Revolutions
Method Man - 4:21... The Day After (Def Jam)
September 27, 2006
Not one prone to excess, Method Man has finally had enough.
His fifth album—which derives its name from the famous Ecclesiastes passage: “Ye who let Diddy executive produce thy last album must deal with the consequences”—comes on the heels of personal (his wife’s illness) and professional (dwindling album sales) setbacks: The raspy-voiced Wu-Tanger is on edge. Parties on blast here include (but are not limited to) tin-eared radio programmers, shady record labels, and hip hop critics, who, Meth seems to think, talk about it while he lives it.
As a mad rapper, however, he’s out of character. What made him one of the Wu’s breakout stars was his stoner-buddy charm. But on “Say,” even with Lauryn Hill’s lullaby chorus and Erick Sermon’s placid acoustic guitar–laced track, Meth can’t be placated, bemoaning “muthafuckas defecating on the name.”
Why so mad, though? Still a nimble rapper, he’s copped his best beats in years—courtesy of RZA and Sermon (who coproduced his vigorous 1999 collabo with Redman, Blackout! [Def Jam]) and Scott Storch. Over jagged string samples on “Yah Mean,” Method Man growls, “Cops don’t know ’bout this method / But smell it all in his clothes.” Finally: a whiff of recognizable charm.
Do you want VIBE delivered to your home or office? CLICK HERE.
