Eminem – “Relapse” (Album Review)
Who wants Eminems?!? Get it? Eminems = M&Ms? Yeah? Ah, nevermind... don't do drugs.
Unfortunately for Eminem, his album leaked TWO WEEKS before its street date on 5/19/09. For a lot of artists, that would spell certain doom, but for most hip-hop heads it only validated something that we all suspected:
Fortunately for us, Eminem still has it.
“It”, of course, being the crazed, psychopathic, alter-ego persona that is missing from hip-hop. Usually there’s either “character” or “skills” when it comes to a rap artist. Usually there’s never both, but in this case there is. No one can do it quite like Eminem. It’s been that way for a long time, but is it enough to actually please fans enough to make them go and BUY the album on the 19th?
The GOOD: If you’re looking for a complete Relapse of Eminem into his old “Marshall Mathers LP” self, you’ll get that on a couple of tracks. But let’s be clear that this is more of all of Eminem’s flows mixed together to make this album flow almost PERFECTLY. From him going full serial killer (“3 AM”) to a childhood memory with his mother (“My Mom”) to…wait, incest??? (“Insane”) There is no doubt that Eminem is back with a vengeance.
The songs flow together perfectly and shows how he’s slowly slipping back into drugs and just when you think the album’s going to be predictable, it crashes and goes into an introspective Eminem as he analyzes his own life and reveals more about himself (“Déjà vu” and “Beautiful”). In short, the album is completely original, and gives you a sense of nostalgia that hasn’t been experienced in a VERY LONG time. If you’ve been with Eminem for the whole ride, you’ll love this album, and a couple of the interludes will make you laugh out loud.
The BAD: The only REAL problem with this CD is that Eminem changes his voice depending on the mood of the song. He carries an accent on certain songs (“Same Song & Dance”, “3 AM”) that might annoy some people, but if you can actually realize he’s in character and listen to the lyrics, you’d realize that he’s still a lyrical genius in every sense of the verb. And of course…”Insane” is maybe the most “OH MY GOD” song Eminem’s ever had… If you don’t like mental images, SKIP THIS SONG. Trust me.
The “Most Famous Eminem Intro Line EVER”: I was lying in my bed listening to the CD a week back and suddenly I heard…
“A lot of people ask me…”
And I SAT STRAIGHT UP. I was thinking to myself there’s no way he’s about to have complete “Marshall Mathers LP, BLACK OUT” moment, was he?
The short, sweet answer: YES. No accent. No introspective. No remorse. Eminem goes ALL IN on the outro track “Underground” with comical and vicious punch lines that will leave you smiling and wishing that it didn’t take him four years to release another album.
Bottom Line: Eminem’s back. If you enjoy Eminem on ANY type of level, there’s something on this album for you. If you’re an Eminem “Stan”, then you might go drive off a bridge in celebration of how good this album is. Ok, hopefully not, but you get the idea. It’s quality music.
Final Rating: 4.5/5
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The Notable Tracks:
- “Deja Vu” *Introspective Song, LISTEN*
- “Underground” *Vintage “Marshall Mathers LP” Eminem*
- “Same Song & Dance”
- “3 AM”
