Posted on: December 2, 2007 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Pitbull – Boatlift / 2007 TVT / 18 Tracks / http://www.pitbullmusic.com / http://www.tvtrecords.com /

Many introductions to rap CDs suck. They suck horribly. However, “Boatlift”’s introduction is massively impression. This “Little Story” is an acapella opening to the disc, and it shows exactly how talented Pitbull is. The entirety of this track is a minute, and it does much to provide a specific style to the entirety of the disc. Where “A Little Story” was intense on its own, “Go Girl” (featuring Trina and Young Boss) is intense in another way: it provides a single-worthy track to draw in listeners by the barrelful. Regardless, the first two tracks on “Boatlif” will lock individuals in to the entirety of the disc, which includes stars such as Trick Daddy, Fabo, Lol Jon, Twista, Jim Jones, Lloyd, Yung Berg, and Frankie J.

“Dukey Love” has klaxons that operate as the backing beat for the track, but even this inclusion brings this track into a strong position. What makes this track suffer ifs the immense amount of repetition that is present during the song. The chorus relies heavily on this repetition, which has the effect of canceling out any momentum that Pitbull had accumulated up to that track. “I Don’t See ‘Em” is a track that restores some of this lost momentum. The opening lines provide individuals with a tremendously catchy introduction to the track, while the xylophone-type of sound that is present in the backing section of the track brings a little bit more in the way of strength to this song. At a middle ground between solid and mediocre by the opening of “Midnight”, Pitbull is able to right the disc and create an incredibly catchy track that will chart not only in the R&B chart, but also in the Latin and Dance tracks.

“Ying & The Yang” shifts back to providing a little too much in the way of repetition, but the active backing beat that is present during the track is something that saves the track from certain failure. “The Anthem” is another track that brings Pitbull’s fortunes back to the positive side of things, but this is due to the fact that the Latin flow comes back heavily and makes the song that much more vibrant and lively. There may be a few weaker tracks on “Boatlift”, but Pitbull avoids the pitfall that many other rap and R&B artists fall into, being that they only have three or four strong tracks on a disc and the rest is barely listenable.

Top Tracks: The Anthem, Stripper Pole

Rating: 6.2/10

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