Lord Finesse Staying True To The Rap Game (Rating: 8 out of
Chandler | Atlanta (College Park), Georgia | 02/13/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Just to clarify to the reviewers and anyone who heard this album and claims that it sounds like an EP, that it is an EP. Not only it was advertised as an EP (Amazon should state that in it's product discription), but it is mentioned as an EP on the second track of the album. A lot of reviewers say that there are as many interludes as there are songs, which I personally don't have a problem with. The point is that they are there listed as individual tracks, so in case you do not want to hear them, skip over them, rather than them being placed at the beginning of the song, causing the listener to loose interest in the track before the actual song begins. The interludes average about a minute and a half. Also they have some dope beats that are played in the back, like "Taking It (MC) Lyte". "O' Lord" has O.C. spitting a few short rhymes on his interlude. So they are all great to listen to, with the exception of Akinyele screaming all over one them ("Words From Da Ak"). Personally, I see the interludes as like a preperation for a track, while giving the listener the option to hear them if they want to.
Now that been said, the EP itself is excellent from Lord Finesse. Finesse is known for bringing you punchlines in your face, and he does them perfectly here. I disagree with one reviewer who claims that every other line is a punchline, although they are quite a few that flow all throughout this album. I find that the best tracks that Lord Finesse are on by himself are "True And Livin'" and "Hip 2 Da Game", because he flows more confortably on those tracks.
Some of the best tracks are when there are guests on as well. "Brainstorm/P.S.K. (No Gimmicks Remix)" featuring KRS-One and O.C. is a good one and it sound better than the origonal version of "No Gimmicks" that is towards the end of the album. The one that has my attention the most and had me hitting the replay button was "Speak Ya Peace" with Marquee, Diamond D, and A.G. Dope lyrics comming from all four members as well as as a dope beat from Myke Loe. There is a bonus track at the very end called "Actual Facts" and it features Grand Puba, Sadat X, and Large Professor. All four of them on one track alone makes it worth listening to as well.
So there you have it, Lord Finesse's EP "The Awakening". This EP is dope from beginning to the end and will gurantee satisfaction who is a fan of hip hop, especially in the early-mid 90's. This album was just reissued last year on Traffic Entertainment Group which was a very good idea to do. As for the price, I believe that anyone shouldn't pay no more than 20 bucks for this, seeing that the actual price is around 15 (and the fact that it is an EP, and the majority of them sell for around 10). But if you can find this EP at a reasonable price, go ahead and add it to your collection.
One more thing before I finish (and this really isn't that important to some people). The reissue that is here on Amazon, has the product discription, and it shows quotes from The Rap Pages and The Source. Just to let you know, The Source gave this 3 Mics, and the Rap Pages gave this a 6 (out of 10). I was just wondering if they actually listened to the same EP that the reviewers here were listening to.
Lyrics: A-
Production: B+
Guest Appearance (not including interludes): B+
Musical Vibes: B+
Overall B+
Favorite Tracks: True And Livin', Brainstorm/P.S.K. (No Gimmics Remix), Speak Ya Peace, Hip 2 Da Game, and Actual Facts (Bonus Track)
Peace Everyone!!!"
The kind of music i'd like to WAKE up to.
gavin redmond | rep of ireland | 02/27/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Lord Finesse HAS GOT TO BE one of the most under-rated mc's of all time. His flow is flawless and his metaphorical laced rhymes have obviously influenced so many other mc's that its scary. This is the man that is credited with discovering BIG L after he freestyled for Finesse one day outside a store. As a leading member of D.I.T.C. he established himself as an outstanding producer who worked with countless mc's such as A.G., Diamond, Big L, Fat Joe, B.I.G. and Artifacts to name afew. But its his rhymes that are the real blessing on this EP (there's 9 tracks on the re-issue plus interludes). Each of the 9 tracks are brilliant and nothing short of it. "True And Livin'" is a joint that allows Finesse to flex his lyrical muscles on the solo tip over a melodic rolling beat and its the perfect 1st track to showcase this EP. "Brainstorm" feat.O.C.+KRS1 is amazing where all 3 mc's tear the beat to shreads. "Gameplan" is an excellent story telling track about women were Finesse sounds confident and precise. Both "Flip Da Style" and "Speak Ya Peace" feat.Diamond, A.G. and Marquee are top notch with amazing production and verses from all mc's involved. "Food For Thought" is another story telling joint where Finesse shows his vast vocabulary in entertaining fashion. "Hip 2 Da Game" and "No Gimmicks" feat.KRS1 are like classes for lyrical lessons as these legends show exactly what makes an mc original and why they are so popular with fans. Finally is the bonus track that only gor added to the re-issued version and calling it the BEST posse cut in the last 10years in hiphop wouldnt be an understatement. "Actual Facts" feat.Sadat X, Grand Puba and Large Professor is simply put...a hiphop fans dream lineup. The beat that accompanies this is perfect and all mc's rise to it. The only things that took from this being a 5 star to me were there was skits all over the place which i HATE on albums plus when you hear the beats on some of these you wish that Finesse recorded more rhymes over them and turned this into an album rather than an EP. Other than that you wont find any other faults. Brilliant release from an under-appreciated lyricist."
Track Listings (16) - Disc #1