Posted on: August 5, 2010 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Pretty solid rap coming out of a more laid-back outlook, Lordroc’s first track on “E2 To Bass”, “Who Is It U Love?”. Everything comes together convincingly, whether it is the early-nineties backbeat or the female vocals that work as a bridge on the track. Using a host of different producers for every track, Lordroc runs the risk of making an album that shifts in overall sound every few minutes. Luckily, and perhaps obviously, Lordroc is talented enough to tie together the different approaches and sounds of the litany of producers that ey has on this album. Somewhat falling into a rut with “:Beat Meditation”, Lordroc runs afoul of a producer that shoots eir load in too close of a grouping, with each subsequent beat coming much too closely from the last to create any semblance of difference. Lordroc comes back strong and brushes the cobwebs off eir shoulder with the Eyedea-esque “Roc Muzik”, with eir flow reaching a fever point and a Speedy Gonzolez-speed flow. The hook on the chorus doesn’t hurt Lordroc either, as it is created with the utmost care, its goal being accomplished of causing all listeners to nod their heads.

The middle of “E2 To Bass” finds Lordroc spinning eir wheels, with tracks like “Jump In (I Got Dat)” and “The One” not adding anything in the way of innovation in flow or backbeats. Vascillating between weaker tracks and ones that show Lordroc at eir finest, Lordroc finally gets back to the top of the hill with “Where U At?”, benefiting heavily from two solid ancillary rappers, J. Nyce and Royal Flush. Trying to add an Usher-like feel with vocal trills on “Roccolypse”, Lordoc straddles the line between completely whoring out a sound to try to copy a popular figure in music and actually making a new, innovative sound. Again, Lordroc is talented enough to ensure that the track sounds fresh, hooky, and is enjoyable by a wide section of eir listener base.

What is impressive about “E2 To Bass” is the fact that the entire disc is solid, instead of Lordroc doing what I’ve noticed is commonplace in most rap albums – front-loading the tracks to ensure that no one will get to track 22 or 25. Lordroc has enough talent on this disc to make this a two or three CD set, and still not just be coasting on easy rhymes or interesting backbeats.

Top racks : “Oh Can’t We”, “Roc Muzik”

Rating: 6.0/10

Lordroc – E2 To Bass / 2004 Skygod Entertainment / 25 Tracks / http://www.skygodent.com / Reviewed 27 November 2004

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