AFTERMATH/INTERSCOPE
The first 2 millions fans who get their hands on Eminem's "The Eminem Show" CD will be treated to a bonus DVD.
I was ready to write a comparison review of what I thought would be Eminem's latest screed, with intelligent rap/hip-hoppers Blackalicious' major-label debut, "Blazing Arrow." I had it all planned out: "That white, egomaniacal rap superstar with all of those self-induced problems has got nothing over this African-American duo. Their musical and political savvy and sensitivity would, in a more just America, beat down Eminem's trashy raps." Critic embraces Eminem’s
"The Eminem Show"
latest album (is he insane?!?)
Eminem (Aftermath/Interscope)
Review by Gary C.W. Chun
gchun@starbulletin.comWell, you should still buy "Blazing Arrow"; it's inspired, female-friendly, and Chief Xcel and the Gift of Gab are two of the genre's best representatives of uplifting, inventive rap and hip-hop that overflows with a confident, positive vibe.
Before "The Eminem Show" was released, street vendors bootlegged it, and cyber-pirates burned it from peer-to-peer networks off the Internet. Because of that, the album's release was moved up twice from its original June 4 date, to the point that Eminem's third album got an unprecedented, stand-alone nationwide release this past Sunday.
Even though Wal-Mart banned the disc from its racks, "The Eminem Show" still made record-sales history. It sold 285,000 copies on Sunday alone, marking the first time an artist has hit No. 1 in sales in just one day. The album may also hit the million-sale mark by Sunday.
Of the thousands of copies that sold on Sunday, one of them is mine. The sales hook for those of us who put down money for "The Eminem Show" was getting an additional DVD disc exclusive to the first 2 million copies.
The DVD "enriches" -- if I can use the word -- the listening experience of sitting down with the 80-minute music disc. After all this I admit, without guilt or shame, that I am an Eminem fan. The guy's so good as a rapper, and he's an equally shrewd marketer.
When talking about the pop phenomenon that is Eminem, we're also talking about his Jekyll-and-Hyde duo musical personality, his psychotic Slim Shady and sensitive Marshall Mathers sides. Slim's all in-your-face in the mocking braggadocio of the album's leadoff single/video "Without Me." He delights in his social role as the devil's advocate, "White America's" favorite whipping boy. He's a "Superman" to all the hos that throw themselves on him, as one inflammatory track explicitly describes (the line "put anthrax on a Tampax" is both brilliant and totally wack!).
But, with each successive album, the public's seeing more of Marshall Mathers as he deals with public outrage, occasional run-ins with the law and a brutal divorce. And he lays out all the ugliness and happiness for all to hear. From a corrosive revenge fantasy like "Soldier," playing up the thug role, eager to spit out bullets of anger at anyone who ticks him off, to the heart-on-sleeve sentiments of "Hallie's Song," for his daughter Hallie Jade.
The youngster actually recites the title line of "My Dad's Gone Crazy." Eminem's masterful executive producer, Dr. Dre, adds his formidable production and mixing skills to this track, as well as "Business" and "Say What You Say," both offering proof that when these two men lock horns in the studio, they bring out the best in each other.
But most of the album is self-produced, and it does get a bit wearying when Eminem still picks on that scab his ex Kim left on his heart and ego after their breakup. She's still getting the occasional lyrical false crack throughout the album.
But Eminem is, in fact, growing as an artist. You can hear it in the quiet, unfolding personal drama of "Say Goodbye to Hollywood"; in the way he plays the martyr for the dreamers and the abused in "Sing for the Moment" (with an adept mix of Aerosmith's "Dream On"); and the sharp snap of "'Till I Collapse," which represents Eminem as his full-throttle peak.
All of this is topped off with the DVD containing his revealing 1998 video for "Just Don't Give a F---"; a hefty portion of his hilarious, over-the-top animated series "The Slim Shady Show"; and a trailer for "8 Mile," a gritty urban drama coming out this summer, in which he makes his first major film debut.
Most revealing of Eminem's strength as a rapper are performance videos of him and his D-12 backup crew at an intimate New York club and onstage at last year's Fuji Rock Festival. With no rock show distractions around him, there's enough drama in Eminem's strong and sure vocal flow to have the adoring audience eating out of his hand.
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