May 23rd, 2009
 Perhaps the most creepy and unsettling song featured on the entire album is "Same Song & Dance". It's preceded by the skit "Tonya" where a young lady is stranded in the rain for an hour in dire need of a ride. A car pulls up (Eminem) before Tonya gets in the vehicle and thanks the driver for stopping then starts to complain about how she left her cell phone at home and how her OnStar isn't functioning correctly. "Really, you're a life safer," she says with much gratitude.
Without any words from Eminem, you hear duct tape being stretched off the roll and Tonya screaming for her life. It abruptly ends and seamlessly goes into the song. Very, very good mixing with all the sound effects and foley work.
"Same Song & Dance" will definitely draw a handful of comparisons to 2000's "Stan," due to them both having a similar topic, sharing a similar tempo and verbal cadence, as well as possessing incredible lyrical imagery, but it's from a totally different perspective (his own instead of a fan's). It's more about being a serial killer than a stalker, as the song explains. After he kills Tonya in the first verse, Shady tells us "his obsession" with a post rehab Lindsay Lohan and a looney, a pill-popping Britney Spears and how he methodically murdered them both. His nonchalant flow starkly contrasts the absurdity of the senseless killing and drug use in the song, which only adds to the psychotic vibe. Also, I have to say the hook is well thought out and clever as Em compares the screaming and crying of a victim as "singing" and her struggle to get out of the car as "dancing" -- and of course he finds joy in this. I love it!
While "Relapse" is made up of a majority of darker selctions that almost put this album on the verge of falling into the sub genre of "horrorcore," there are a few upbeat tunes to be found believe it or not. Of course, we all know the patented Eminem formula of releasing a top 40 friendly single first... And this time around the celebrity bashing fest known as "We Made You" had that dubious distinction. When the accompanying music video hit the internet in April featuring faux celebs and pop culture figures like Kim Kardashian, Amy Winehouse, and Sarah Palin (played by porn star, Lisa Ann... if you don't know, now you know. Better google her! LOL) it really had to grow on people -- myself included. Afterall, I never did like the phoned in "Just Lose It" and feared this would yield the same result.
The joke is on us, because we (internet blog writers and readers) really should have realized his pop single never, ever reflects the sound of the overall album; it's just a marketing tool. "We Made You" is just sort of there; no other songs on "Relapse" really copy it's blueprint. Em's quest to procure pharmisuticals from females in "Hello," his collabs with both Dr. Dre and 50 Cent in "For Old Time's Sake" and "Crack A Bottle," in addition to the hard-hitting "Medicine Ball" -- where a dead "Christopher Reeve" challenges the ex-blonde MC to a breakdancing duel of all things -- are all the best examples of dance friendly, upbeat songs that serve well in balancing out everything.
But perhaps the true treats on the LP are the candid, intimate looks into his life. "Déjà Vu" sheds more light on his drug addiction with some interesting tidbits woven into the lyrics. He reveals how the 2006 death of D12 member and long time friend, Proof, led him to abuse more and how him being hospitalized for pneumonia in late 2007 was a fabricated story to cover up a overdose of methadone.
Lastly, another stand out track called "Beautiful" is one of Marshall's more well-rounded songs in his entire career, taking the listener deeper into his personal problems than ever before. In the May 2009 issue of Vibe, Slim reveals it was the only track kept from his "dark period" and he actually wrote the majority of it in rehab. "Beautiful" also is the only track he produced for the album (Dr. Dre handled the rest), and while I'm usually critical of his touchy production otherwise (given the invaluable tools he has access to), he did a really nice job sampling Rock Therapy's "Reaching Out". Classic record in the making here.
I had extremely low expectations for "Relapse". I honestly counted Eminem out because I swore he had nothing else up his sleeve being 36 years old and has, up to this point, put his entire life on wax for the world to hear. After listening to it straight through about six or seven times, I'm thoroughly impressed and would definitely put this body of work right up there with 2002's "The Eminem Show" -- an album of which most people consider his best. Dre's production is phenomenal; beats like "Same Song & Dance," and "Bagpipes from Baghdad" are carefully crafted, layered with complexity, and are the perfect compliment to Em's lyrics.
I know a lot of you guys are, or have already, downloaded this album through torrents. With all the journalistic integrity I have with some of you PL faithful, I urge you to purchase this album if you were ever a fan of Eminem (it's currently available through PL Shop in MP3 downloadable format on the cheap, too). Completely worth the money and is a nice break from the useless rap music that's out these days. Hip-hop is truly in a better state with him lurking in the shadows.
Will the album's sequel be as well done or will it be like leftovers for breakfast? We'll see later this year.
Paq's Hit List:
1. Beautiful
2. Same Song & Dance
3. My Mom
4. Medicine Ball
5. Hello
|
