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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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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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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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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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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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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.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 1,792 out of 1964
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Mixed: 31 out of 1964
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Negative: 141 out of 1964
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Oct 13, 2010
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Oct 25, 2010
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Jan 27, 2015