Joe Budden - A Loose Quarter
Those who still antagonize rapper Joe Budden for his 2003 hit "Pump It Up," need to face the present. Despite being considered a one-hit wonder in mainstream terms, Budden has proven himself to be a recognizable force in underground hip-hop, not only for his lyricism but his transparency with fans.
His 600,000-plus Twitter followers and countless anonymous trolls who dedicate time to bringing up his every imperfection can agree that, yes, Budden reacts entirely too much to Internet prodding - but his colorful reactions and real-life accounts via social networks merge with his talent to make for undeniable music.
Budden's latest mixtape, A Loose Quarter,was released three days in advance and two days shy of Thanksgiving. Overall, the mixtape is a breath of fresh air; it's hip-hop without the bells and whistles, but it's relatable hip-hop all the same.
After the intro,the mixtape begins on an aggressive note with "Words of A Chameleon," which is produced by aarabMuzik. "What Ya'll Want," was an immediate middle finger to those who attribute his relevance to the relationship and Internet drama.
"More of Me," featuring R&B singer Emanny, is the most honest track on the mixtape. It brings to light the love for his current girlfriend, Kaylin Garcia, and the dark past she's overcome, which in turn made her a mental support system in Budden's life.
Budden then takes the focus from the women he's dating and arguing with and turns it toward the one woman whose word trumps his.
On "Momma Said," Budden reflects on a conversation with his mother that touches on topics ranging from the rocky relationship he has with both his parents, his relationships with women and, most importantly, the people in his life who continuously take advantage of the rapper. Despite the track being Budden's take on the conversation, he has no qualms admitting she's the one person all the fronting in the world couldn't fool.
"She said, 'People living in your house,'/'Don't pay s**t, not respectable,'/I told her, they're folks I think highly of /She said, 'Well, they must think less of you,'" Budden raps.
The glory of Joe Budden lies in his ability to live confidently like an established rapper while not allowing the urge to become mainstream drown his music. The beats are simple but infectious, and stick to Budden's trend of incorporating a live band as opposed to sole production effects - which add to the intimacy of the majority of his tracks.
The mixtape also holds features from the likes of Ab-Soul, Royce Da 5'9" - one of Budden's fellow Slaughterhouse members -and Tsu-Surf.
Some might argue Budden's content is too heavy for their taste, but the manner in which the New Jersey native packs confessions into four to five minute tracks is the reason most love him; Budden is underrated.
Fabolous - The Soul Tape 2
It doesn't measure up to the first Soul Tape.
Two less tracks and beats that were personally sorted out and handpicked by Fabolous wasn't enough to live up to the hype of its predecessors.
"Riesling & Rolling Papers," from the original Soul Tape,helps give a clear-cut difference in what rapper Fabolous tried to do with The Soul Tape 2.
While Fab's seventh mixtape was released on Thanksgiving Day, no soul in this tape was found. The mixtape shows no personality and is not as relatable as Fabolous' previous works. You might have tricked mom and grandma when you told them The Soul Tape 2 is going to be on heavy rotation, but they'll be disappointed when they hear a couple lyrics and dismiss it for lack of soul.
The tape held very high expectations, but those hopes begin to flicker throughout the first 10 tracks.
The tracks "Transformation" and "B.I.T.E." open with a recording of the late Biggie Smalls, and from the pattern, you would figure this to be a recurring feature on every other track. But you can negate those pipe dreams; the ghost of B.I.G. vanishes after the third track, never to reemerge on The Soul Tape 2 again.
"Louis Vuitton," featuring J. Cole is just that - J. Cole's track. The North Carolina rapper spits two verses, each one better than Fab's, and Fab's singing on the hook doesn't help the track, either.
One of the most redeeming tracks on this mixtape is "Life is so Exciting" featuring Pusha T. This can only be played with high volumes, and both artists held their own. Fab came out the running blocks for the opening leg looking undefeated on this collaboration.
"The lifestyle, too fly/My new b*****s get next flighted/I say I'm back to the old me but my old b*****s'll get excited," Fab raps.
Fab runs the last leg and coasts to the finish line, making "Life is so Exciting" an easy banger to be played at ignorant levels.
The rest of the mixtape is easily considered filler music - not the worst from the rapper, but not worth the thumb trouble of fast-forwarding on iTunes. But the final two tracks that follow these mediocre songs are among the best of the mixtape.
"Beauty," featuring MMG rapper Wale, is another example of Fabolous allowing his collaborators to outshine him on a track. Wale's raps have become better with time and his content contains plenty of witty lines that will draw likes on any social networking site.
"Beauty is loyalty to the fullest/Cause Cupid made me a target for she ever receive a bullet/For she acting super deep/Let me speed up before I pull out/If sex is a weapon (POW POW) her beauty don't need a bullet," Wale ignites.
"Want You Back," featuring Joe Budden and Teyana Taylor, showcases Fab's emotional side.
Whoever Fab is addressing on this track is easily disputed due to his social life, although Budden's lyrics and high-profile relationship roller coaster make it easy to know who he's addressing.
Overall, the mixtape is just OK. It's not worth skipping if it comes in rotation but not really something you go out of your way to listen to in its entirety.
In whole, this doesn't touch The Soul Tape.
Action Bronson - Rare Chandeliers
On Rare Chandeliers' mixtape cover, Action Bronson is wearing wolf skin over his tuxedo as he's firing his shotgun, a random male dressed in Tron-like attire uppercuts a wizard and a pink-haired stripper is posing with her hand replaced with a knife - among other things. And yes, this all make sense.
Action Bronson and producer The Alchemist's eccentricity and absurdist sense of humor makes them two of hip-hop's most likeable figures. But it's not just their personality. Action Bronson's Blue Chips, released earlier this year, and The Alchemist's extensive catalog show they have the serious talent to back their comic nature.
So it's quite understandable that Rare Chandeliers was one of 2012's most-hyped mixtape with two experts seemingly cut from the same cloth joining forces. It's no shock that it doesn't disappoint either.
Action Bronson broke free of those "Albanian Ghostface Killah" comparisons in Blue Chips, as his absurd-enough-to-be-believable personality, bars of non-sequiturs and hilarious food references drove the mixtape to be considered one of the best of the year. Rare Chandeliers is less about personality and more about technique.
This change of focus makes The Alchemist/Action Bronson combo work a little better. The lyrics nor the production outshine each other, allowing them to both be appreciated as two characters - characters who love doing insane things to women while kicking back and smoking a blunt. We saw snippets of this chemistry in this summer's "Elimination Chamber." Here we see the blend spread well over 13 songs.
Action Bronson continues with his narcissistic (he tells the listener to consider him an icon on Rare Chandeliers' stand out, "The Symbol") but loveable lyrics. The Alchemist work feels sort of like a time machine. The slow burn of "The Symbol" feels like something out of his early '00s groove, while "Gateway to Wizardry" could've easily have been a cut off 2011's Covert Coup. Even without that d?(c)j? vu context, the beat to "Sylvester Lundgren" is one of the most lethal of the year.
Action Bronson and The Alchemist doesn't take the entire spotlight, either; the featured guests have some sharp moments of their own. On "Demolition Man," Schoolboy Q personifies the title as he spits like a man who's at ease with being on the verge of exploding - this is his day job, after all. Roc Marciano's wordplay on "Modern Day Revelations" is just as thick as his verses on 2012 essential, Reloaded.
In short, Rare Chandeliers isn't going to make any waves. But for a raw hip-hop record, it does its job.
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