Album Review: "Chamber Music" Wu Tang Collaboration
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RZA, the executive producer of this album, has made it clear that Chamber Music isn't a Wu Tang Clan album, as it doesn't feature all of the members of the clan. Instead the album's sound is clearly "inspired" by Wu's early sound trademarked in Enter The Wu Tang: 36 Chambers, without using samples in the production. All of the beats are live music beds by a band called The Revelations.The fact that no samples are used changes the overall presentation of the sound. Die-hard Wu Tang fans might be surprised by how clean this album sounds. That gritty 36 Chambers style isn't apparent in Chamber Music, no matter how hard they may try to reclaim it.Not to say that a live band didn't provide an interesting alternative angle to the Wu Tang sound, it did. Headbangers like "Sound The Horns" couldn't have been accomplished in the level that they were without The Revelations.
That gulliness though, has always been a staple of Wu Tang Clan that I really enjoyed. And although the emcees stay as hard as ever, the real instruments take away from that feeling you get when listening to Wu's earlier work.Either way, with original clan members like Ghostface, Inspectah Deck, RZA, U-God, and Raekwon contributing verses as well as artists like AZ, Masta Ace, Havoc, Kool G Rap, duo M.O.P., and more making guest appearances, you know the rhymes are going to be up to a high standard.
One thing I was a bit disappointed by is the fact that over half (9) of the 17 tracks on the album are under 1:30 minutes. Most of those tracks are just RZA going on about buddhas or kung fu flicks, others are just short instrumentals.
So with literally every other track being a skit or instrumental, that leaves us with only 8 solid songs. But even with those 8 being quality tracks, worth at least a couple listens, they can't do much in saving the overall playback value of the album.
At the least I would cop a couple of tracks from Chamber Music just to hold you over until the real Wu album comes, but it isn't worth the full $17.99 that iTunes will undoubtedly charge for the whole thing.
Cop it off Amazon for $9.99.
Best Tracks:
"Ill Figures", "Evil Deeds", "Sound The Horns"
Grade: B-
15
MOG it up!
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