Album Review: Word of Mouf - Ludacris

Merely a year after Back for the First Time, Ludacris would see a rise in popularity. 2001 would be the year that he made his first movie appearance in The Wash, A comedy starring Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. 2001 would also see Luda working with many more popular artists such as LL Cool J and Keith Murray on the track "Fatty Girl", Missy Elliot and Trina on "One Minute Man" and Lil Jon & The Eastside Boyz banger, "Bia Bia", that also featured Big Kapp, Chyna Whyte and Too $hort. Ludacris would then find himself ready to release a second studio album to the world, Word of Mouf.

Ludacris comes out swinging in his Sophomore album. The intro track, while reminiscent of BFTFTs intro track "U Got A Problem", "Coming 2 America" could psych anyone up with it's production and lyrical prowess. In fact, the title track summarizes my thoughts of this album quite perfectly being reminiscent of Back for the First Time but Harder and Better. The reason for this is that many songs on this album remind me of the first album in concept, which is understandable for Ludacris' lane, but the delivery of these concepts are at tip top shape.

I'll admit i said a couple of times that songs like "Area Codes" connects to "Ho" or "Go 2 Sleep" to "Stick Em Up" and obviously the title track "Word of Mouf (Freestyle)" to "Mouthing Off", but i feel like that was the point. To take a concept and expand on it further and better. Like when i start the album i auto connect to Back for the First Time without any complaints since he made good songs great but then he completely destroys my parallels by including tracks like "Growing Pains", "Saturday (Oooh! Oooh!)", and "Freaky Thangs". And these aren't the only tracks that separates the two albums as very unique entity's.

Ludacris lyrically came with his A game, dropping dope verses left and right with impressive flow and his notorious word play. Every song comes across unique in it's approach while still showing that charismatic Ludacris, toning it down when necessary like "Cold Outside" and "Growing Pains". This being said the 18 track album doesn't feel that long at all.

To help keep the album up to pace are the creative and memorable chorus' that go along with each track. Even by my second listen of the album i was hooked and singing each chorus, which is fantastic his ability to get the fans involved so quickly. I'll admit they're simple but i'd be lying if i said i didn't enjoy yelling "MOVE BITCH GET OUT THE WAY" every time the infamous track came on.

The only time the verses and chorus' didn't do it's effects were the two tracks "Keep it on the Hush" and "Freaky Thangs". The problem i had with "Keep it on the Hush" featuring Jazze Pha, despite him doing a good job on the chorus and intro/outro, was how boring it felt in comparison to the rest of the album. I understand that it's a track for the ladies, and marks the beginning of Luda's love songs, but i just could not get into it. It's a lullaby of "What's Your Fantasy" that just feels slow for me. Similar with "Freaky Thangs", the verses from both Twista and Ludacris were great but the chorus, sung by Jagged Edge, just felt so awkward to me. Once again i couldn't get into it and found myself avoiding the track.

The only other track that i found myself questioning is "Growing Pains". First off, while i love it, i truly believe this should have been on Fate Wilson's album. He dominated the track and made Luda feel like a feature. That being said the song sends mixed messages. The chorus, sung by Keon Bryce, feels so deep and heartfelt while the verses by Luda and Fate don't deliver the same emotion. While it does match concepts in the reflection aspect, the verses feel more like general narratives of their pasts rather than emotional retrospectives. While Luda came the closest to matching the emotion, he eventually drops it and follows Fate's example of casual narrating.

The thing that confuses it even more is the Skit that precedes the track. While it matches well with the verses it once again does not fit with the chorus. This, however was the only skit i even had a slight problem with. Every other mini skit that accompanied a song, or individual skit in general, either did a great job connecting or preparing one for the upcoming song or was just plain hilarious, a lot of times both. Each one was perfect length and very well placed, rarely ever disconnecting songs. It even aloud for Luda's personality and charm to shine even brighter.

This all being true, Luda wasn't the only one to shine on Word of Mouf. Also apart of the album was a wide array of well placed features. The first feature was on Track 3, "Go 2 Sleep", A battle between the DTP squad and Three 6 Mafia that proved that lyrically Disturbing Tha Piece is the better of the two groups.The next feature was "She Said" featuring Fate Wilson, a track calling out women who lie about their sexual experiences. Another feature was Nate Dogg, on the single "Area Codes", who did a great job balancing out Ludacris by singing the chorus and his own verse. Skipping over "Growing Pains" is the Infamous jam "Move Bitch" featuring Mystikal and I-20. Each rapper on this track brought their own diversity and energy that makes this song great. The next feature was Sleepy Brown on the weekend anthem "Saturday (Oooh! Oooh!)". Honestly, the only thing he did, that i could tell, was say 'It's Saturday' which sounds good but not much of a feature.

After that, skipping "Keep It On The Hush", was the title track "Word of Mouf (Freestyle)" featuring 4-Ize. First off, I prefer the original "Mouthing Off". Lyrically both artists are killing it and Luda has a better verse than last time but it was shorter and not as much fun as the first. This doesn't change that this combo is still incredible. The next track is "Get the Fuck Back" featuring the DTP cast of Shawnna, I-20, and Fate Wilson. This Posse Cut is fantastic, each artist plays well off each other both in the chorus' and in the verses. One thing you may not know about me is that i love songs that have the artists switching verses off like old Souls Of Mischief, in tracks like "93 'Til Infinity" and "Batting Practice",and Bad Meets Evil, in "Fast Lane" and "I'm on Everything", and while they didn't flow off each other they transitioned very well from artist to artist with straight bars. The last sung feature i want to mention is Chimere on "Cold Outside", a track dedicated to survival despite how hard and harsh the situation may be. While she basically only had backing vocals, it added this extra emphasis that the track didn't necessarily need but simply improved nonetheless.

There is one last feature i need to mention when talking about Word of Mouf, and that feature being Faizon Love, a comedic actor who has starred in Friday, Elf, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas as well as other movies. His commentary added some extra humor to various songs and skits. Honestly it's not that big of a deal but pure actors have yet to show up in these reviews and i thought i'd mention it.

Other people that need to be mentioned are the various producers in this album. The production was great across that board and fit Luda perfectly with some loud in your face tracks, like "Get The Fuck Back" and "Move Bitch", Some funky tracks, like "Keep it on the Hush" and "Area Codes", and just some straight up fun tracks, "Cry Babies (Oh No), "Saturday (Oooh!Oooh!)" and "Word of Mouf (Freestyle)". Returning producers include, Timbaland, Mr. Bangladesh, and Organized Noize. Alongside them were new producers Shondrae, Swizz Beatz, Jazze Pha, P. King, KLC, Chaka Kulu, and Jook.

Before i get into the negatives there are two last tracks i must mention. One is the Bonus, "Block Lockdown" and the other is a hidden track "Welcome to Atlanta". "Block Lockdown" is a fantastic in your face song which should completely be Luda's Track, except for the I-20 feature. This track is also produced by Bangladesh but Funkmaster Flex for whatever reason is the lead on the track. The Hidden Track occurs right after "Block Lockdown" where Jermaine Dupri and Ludacris collaborate again, the first being the Dupri produced track "Get Off Me" with Pastor Troy. Jermaine also has his own verse to this bouncing track.  The reason i bring these tracks up separate is that they would have been great as stand alone songs instead of receiving that "Bonus" title. Despite this, their position in the track listening fits perfectly.

I actually only have one complaint for this great album. The problem is, although it doesn't feel that long, is that this album has 15 musical tracks with 3 skits. By the end you still feel like you've been doing something for a long time, or longer than necessary. I mean it's great to have a large catalog of good music and you definitely feel like you're getting your money's worth but there's not much i can do with that length of an album without having to start and stop it constantly.

There's not much else to say about this album besides that it's Great. A lot of things work in this album that give the listener a great experience and if you're a Luda fan there's no reason for you to have not heard this album.

Rating: Classic 

Stand-Out Tracks: Coming 2 America, Roll Out (My Business), Go 2 Sleep, Cry Babies (Oh No), Area Codes, Growing Pains, Move Bitch, Saturday (Oooh!Oooh!), Word of Mouf (Freestyle), Get The Fuck Back, Freaky Thangs, Cold Outside, Block Lockdown, Welcome to Atlanta

After Thoughts: I originally planned on making this merely a Classic In The Making until i realized that i listed almost every song in the Stand-Out Tracks. Every song feels different, fresh and great and although i didn't like "Keep it on the Hush" much, i can't deny that it's still a good song as a stand alone track, just boring in comparison to the others. There's very little i'd add or take away from this album and honestly i've been bumping it for the past 2 weeks as i've prepared for this review. It's not my favorite style of hip hop but this is definitely one of favorite albums.

Single Review: MMMMMHMMMMM - Four Fists

I'm sure if you've seen my reviews that you know i'm a big P.O.S and Astronautalis fan, So you could only imagine my face when i saw that they were collaborating on tracks like "HandMade HandGun", "Story of My Life" and "Wanted/Wasted". Now let's take a moment to imagine my face when i heard about a year or so ago that they had planned on becoming a group titled Four Fists.

Well time passed, with each releasing their own solo album and me still gleefully anticipating the duo. That was until today while i was checking my phone that i saw an email, since i'm subscribed to the DoomTree website, with the title, "FOUR FISTS 6666 P.O.S x ASTRONAUTALIS". Skimming through the email, anticipation began surging when i realized that they had released a track that i couldn't listen to.

So once i got home i watched the first 1 minute teaser video with a song that sounded vaguely familiar. In fact, anyone who has seen the live performances, be it live or YouTube video, which for whatever reason i can't find now, could recognize this song, at least the chorus. This reminded me that this album has been in development for years, and that all that waiting would finally be appreciated soon in what i think will be an incredible project, and this new track, in the sense that it's finally recorded and mastered, helps back my thoughts.

The track "MMMMMHMMMMM" is a heavy hitter, incorporating the Electro-Punk sound that P.O.S' used in We Don't Even Live Here. Although the production reminds me of WDELH, there is this fresh feel coming from it, and while some people may be reminded of modern pop artists, to me this has enough of a experimental feel to not come across as merely using a gimmick.

Along with the production the Lyrics also lack that gimmick feel. Both artists are playing well to their strong parts with Astronautalis delivering a great sung/rapped verse and P.O.S pulling from his Punk Rock skills to deliver the chorus and verse breaks then returning to his Hip-Hop style to deliver a dope verse.

While the chorus itself is rather simple to understand and repeat, you can tell that a lot of thought went into the words. (No Calm/ No Hesitations/ No Alarms/ No Self Preservations/ Just Nerves and Ashtrays and on and on/ No Sleep/ Without Assistance/Got to Bash the Weight into Submission?/ Just Close the Windows and Lock the Doors) The concept once again feels reminiscent of We Don't Even Live Here, yet the delivery is so fresh and feels different.

Astronautalis' verse comes as expected, well thought out, brain teasing and lyrical impressive. Although the lines don't totally blow me away like other tracks have, lines like "Good Fences make Good Neighbors/ Go ahead friend, Call my Bluff" still help expand the concepts being displayed.

It's at this point that P.O.S jumps in and dopely delivers his perspective. Even off the first listen you pull great quotable's that only get better. "Workin the Nerves of a little birdy/ Told you what? Lies Right?" and "This head seeks yours/ and you should not explore the depths of it/ Just re-collect your common sense and run/ Period". Which is funny cause while Lupe also had a punctuation line in "Bitch Bad" ("First he's relating the word bitch with his Momma - Comma"), but the delivery in comparison comes across so much better when P.O.S did it, at least in my opinion.

The biggest thing here is that neither artists feels like they are pulling the project. It feels rather symmetrical in my mind on how things were split, especially when it was co-produced by the duo. P.O.S dominated the chorus and had a sweet sixteen while Astronautalis backed the chorus and had a great verse as well. While it may look unbalanced there, listen and see what i'm talking about...or maybe i'm crazy.

All in All i'm coming to love this track the more i listen. Everything feels like it took time to get it as perfect as possible, and although there are some lines that are kinda hard to hear, it still sounds really good the way it's said. Oh and for those looking for the Mhm's, they're towards the end of Astronautalis' verse.

If you couldn't tell...I'm excited for this album.

Rating: Listen Soon

Album Review: Back for the First Time - Ludacris

Ludacris, for those that don't know, is an Atlanta-based rapper known for many things whether it be his music, his record label, Disturbing Tha Peace, or his various movie roles. Chances are, anyone who's been alive since at least the 90's knows who Ludacris is for any one of these reasons, however this album came out right before his more popular appearances. Not saying that this isn't a very popular album, considering it's gone at least 3x platinum, but that his more notorious works appear a bit later.

Now, many people may know that Back for the First Time was pretty much a re-releasing of Incognegro, considering that they came out almost months apart from each other, except through a major label. Since Incognegro was a pretty popular independent release, it was decided that Back for the First Time would be the "updated" version for the world to see. Incognegro would lose 3 songs, "It Wasn't Us", "Midnight Train" and "Rock and a Hard Place", and instead gain 4 new songs, "Stick Em Up", with UGK, "Southern Hospitality", produced by The Neptunes, "What's Your Fantasy Remix", now featuring Trina and Foxy Brown, and a previously released track, "Phat Rabbit", produced by Timbaland.

While i have not listened to Incognegro to know what i'm missing, i do know that i enjoy Back for the First Time. One thing about me is that i rarely listen to party music alone, i always get that feeling that "if i'm not partying, party music is merely a tease", and so you'll find me instead listening to lyrical artists. While Ludacris isn't the most lyrical and is very much party music, i can't pretend that i wouldn't listen to Luda alone, for various reasons.

As many people already know, Ludacris is a funny person and that shows in this album. Luda's hilarious persona is out in full view for the majority of this album, and i enjoyed every minute of it. Now while this album isn't as hyper as some of his later works, I'm looking at you Word of Mouf, it still packs that Luda punch, with some surprisingly lyrical sucker punches.

This album is one of those truly impressive south albums where the chorus' are catchy as anything while the lyrics are straight nasty. And this isn't just Luda, but his cast of features. While some lines came across rather weak, at least in my standards today, every verse was legit and brought the right energy to it. While there were very few lines that caught me off guard or wowed me, Ludacris was easily able to hold my attention throughout the entire project.

I'm sure the assistance of the production made this easier, as well. The production was so hyped with beats made by Bangladesh, Organized Noize, Jermaine Durpi, The Neptunes, Timbaland, and even a couple by Luda himself. There were times where the beat was in your face like "Game Got Switched" and "What's Your Fantasy" while time's that they were just plain jammin like "Hood Stuck", "Southern Hospitality" and "Get Off Me" then there were other times where they were just plain spitteriffic tracks like "1st and Ten" and "U Got a Problem". No matter what the purpose of each track, all of them will bang in your speakers somehow, even the dope laidback "Mouthing Off".

Speaking of "Mouthing Off" , which is almost like a street corner cypher, my favorite feature comes from this track. 4-Ize absolutely kills it, infusing pop culture with his dope lines, i'll explain in more detail on the Track By Track Review. There were about 10 features on this album and all were well placed and well used. I-20 and Fate Wilson, from DTP, had great verses rivaling Luda in the tracks "1st and Ten", a lyrical countdown, and "Catch Up", A realization yet defiant response concerning their bad habits. And while Shawnna only sang the chorus in "What's Your Fantasy", she receives back up in the remix from Trina and Foxy Brown, who do a good job showing the female perspective of the sexual anthem. Another good feature was a fresh Pastor Troy on "Get Off Me", an elbow throwing track where Troy and Luda occasionally traded off lines with each other in their verses. The final, somewhat surprising, feature were the UGK verses on the banger "Stick Em Up", which were as Trill as ever.

All in All, there isn't much to dislike about this album, when you except it as it is. It's not a lyrical album, although it does have it's fair share of lyrical moments, it's a young mans party album that plenty of people can enjoy. The hooks are catchy, The verses are nice, and The production makes you want to move. There's also 3 hilarious skits throughout this album to help set-up some of the songs. It's fun and you know what you're getting out of this album, and it delivers on that completely. There's no regrets in having this in your collection.

Rating: Must Buy

Stand-Out Tracks: Game Got Switched, 1st and Ten, What's Your Fantasy, Get Off Me, Mouthing Off, Ho, Catch Up, Southern Hospitality