Get To Know H.E.R.

First off, damn I’m backed up a lot as far as album reviews go. Sorry for not getting to this and Three 6 Mafia’s albums sooner, but I was out visiting a couple of friends and was more busy than I thought I would be. But enough of that.

I’ve been waiting to review this album since Tuesday. The mP3s have been patiently waiting in my iPod and now that the time has come, I can’t wait. I’m a big fan of Revolutionary Vol 2, so even if this isn’t the Middle Passage or Revolutionary Vol 3, I’m expecting a lot out of it. Well, we all know hype can be a dangerous thing (a la Digi Snax), so I’ve spent the whole day trying to clean my mind of it as much as I could. I’m gonna add that I failed miserably at it too, so if I’m a bit harsh on it, understand that my personal disappointment is being factored into this.

1. Death March - I actually still don’t understand just how Mr. Evil Genius Green Lantern started to work with Immortal Technique, but I’m glad he did. The dark, grand production on this matches Technique very well and we have a great first track.

2. That’s What It Is - It’s a good feeling to realize that 5 years of absence hasn’t dulled I.T. much at all. His voice has changed a bit in that time but dude’s lyrics are on point as they always have been.

3. Golpe De Estado (Veneno and Temperanto) - It’s been a long bus ride back home, so I may be wrong here but the beat here is taken from the same sample that Black Republican uses on the intro of the track. That being said, it’s a pretty hot beat and I really wish I knew what the hell the emcees were saying.

4. Harlem Renaissance - If there was one thing I had a problem with as far as Revolutionary Vol 2 went, it was the production on some tracks. So far, this album seems to have addressed that problem and if this continues, I think we’ll have a great album on our hands. As for this track itself, it’s great.

5. Lick Shot (ft Crooked I and Chino XL) - It’s not the epic madness I expected when I first saw the guests, but it’s still pretty darn good. Fun fact: Chino XL is a member of Mensa. Tell that to anyone who says rappers are all idiots, then laugh at their faces when they don’t even know what Mensa is.

6. Apocrypha - Nothing to say here, just a typical interlude.

7. The 3rd World - I remember going nuts when I first heard this track a couple of months back and I realized that this album/mixtape was actually going to come out. Listening to it now, it’s still a very solid track.

8. Hollywood Driveby (ft Psycho Realm and Street Platoon) - Hollywood Driveby isn’t a bad track, but it’s totally destroyed by the hidden track, Watch Out (remix) that comes on at the 4:10 mark. The Star Wars sample on it is just ridiculous. Damn, this should’ve been a separate track.

9. Reverse Pimpology (ft Mojo) - R&B and I.T. never mixed very well, and I don’t think this track is much of an exception. Not horrible, but it sticks out like a sore thumb.

10. Open Your Eyes - Holy crap the production on this is creepy as hell. I don’t think this would sound out of place on Pharoahe Monch’s Internal Affairs, which should give you some idea of the general feel of it. Don’t get me wrong though. I’m not saying it’s as good as any of the Internal Affairs tracks, just that it the overall production reminds me of how I felt listening to them.

11. The Payback (ft Diabolic and Ras Kass) - This track leaked a while back, but I forced myself not to listen to it until I was doing the actual review. All I can say is DAMNNN. And it’s great to hear Ras Kass sounding more or less back to form.

12. Adios Uncle Tom - Interlude. However, it is interesting enough to be worth hearing at least once.

13. Stronghold Grip (ft Poison Pen and Swave Savah) - The production sounds a bit chaotic at times, but that’s not too big of an issue, because that mostly happens around the hook anyways.

14. Mistakes - I had to listen to this track again to believe what I was hearing. The production on this is actually really light as far as I.T. goes. Good track and it actually kinda reminds me a lot of Atmosphere.

15. Parole (Evil Genius Mix) - It’s alright. But compared to the rest of the album, it falls a bit short.

16. Crimes of the Heart (ft Maya Azuenca) - The official ending track is good enough, but the hidden track (Rebel Arms) that comes afterwards is just crazy. Great way to close the whole thing.

Final Score: 9.0

All that talk about hype being dangerous for nothing I guess. Immortal Technique has really improved his flow in the past 5 years and the production on this is for the most part better than Revolutionary Vol 2. As a whole package, it’s a little bit under Vol 2 though, if only because it sounds unfocused at times. Still, I do think that this album is one of the better albums to come out this year so far. As for where it will stand by the end of the year, we’ll have to see since some big names are still due to release in the remaining 5 months.