Heavenly divine. Or just one big ass foot stomping on your car, yourself, kicking in doors or skyscrapers. Somewhat like your mental clashing with the brain of a genius. Well, sorta. Maybe it's just that illa godz use the dirty blows in the clash of the titans. Basically, the Ripsquad The Midnight Express are having you associate the album cover, with the picture from the movie "Godzilla", they flip things, take that Godz that's illa, and make themselves the illa godz, using this as the title for their album. With the backing of the Deep Thinka approval, things are made sure not to be house pets, but much rather the roaring prehistoric reptilian music, that we want. Something that doesn't bite, but something that has bite. Hide your steaks, my friends.

As things get beefy, once the album is introduced on a cinema trailer like "Intro". The swamps are forked through, to find the eggs. But as we don't find 'em, Furious and Speed shell themselves out and jump on us with "Squad's Theme III (Beats To The Rhyme)". And scaringly, in such an early stage of their development on this album, they are already yapping at you and attacking you. Maybe just because they do had their necessary amount of beat nutrition, as their teeth do look rather menacing, as well as the growling is promising. The practicing session of "Sycamore" is not only resulting in the batches of flesh being ripped out of their opponents, the strings are like a massage to the Ripsquads muscles, with more teeth punching onto sandpaper, to give 'em that extra spike........ Aight, enough of that whole Godzilla simile. Argh, let's switch into regular review mode!

On "Jewel Of The Nile" Lamec shows up, while Furious hands over the production duties to Tone X, that does something rather chilled and melancholy. This sounds like something taken from a Japanimation movie, that has scenery's of woods, and good beings fighting bad beings. Topically fitting, so to say jewels, meaning precious other sex persons, are the focus of attention on this track and the strive is commented with the obvious, but still rarely heard so essential statement "I hate problems". The next cut is credited to being 'performed by 4.2 40' and is also called "4.2 40". Furious and Octavio did the beats, while DJ Tommee of Xtracts Of Slang handles the cutting. And this track is butters. A humorous beat, for solid punchline rhymes, with the second emcee stumbling over his flow at times though. Still, ish is dope, and so with a good feeling we progress to a track, this time credited to be 'performed by Cash Flow'. Of course we believe in 'truth in labeling' and so we don't doubt that "Petty Cash" is done by said gathering, even if it might just be good friends, that want to remain unidentified. Again Tone X is handling the production, with this going the same route, doing a beat for the verse and then getting something a little extra for the chorus, as it's fitted with scratching.

On "Freedom Writers" the Ripsquad is ridding itself from the shackles and steps out into the light as free people. But there's the Massa behind them asking: 'so what are you going to do now, with your freedom?'. And your answer can be, that it doesn't matter what you do with it, it matters that you have it, and can use it whenever you chose to. That of course is true, and we are accompanying the Rips' on their first few steps, before we return to smack the producers (Furious and Tone X) of this track for having used a Portishead so obvious and unspectacular. They make up for it though, well at least Furious, as his beat on the title track "Illa Godz" is quite a little something. Again the mic is used for straight spitting, over a dooming beat. With "The Way You Are", there are guests welcomed with 3rd Son & Layla Davias helping out to make the concept of talking about hip hop as a her, interesting again. While okay, there is one thing, that makes us shrug: the female singing on the chorus. Also "Fleetwood Caddies" is catching us off guard, with the Cash Flow returning and doing something guitar heavy with the caddie doing the pimp stroll, like we are in Oakland, or something.

"Fucuhintalood" is a mocking of the 'interlude' trend, as this being whatever it is, like an interview or a mic left on too long. Anyways, the Spanish horns of "Nada" are taking us back into the usual groove of things, with Speed and Furious taking on the scene and what they don't really like about it. Not your most new idea, but done quite cool, with the flows taking one step up, not stumbling up, but taking it with a confident hop. Then the Xtracts Of Slang appear on "Sycamore 2", with Tommee handling the turntable movement, and MC Sick helping out the two Rips to spit something hard, with big teeth and bad breath, due to still digesting other emcees. That's followed by "Snakebytes" with Loki and 3rd Son, doing the braggadocios, this being the machete that is ridding the path off bushes, branches and weeds (well, maybe the last one not on purpose).

Some good old home pride is showcased on the Stevie Wonder sampling "Cleveland State". The beat between the two samples is better though. The liner notes say that this is 'where Cleveland petitions to be [in] a State all its own'. While that state wouldn't be as boring as Nebraska, it would be kinda small. And the threat of Bone Thugs being asked to compose the states anthem, has us rush to the weapons to prevent such a development. Furthermore on this album, there's "Bangladesh" left, with Mic Bronto, Ajent O and Intricate. But another guest somewhat takes away the shine, as DJ Lopro is cutting up a Jeru piece to high effectiveness. Then finally there's "Touch The Sky", what is easier for a full grown Godzilla, than for a puppy. This is actually a thank you track, making this a pleasantly produced 'goodbye'.

And it's just about time to say goodbye to you, dear reader, as well, as the closing credits have already begun, and you want to leave your seat as quickly as possible, because you don't want the theater person to know that you spilled all that popcorn. But you almost fleeing will have you miss the last 'joke', hidden within the credits so often, as the end an answering machine excerpt is having you grin your widest grin. But you will still be pleased with the movie, and even recommend it to your friends. Not because it's exciting throughout, there's no complementary nudity too, but the plot was good, the action banging, the special effects were used in a restrained and tactful fashion, and it was a good two hours in a dark room with strangers.