WERS 88.9 fm - Album Review: Raekwon - Only Built For Cuban Linx... Pt. II

December 11^th, 2009

Recently, the biggest problems with hip-hop in general spawn from artists not concentrating on the feel of a whole album but rather a few key singles with some filler in between. It's a rare occurrence when a hip-hop artist actually concentrates on making an album, and it's for this reason that hip-hop fans everywhere are extremely lucky to have Raekwon and his new release, Only Built for Cuban Linx Pt. II, to bump in their headphones this year

The album starts where the Linx pt. I left off, and it doesn't stop for 22 straight tracks of raw cohesiveness. All the drug metaphors one can imagine, tales of running from the police, and stories of women, fallen soldiers, and personal drive are crammed into this gigantic, beastly statement a way that easily makes this the best Wu-Tang related release in a long time.

As if we haven't been missing J Dilla enough, this album will make you miss him even more. The tracks he contributes to this album are some of many standouts. The beats they were able to get from Dilla's collection are damn near perfect for the Wu-Tang feel. They don't sound remotely dated, which is this albums best strength.  From "House of Flying Daggers," "Ason Jones," to "10 bricks," Dilla's versatility combined with Raekwon's flow gives Linx Pt. II strength that knows no bounds.

The crazy thing about this album is that there are a multitude of different producers and you can say the same thing them that's been said about Dilla's contribution. Dr. Dre, Necro, Pete Rock, Marley Marl, Scram Jones, and Raekwon's own production team, Icewater, somehow manage to be as equally dark in content and mood as the next one. It's one of the most impressive accomplishments in cohesiveness in a hip-hop album in quite some time.

Raekwon is not exactly an MC that's easy to quote lines from. His rhymes literally flow like water and don't stop for several bars at a time, and that's the beauty to his whole style. He hasn't changed this, but rather updated his presentation in such a manner to please old-school Wu-Tang fans as well as modern listeners. Only Built for Cuban Linx Pt. II is officially the must-buy hip-hop album this year, bar none.

-Ben Appell / DJ Benny