Flatbush Zombies - Thug Waffle (Internet, 2011) 

Say hello to the Flatbush Zombies, a duo of undead rappers out of Brooklyn who would rather devour waffles than brains. The Flatbush Zombies have been creating small ripples throughout the bloggosphere since they dropped their twist on Kreayshawn’s Gucci Gucci six months ago, a dope little get together where the two wax macabre lyrics over Kreay’s Ritalin-fueled hit. Thug Waffle gives us visuals to go with their latest song, which is quickly picking up some steam. Meechy Darko opens the song with his flow, which is absolutely intoxicating, and I’m happy he carries through to the hook. Zombie Juice makes sure to keep things rolling though - both have great chemistry, and it’s nice to see another duo in a world full of awkward rap collaborations. I’m sure we can expect more from these Brooklyn boys as the year rolls on. For now, check out their SoundCloud. 

The Throne - Otis (Def Jam, 2011)

I think this video speaks volumes to me about Tumblr’s counter-culture aesthetic. It’s the first music video off of the most anticipated album of the year, and not a single person posted it on my dashboard in the past 24 hours. Not even to say anything bad about it. Is that because it’s particularily uninteresting or because the video’s too happy and fun to really hate?

I didn’t like Otis when it first came out. It was only the second song to be revealed from the album, and it felt like Jay and Ye’s present to the old heads, yo. You know, our mortal enemies. Yet as time went on, the combination of Jay and Ye’s back and forth (they finish eachother’s bars!) and that bassline had won me over. Much like the video for Lil Wayne and Rick Ross’s similarly-named-after-a-deceased-singer John converted many people into fans of that piece of shit, this video turned me into a believer.

The energy’s just so positive; based, even. The fact they they’re deconstructing a Maybach in front of our eyes while winking to the camera is absolutely hilarious to me, too; it pretty much addresses most of the critics’ complaints without uttering a single word. Arrogant, smug, cash coming out of their asses (pause). Yep, that’s pretty much the foundation of this album, and they know it.

s/o to Aziz Ansari for appearing to cheese for those all too brief three seconds.

The Throne - Illest Motherfucker Alive (Def Jam, 2011)

So, Watch The Throne was released little more than a day ago and it had the internet goin’ nutz (© Paul Wall, 2005). Lots of people wrote reviews about the album only a few hours removed from its release, and some bloggers started writing those reviews before they’d even heard the album. No one needs to, or should, write about this album, yet I have thought about it enough and digested the content to the point that I feel the need to dispose of it in some form. What comes next maybe diarrhea in text form.

First, the song featured, Illest Motherfucker Alive, is the “hidden song” that bridges the gap between the standard and deluxe versions of the album. It’s produced by Waka Flocka’s main contributor, Southside, along with additional work done by Kanye himself and his personal MPC carrier, Rap-A-Lot legend Mike Dean. Like H.A.M, this is clearly part of the first incarnation of Watch The Throne (apparently there were three different versions of this album before the conclusive one); one which, from the sounds of it, aimed to be an art-house Flockaveli. Which is an incredibly interesting idea, far more intriguing than the final product could ever hope to be, but I digress. This is the castle music Jay and Ye promised to bring us when the project was announced.

When you take Southside’s 808s and sprinkle them with Kanye’s bells, whistles,  and church choirs, expertly mixed by Mike Dean, you get something that transcends the sum of all its parts and stands as a strong entry both Ye and Jay’s discography. At least from a production standpoint; the rapping, like many others places on the album, aims too high and falls into complacent territory. Kanye names off every famous Russell he knows with no connection other than their being famous, being Russell and knowing Kanye, while Jay name-checks Michael Jordan, The Beatles, Robert De Niro, AND Scarface all in perhaps the most cliche verse he’s ever written. But you know what? It works. Watch The Throne just .. fucking works, despite and in spite of everything it has going for it and against it.

The album presents a lot to work with when it comes to writing, but it doesn’t really make itself all that interesting to write about. Writing about this album almost feels obligatory, like there’s some sense of obligation that comes with this release just because it’s Kanye and Jay. The same can be said about both Jay and Kanye at this point in their careers - the idea of their albums are far more interesting than the actual content. But does that make Watch The Throne bad? Do we need innovative techniques and profound content to really enjoy music?

Watch The Throne is The Hangover 2 of albums, if I can give a recent example. A wholly enjoyable experience that I find myself returning to frequently, but I never walk away from it with anything. It’s a hell of a ride while it lasts, but you forget it the instant it’s over until you get the itch to revisit again. Like The Hangover 2, both of these projects’ success can be solely attributed to their creators’ previous triumphs, and despite the industry standards and cloned ideas each present, they still remain feel good experiences. Perhaps because each was given a bottomless budget, and their creators have enough talent to create something enjoyable when they’re coasting on their laurels alone.

Album of the year? Nah. Classic? Definitely not. But does that really matter? Watch The Throne’s impact may not exceed its own boundaries, but it’s satisfying for the moment, and that’s all life is a series of.

And yes, I’d still rather Observe The Ferraris.

Chris Brown (feat. Busta Rhymes & Lil’ Wayne) - Look At Me Now (Jive, 2011)

Chris Brown’s upcoming F.A.M.E. is his first true post-Rihanna album, because everyone was still obsessing about how he socked that bitch in her mouth when Graffiti came out, making the music an afterthought. How does it hold up? Better than Rihanna’s latest, LOUD, at least, although it certainly won’t do the same numbers that album did. Brown is definitely one of the more interesting commercial R&B singers, especially with JT continuing to focus on his film career and The-Dream being unable to even get a gold plaque on his own music (he sure does rake in the dough with all those songs he writes for others, though). He’s one of the few Michael Jackson-impersonators who don’t come off horribly awkward; this is because he has a decent pen-game, a subtle, underappreciated voice and a good ear for music. Only some of that is present on this record - because really, Look At Me Now isn’t really Breezy’s show.

Look At Me Now is a record that is pretty much dedicated to showcasing sharp tongues (pause) - both Wayne and (especially) Busta bust this track down, Wayne speeding up his cadence to pleasent results and Busta just fucking shutting shit down on his verse using his signature what the fuck?! delivery. Chris handles the chorus, as he should, and his verses in the beginning aren’t nearly as bad as others are making them out to be. He’s not a good rapper, but he’s certainly not a horrible one either - he should definitely stick to singing either way, and don’t worry, folks, he will.

But the people truly behind the magic of this song are Diplo and Afrojack, who crafted perhaps the best beat heard thus far in 2011. A big, sprawling electronic epic, this beat goes in so many directions, all of them as fascinating as the last. Sounding very alien (or maybe L-E-N?) in nature, the extra-terrestrial qualities that this beat carries allow everyone on the track to adapt their flows specifically for the beat, making everyone aboard, including Chris, sound like their spacecraft just crashed nearbye, and their only method of communicating with the local residents is through rhyme; which would explain why Bus and Wayne are rapping with such a purpose, like their lives depended on it.

Kanye West (feat. Talib Kweli & Consequence) - Chain Heavy (G.O.O.D. Music, 2010)

I am the day Ice Cube met Michael Jackson

I’ve seen a lot of people ask why this was excluded from My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, and the answer is simple: it doesn’t fit. For the same reason that See Me Now (which is only mediocre in reality) and Mama’s Boyfriend (we haven’t heard that yet, but it won’t be long) didn’t make the cut, this song doesn’t fit on the album sonically or conceptually. Even though Kanye’s lyrics were clearly recorded with the same mindset of MBDTW (they try to tell me my chain broke the levee, cause it’s flooded), with everyone blaming Kanye for all of America’s problems (something that’s sadly portrayed as true by a lot of media outlets), but I think Kanye’s probably defending himself too much on this song to fit on the self-aware affair that is his album.

Kanye’s still excellent here though, spitting some of the funniest shit you’re gonna hear this side of the Based God (Don Cheadle time! Get extra black on ‘em!), and the overall idea of a song semi-based off Kanye’s gigantic chain is awesome to me. Talib and Cons ride shotgun, and Talib drops his usual sixteen, nothing wrong with it but nothing really noteworthy either. Consequence on the other hand proves why he’s still one of the best guest features on G.O.O.D. Music, as he borrows his Gone flow, to spit a verse using all the definitions of chain he can in conjuction with it. His cousin, Q-Tip, produces the beat, which samples some song I’ve never heard of but immediately reminds me of the spaceship title screen from the beginning of Ed Wood.

This is one of the six G.O.O.D. Fridays released so far I intend on keeping on my harddrive, so props to everyone involved here.