Houdini
What’s going on, Internet? I’m a long-time Eminem fan. While I look forward to and listen to all his music, I’ve not really been hooked on his stuff since Relapse. Hooked means I listen to the album/song on repeat for a couple of weeks, memorise the lyrics, etc.
This could be attributed to many factors. The Slim Shady LP, The Marshall Mathers LP, Devils Night, and The Eminem Show all came out while I was in high school. I spent the majority of my time in my car; I worked delivering pizzas out of school and would have these albums on repeat in the car. The joys of a single disk CD player. These days, more music is accessible easily (even without streaming). This all lends to the age-old fact that your musical interest peaks during those formative years. This is part of it.
His music, past Relapse, and after his recovery, definitely changed. His voice, flow and cadence, as well as his material. He showed the world what he was capable of with his speed verses, his technical ability with over-complicated rhymes, etc. This was cool and amazing to hear, but not something I felt the need to keep on repeat like the old days.
As I hit play on his first single “Houdini” this past weekend, a wave of anticipation hit me. I can’t help but feel that we’re about to be treated to something special.
With this song on repeat all weekend and the video on a constant loop, I found myself transported back to the early days. The flow, the simpler lyrics, the rhymes-they’re all back. And if the rest of the album maintains this energy, we’re in for a nostalgic treat.
The nods to Eminem’s earlier videos, ‘The Real Slim Shady’ and 'Without Me ', were awesome. Seeing him dressed as Rap Boy scaling the wall while playfully acknowledging his age with the bad knees, etc., was both hilarious and a clever approach.
The Meg The Stallion bar gave me a good chuckle. I didn’t see it as a diss, and it would be awesome if we saw her featured on Eminem’s upcoming album or vice versa on her album.
The albums The Slim Shady LP, The Marshall Mathers LP, Devils Night, and The Eminem Show all followed a similar pattern, and I would love to see The Death Of Slim Shady follow in their footsteps. The hard hitting opening tracks, the skits, and a Dina Rae feature (unlikely) on track thirteen. Please, no choppy, yelling, or speed flow; we’ve had enough of that across the last few albums.
We could have the new album this weekend. If you still need to catch the video, here it is; enjoy.
Reply by email, XMPP, send a webmention, or say what's up in the guestbook.
No mentions yet.
