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100

Village Voice (Consumer Guide)

Disable your prejudgment button and you'll hear a work of art whose immense entertainment value in no way compromises its intimations of a pathology that's both personal and political, created by one of those charming rogues you encounter so much more often on the page...

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100

Vibe

Eminem has crafted the best album of the year so far with The Marshall Mathers LP and it comes dangerously close to being a classic.

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100

All Music Guide

A fairly brilliant expansion of his debut, turning his spare, menacing hip-hop into a hyper-surreal, wittily disturbing thrill ride.

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Entertainment Weekly

''The Marshall Mathers LP'' is indefensible and critic-proof, hypocritical and heartbreaking, unlistenable and undeniable; it's a disposable shock-rap session, and the first great pop record of the 21st century.

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New Musical Express

Gruelling assault course of lyrical genius that pours itself into the 18 tracks on this album-

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Village Voice

The ever increasing variety in Eminem's voice (drawled Southern-bounce cadences, impatiently curt throaty staccatos, flat Beck-like deadpans, crying and screaming) somehow feels completely conversational, and the musical backdrop (calypso/Caribbean, Gothic etherea, jiggy disco evolving into P.M. Dawn) is frequently, of all things, beautiful.

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Rolling Stone

He is, simply, better than any other MC in hip-hop except for Jay-Z.... The Marshall Mathers LP is a car-crash record: loud, wild, dangerous, out of control, grotesque, unsettling. It's also impossible to pull your ears away from.

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Salon.com

An airtight masterpiece of rhyme-

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Wall of Sound

It's smartly crafted black comedy from hip-hop's greatest white MC, a strong storyteller and a master of the metaphor, who produces staggeringly popular music that's mostly meant to be enjoyed with both a pained grimace and a smirk.

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CDNow

The words are now injected with a new industrial strength venom that make the last album seem like Hanson's Christmas disc.

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MTV.com

What's most pure is Eminem's liberating fearlessness in taking hip-hop left turns and acting the fool. The best hip-hop stand-up comic since Biz Markie; all that and a bag o' chronic.

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The Onion (A.V. Club)

Mathers is frequently brilliant and unique, if extremely flawed.

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New York Magazine

Aside from the horrifyingly detailed stalker narrative of "Stan" and the homicidal fantasy of "Kim," nothing on Marshall Mathers rises above the level of locker-room insults -- nearly every song seems to feature Eminem's giving someone the finger.

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Checkout.com

There are songs on Mathers that are very, very good; as a result, when Eminem misses the mark, it feels incredibly frustrating, because you know what he's capable of.

Q Magazine

True, even misdirected, Eminem's disaffection sucks you in and the wholesale nihilism can still provoke shivers. But it all used to be more fun.

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L.A. Weekly

It just isn't as much fun this time around, no matter how fresh Dre's beats are or how many worthy targets get shot down along with the innocent.

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Spin

Funny how so much controversy can spring up over an album that is, musically, not all that noteworthy.... what could have been a brilliant statement, instead elevates Eminem to the rarified air of true platinum rappers: ie, those that drop outstanding rhymes over frustratingly mediocre beats.

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Sonicnet

The problem is, as the album drags on, young Master Mathers wastes his considerable wit and opts to grouse in the guise of a rampaging reactionary. Song after song finds Eminem viciously baiting real and imagined enemies, as if that's all he knows how to do.

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HOB.com

The problem is that he's just not that funny. For someone who takes such pleasure in spouting off on everything and everyone, from fans and critics to boy bands and label executives, Eminem really has nothing to say.

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Dot Music

The production, however, is first rate, Dre proving that he really is on fire at the moment. Eminem's microphone skills are similarly beyond question ' though a little too shouty on occasion. It's just that his self-indulgent and irritatingly stupid rants will prove too much for any audience that recognises irony in Beavis and Butthead.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 9.3 (out of 10) based on 229 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Jeremy E gave it an8:
Overrated. Some good songs, but too many mediocre ones to justify a 10 rating or a classic certification. For every Stan on this album, there's a track like Amityville. And then there's alot of them which are just average. Final Verdict: Just download these songs, and you'll save your time. The rest aren't worth listening to. Must Hear Songs: Stan, The Way I Am Also Great: The Real Slim Shady, Marshall Mathers

Matthew L. gave it a10:
Absolutely stunning.

Antonio S gave it a10:
Best album that i saw since Stankonia from Outkast. Most people don't like him, but Marshall Mathers is a greatest artist. Stan prove Eminem like one the best compositor of all times.

Chris K gave it a10:
By far the greatest rap album of all time, nobody can beat Eminem at delivering slick rhymes in such a humorous, witty way.

Floor P gave it a10:
A classic. One of the best rap albums ever made.

Ben F gave it a10:
I love Eminem. He is such an excellent rapper. I like him so much. "Stan" is my second favorite Eminem song next to "Lose Yourself" being my favorite Eminem song. Why is the score 79? It should be in at least the 90s or higher as universal acclaim.

Max K gave it a10:
One of the best hip hop albums of all time.

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