It Ain't Safe No More...
label: j

producers: dj scratch, rick rock, the neptunes, swizz beatz, others.
guests: mariah carey, meka, spliff star, flipmode squad, rah digga, others.
year of release: 2002
website: bustarhymes.com
 
Busta Rhymes releasing his albums with a continuous regularity is either scary or comfortable. Comfortable, because you know that the next one is just around the corner, and scary, because you need to wonder if he releases the album, because it's just that time, or because he has completed a piece of art, that is well rounded, that belongs together and that is, well, one piece of art. After the last album, we're quite afraid, that it might be the first, that automatically also makes a certain quality control impossible.
The number of different producers on here is still vast, and the list includes names like DJ Scratch, The Neptunes, Megahertz, Dilla, Rick Rock, Swizz Beatz and Tru Master, to just name a couple. That in itself would speak against an album with a specific vibe, but upon listening to the first few songs, you actually get songs that match each other well. So does the surprisingly un-intense "It Ain't Safe No More..." fit well with "What Do You Do When You're Branded" that is not really well produced: the pseudo middle ages vibe might fit the lyrical topic of outcasts and honor, but just doesn't work too well. But it works as the middle ground to the rowdy "Call The Ambulance". And interestingly enough the Megahertz produced "We Goin' To Do It To Ya" sounds more like a Neptunes production than "Call The Ambulance" that actually was produced by Hugo and Pharrell. The same can be said of "Struttin' Like A G.O.D." where an unaccredited voice does his best Pharrell impersonation, while the Ricc Rude beat would have actually been okay.

tracklisting
1. Intro
2. It Ain't Safe No More... feat. Meka
3. What Do You Do When You're Branded
4. Call The Ambulance
5. We Goin' To Do It To Ya
6. What Up
7. Turn Me Up Some

8. Make It Clap feat. Spliff Star
9. Take It Off Part 2 feat. Meka
10. Taste It
11. Hey Ladies
12. I Know What You Want feat. Mariah Carey & The Flipmode Squad
13. Riot
14. Hop
15. Together feat. Rah Digga
16. Struttin' Like A G.O.D.
17. The Struggle Will Be Lost feat. Carl Thomas
18. Till It's Gone
By now we settle into remote party waters, where a "What Up" is scientifically spacey. And just like Busta toned down his crazy delivery, so did the music become more predictable. That's why the Indian flavors sound warmed up on "Take It Off Part 2", instead of it being as new as "Addictive" was. Usually Busta would have been the ground breaker. "Hey Ladies" does a little bit of something different, with Wildstyle getting out a guitar and a certain stabbing beat going. Lyrically Busta settles to his low voice, what he usually does on tracks that speak to women. However when he starts to actually sing to 'em, like on "I Know What You Want", he'd have better left it to Mariah Carey, who's also on here. And also on here is The Flipmode Squad, who are joining Busta to spit game.
Apart from that, the album often mingles in mediocre grounds like on the remote Latin flavor featuring "Make It Clap" with Spliff Star and that was done by Rick Rock. Or "Taste It" by Tetamus is simply boring and predictable and done better before about once (and a hundred times done as bad as this after that). Despite "Hop" being somewhat of a "Make It Clap" part two, Mr Fingaz gives it some quality with keeping it bare and coming through with some specialties for the hook. "Together" by Swizz Beatz and featuring Rah Digga is then blatantly doing a Latin flavor and that really doesn't work. Further unimpressive is "The Struggle Will Be Lost" by the never too good Rick Rock. Thematically mismatched is "Turn Me Up Some", that spits get you going bragging verses over a relaxing and smooth little tune. Thoroughly wrongly labeled is "Riot" by Denaun, as this is better suited for some elderly gymnastics, than to overthrow a state. This will not, en contraire to the hook, 'cause a riot'. It will have the mob yawn at best.
The best song then appears last (well, actually last is the hidden "Make It Clap (Remix)" featuring Spliff and the unnecessary Sean Paul). The Tru Master beat on "Till It's Gone" is just better than all the other songs that are on here. And with Busta coming through with some good words, this should also be the next single as well as the blueprint for the next album that Busta is certainly already working on. It's sad considering that Busta changed from ground breaking to ground hogging and while this album is a good pop rap album, with some tracks being better than this review makes 'em sound like, this does not match the skill and talent of this artist, who just seems to have a knack for the wrong, character and charisma absent beats nowadays.
review: tadah
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