finesse Beats shop and pulls for Cool & Dre and DJ Khaled special trip to Miami? And why I do not deserve as an A & R in the States hundreds of thousands of dollars? Questions, questions. But "Volume 2" is still what calm still must be "darker" a little, with rap music for me may be rare hard enough. Am glad that the old Joe is back, by the way, his lyrical Game upsteppte respectable again. Complex multiple rhymes he copes effortlessly in a totally killer flow and liquid delivery and slaps here and there some really cool sayings. Thus, I urge each upright Rapfan without Fat Joe-aversion on "The Dark Side" to buy, not the Cokecook come back any ideas considering further declining sales.