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With the release of 8
mile (A movie that is based on Eminem's life) coming
out on November 8th, Eminem found himself heavily
involved with the movie's soundtrack. For that fact, high
expectations would be placed on this release, but Eminem being
the musical genius that he is has outdone himself. The
soundtrack consists of 16 original tracks, 3 written and
performed by the master himself. The remaining 13 tracks
include Eminem with heavy hitters such as: Nas, Jay Z, 50
Cent, Obie Trice, Gang Starr, Rakim, Macy Gray, D 12, Xzibit,
Freeway, etc. The lineup features some of the best hip hop
stars alive, for this I would recommend this album without
even listening to it. It may sound as though I am "jumping the
gun", but how could this lineup produce anything short of
excellence? It can't.
The album starts you off with the hit single, Lose Yourself.
The 5+ minute "ballad" is an impressive song that attempts to
contact you on a personal level. Early in his career, Eminem
has been known to fly at you guns blazing, but his most recent
works (i.e. The Eminem Show Set List) have contained songs
that overflow with personal emotion. This track is a
continuation of the personal feel that he has begun to
"experiment" with. This is one of the three "solo" Eminem
tracks; it just may be the least impressive. Although I may
classify this as the least impressive (of the 03), it is far
better than most songs out today.
The disc rolls on to Love Me; executed by Obie Trice, 50 Cent,
and Eminem. The song has a great overall sound, but fails in
comparison to the track that is about to follow. The order of
songs is going to end up casting one huge shadow over this
song. The track casting such a shadow is the second jam
performed by Em himself. The track is called 8 mile.
8 Mile is amazing. The track is a 6 minute masterpiece looping
you in and about the mind of Eminem. The beat is ill and the
flow is wack; this is Eminem at his best. The song overall is
extremely catchy, which is what hooks you from the beginning.
Only after you have been captivated by the rhythm will you
respect the message being spat at you.
The next few songs include contributions from Obie Trice, 50
Cent, and D12. These three tracks are concrete. Not only do
they sound good, they include deep lyrical content. I am sure
that each track can be interpreted zillions of different ways,
but in the end you'll be well aware of what is being
expressed. And to think this is a movie soundtrack (keep that
in mind).
Next up: Jay Z, Freeway, and Xzibit. The Jay Z / Freeway track
is real nice. The song has extreme replay-ability even know
Jay Z carries Freeway throughout the 4:08. If you have the ear
for straight up hip hop you will appreciate this track in its
entirety. The same sentiments cannot be used when describing
the Xzibit jam. From the zany beat to the plain-jane flow this
track fails to catch my attention. Overall I found this track
to be weak, however, some critics have really enjoyed it. This
track is one of those jams that you either love it or you love
to hate it. Personally, I love to hate it.
The album takes a sudden turn as your track count approaches
09. This particular track features Macy Gray. Now I know what
you are thinking, "Why the Hell is Macy Gray involved in this
project"? Let me just say that I agree with your asking that
question and I am not the one who has the answer. The track is
OK I guess, but completely out of place. With that in mind, I
gave the production gurus the benefit of the doubt seeing that
this is a movie soundtrack. If this were an actual Eminem
release I would be very prone to kill the overall score ten or
more points for this screw up, but for now I am letting it
slide.
Nas and 50 Cent follow up the out-of-place Macy Gray tune. Nas
kills this song; another lyrical genius rhymin' to an ill beat
creating a track with immense depth. I found every aspect of
You Wanna Be Me to float with the lines of perfection. This is
a track that will spill out your stereo speakers for a long
long time. The following 50 Cent track is not so well done. It
is a solid song, but fails to create the vibe that is
expected. The beat is merely decent, as the hook is this
tracks staple. The product is a song that fits nicely into the
track list, but a song that could have had more of an effect.
The Boomkat, Rakim, and Young Zee tracks are the next three in
line. I am not sure who Boomkat is, but after listening to her
feat on the album it is not difficult to hear the beauty in
her voice. She has a soothing vocal ability that is as good as
the others in her genre; a genre that shouldn't have been
welcomed on the track list. As with the Macy Gray song, this
song is completely off base. Wasting My Time is an impressive
accomplishment, but one that should find itself embedded on
another album at a different time. Rakim follows Boomkat to
try and restore hip hop order; he does just that. If there is
one track to bump your head off of your shoulders this would
be it. The lyrical presentation may lack relatable content,
but the beat used in this jam is well done. One major benefit
for this song is that it is sandwiched in between two less
than impressive performances. The latter poor performance is
found in the Young Zee feat. This track goes astray from the
very beginning. The beat is very poor, very basic, and sounds
terrible. On top of that is a flow that is sub par for the
modern day hip hop scene. I'd hate to waste your time
explaining the negative sides to this song, so I will leave
you with one last comment; be afraid of Young Zee, be very
afraid.
The final two tracks on the 8 Mile soundtrack both compete for
best song (of the total 16 tracks). The first track is from
Gang Starr; Battle. Within the first 10 seconds you will be
hooked, as DJ Premier's beat hypnotizes your brain leaving you
itching for more. You'll wake up in the middle of the night
telling yourself to pop in some Primo, yea this is what you
have to look forward to. Shortly after you are introduced to
the beat you will quickly get acquainted with Guru, an ill
lyricist. Needless to say, I loved this track and found myself
playing it over and over and over.
Eminem wraps the set list up with Run Rabbit Run. This track
is an incredible ending track; a track that literally forces
your finger to the rewind button. Even if you aren't
interested in buying this album, be a cheap-o and download
this track; this track is so amazing. In fact, some hip hop
releases only dream of having a song this good. Quit reading
what I have to say and go find out for yourself.
I will keep this conclusion short: This album is a must have,
so go out and get a copy. Very few current releases are as
solid as this (even with the 3 poor tracks). Therefore, get
off your ass, dig some change from the couch cushions, and
stand in line to pick this up October 29th.
Ramz Rating: 4.5 out of 5
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