With synths that appear to scream out in pain, this is one of Dr Dre’s weirdest concoctions. It was also fun to hear Nate Dogg sounding so emo and getting a chance to croon about something other than being a horny stoner. This shot of cathartic rage is still wildly inspiring, even if its appearance on every video game trailer sponsored by Mountain Dew might have diluted its impact a little. But the playful nocturnal funk of It’s OK, which is littered with enthusiastic ad-libs from best friend Proof, results in the record’s most inspired rapping, as an introspective Em uncharacteristically discusses finding God. Much of Eminem’s forgotten 1996 debut, Infinite, is spent trying to imitate the multi-syllabic flow of Kool G Rap over beats that sound like cheap rip-offs from Nas’s Illmatic. This is that rare museum exhibit that doesn’t bore you to tears, with Em giving his fans a nostalgic serotonin boost after a duo of truly awful albums: Recovery, and The Marshall Mathers LP 2. On this overlooked B-side, Eminem tears through the thunderous boom-bap of Black Moon’s classic street-corner drama, I Got Cha Opin.
But after years of disappointing albums plagued with turgid stadium pop, it was just exciting to hear Eminem sound so fired up again – he makes for a very convincing Victor Meldrew.
Mocking the supposed cliches of mumble rap, Em is essentially an angry old man shouting at a (Sound)cloud. Just like Jay-Z’s similarly misguided DOA (Death of Autotune), The Ringer is a track from a veteran unhappy with the direction rap is headed. Critics hated the creepy accent, which sounds like the bastard child of Borat and the Simpsons’ Groundskeeper Willie, but by embodying such a ludicrous pastiche of a serial killer, Em enjoyed a much-needed dose of escapism at a time where his private life was starting to unravel. Some critics have dismissed this as empty “rappity rap”, but the fact a 41-year-old still cared this much about his craft deserves our respect.Īlthough Marshall Mathers has repeatedly trashed 2009’s Relapse in interviews, the record, which is a nightmarish ode to horrorcore rap, has aged well – particularly this dread-inducing tale of a stalker who lynches Lindsay Lohan. Eminem illustrates all the cadences he has mastered over the years, channelling flows from influences such as Tech N9ne and Big Pun like an exorcist summoning spirits, and moving through an impressive 1,560 words in just six minutes.
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