Shaolin VS The Wu-Tang and Other Assorted Commentary

Raekwon posing with his favorite culture cipher.

For the last several weeks Raekwon's Shaolin VS The Wu-Tang has maintained a stranglehold on my iTunes.  As with it's predecessors OB4CL & OB4CL2, which, especially in the case of the former, are phenomenal albums, Shaolin VS The Wu-Tang boasts classic butter-smooth Chef and top-shelf cameos.  Some place OB4CL2 alongside the first incarnation as one of the great Wu albums ever, and I don't necessarily disagree, however I firmly believe that Shaolin VS The Wu-Tang is better than OB4CL2.
Here's three reasons why:

1) In my opinion, Raekwon is at his finest when he is figuratively narrating rather than rapping over the beat, and he seems to be in much more of a narrative groove on the majority of Shaolin than OB4CL2.  The exception to the rule here is "Rock and Roll", a turd in the Shaolin punch bowl.
2) OB4CL2 follows  the format of its immaculate predecessor too closely, and I believe this contributes to somewhat of a lack of originality.  Shaolin harkens back to the early days as well, but Chef takes more chances with beats and saturates his lyrics with Kung-Fu references more frequently than he did on what he may have hoped to be a more mainstream OB4CL2.
3) If we use my two favorite tracks respectively as a case study, "Molasses" from Shaolin, and "New Wu" from OB4CL2, Rae's verse on "Molasses" shines much brighter than Rick Ross's and Ghostface Killa's, whereas on "New Wu" he is bested by both Ghost and Method Man.  Although both songs are excellent in their own right, it is Chef's performance that separates the two, and more macrocosmically the albums.  Raekwon has returned to OB4CL form, and his maturity and openness to experimentation is refreshing and intriguing.  He's letting his nerdy affections for Kung-fu movies and comic books show more clearly than ever, and as a venerable member of one of the most important groups in hip-hop history he's earned the clout to do so.

That being said, I can completely understand if others don't agree with my perspective.  Feel free to let yourselves be heard: all commentary and criticism is welcomed.  OB4CL2 is excellent, and I will continue to bump both until my eardrums cease to function and naturally occurring boners are but a distant memory.

In other assorted musical commentary I'd like to make sure I endorse to Raphael Saadiq's new shit which I am digging even more than his last album, The Way I See It.   If he rolls through your neck of the woods this year invest in some tickets; Saadiq is one of the elite members of the "neo-soul" movement.



Also, I ran across this dope ass cover cover of Neil Young's "Heart of Gold" from Charles Bradley.  I guarantee he was the only sexagenarian pulling any serious amounts of young tail at SXSW.  Do your homework on this guy, he's got a great story to tell.