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September 26, 2006
From the slums of Shaolin, Method Man strikes again
“How can you say that I’m washed up when I’m the dirtiest thing in sight?” asks Method Man (birth name Clifford Smith) on the intro to his new album 4:21 The Day After. Named for the clarity apparently achieved on April 21st, after the day Meth himself proclaims one either “rolls up or rolls out,” The Day After is Method Man’s reflection on the business of hip hop and the more personal issues in his life. “You feel like you’re not in on the joke, and everyone’s laughing at you. I felt like no one was taking me seriously. I got real angry and I just starting writing,” he said in a statement before the album came out.
Method Man exploded on the national hip-hop scene with the Wu-Tang Clan’s Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) in 1993. His feature track “M-E-T-H-O-D Man” was a hit single as well as his spotlight song. As a result of the album, the Clan was the top of the pops in rap, and seemingly everyone took notice of Method’s rough-as-sandpaper tone, style and verse. Method Man released several successful solo albums throughout the mid-90s, as well as forming the foundation for most of the Wu-Tang collective albums. His most recent album before 4:21, Tical:0 The Prequel, was mediocre, disjointed, and inconsistent. The inconsistencies may have resulted from the lengthly list of producers on the disc.
The Day After is a much more cohesive effort than Tical:0, and its partially due to a larger RZA (Wu-Tang’s in-house producer) presence as he produces several of the 20 tracks. There are also beats contributed by Scott Storch, Mathematics, Eric Sermon, and K1Mill. Guest spots by Inspectah Deck, Lauryn Hill, and Ol’ Dirty Bastard, among others, also contribute to this albums cleverness. Many, such as those who maintain the official Wu Tang website (www.wutangcorp.com), claim that 4:21 has not been promoted adaquately as there is no video and has been scarcely mentioned outside of Myspace.com. Despite this setback, 4:21 The Day After debuted in eighth place on the American Billboard charts with 62,000 sold.
The Day After incorporates the lengendary haunted hip-hop sounds that the Wu-Tang Clan made famous while falling in line with the current trends. The production is essentially where this feel comes from. The mix of RZA and producers like Scott Storch isn’t abrasive. On The Day After, they actually seem to complement eachother. The music is ominous and impressive without being overbearing. After all, Method Man has always been more intense on the lyrical level. As far as that goes, 4:21 isn’t necessarily anything Method Man hasn’t done before. He’s still as brash and cerebral as ever, but the emotions on this album seem to cut deeper than before. He references Ol’ Dirty Bastard several times on the album, and even admits to crying over his death in November of 2004.
In the Wu Tang Clan canon, it would be hard to pen this album as a classic. However, put into context, that only means that this album isn’t absolutely incredible. 4:21 The Day After is a good, clever album. It is a sufficient comeback for Mr. Meth, but it does more to leave a Wu enthusiast hoping the entire Clan will put out a new joint soon. Speaking of which, wutangcorp.com reports that RZA and Meth just entered the studio to begin work on such a project last week.
Posted by dwright at September 26, 2006 10:53 PM
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