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  • Release Date:
The
Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 39 Ratings

Top Track

Gravel Pit
1, 2, 1, 2, yo, check this out It's the jump off right now I want everybody to put your work down, put your guns down An' report to the pit, the... See the rest of the song lyrics
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 17
  2. Negative: 0 out of 17
  1. 100
    It's about as good a hip hop album as you will hear this year. Correction: Make that great.... It's hip-hop that plays to the streets and the suburbs with equal intensity, intelligence, insanity and integrity.
  2. 90
    All the big Wu dogs are here -- Ghostface Killah, Method Man, Raekwon, Genius, etc. -- and it sounds like they've been sharpening their skills like knives. They toss rhymes back and forth with the precision of a machine -- they're so good it's almost scary.
  3. The W forgoes innovation and simply revels in the Clan's strengths: the way their star rappers toss around rhymes as if playing catch; RZA's skulking, string enhanced beats; all those mystical hip hop words.
  4. The monotony that blighted 1997's 'Wu-Tang Forever' and the sluggish complacency of some of the Clan's myriad solo projects in the past three years is notably absent. There's a born-again urgency here, with the RZA reclaiming control of the mixing desk from his disciples and trying out a few new tricks to spike the usual routine of cinematic string stabs and virtuoso raps.
  5. 80
    Even the ample cast of guests on The W seems less like a blatant attempt to boost its first week sales than simply a welcome attempt to add to its stylistic diversity. The result is something almost as rare as getting the entire Wu-Tang Clan together: a mainstream rap album that actually sounds like an album instead of a long-playing single.
  6. "W" does have a few flaws, namely "Conditioner," which features Snoop Dogg and is the only track graced with Ol' Dirty's presence. Despite his trademark voice-cracking inflection, the Dirt Dog's verse sounds as if it was recorded over the phone, detracting from what could have been another Wu banger.
  7. Although roughly half as long as Wu-Tang Forever, The W is every bit as erratic and overreaching. If Forever was a great single album hidden in a messy two-disc set, The W feels like a good six-song EP nestled inside an uneven album that seems to take its cues from the half-assed weirdness of ODB's N**** Please.

See all 17 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 8
  3. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. Jul 28, 2011
    10
    haha i like anonymous review, 10 if you like hip hop 0 if you dont, so he gave it an 8 thats pretty humorous... but seriously this is a greathaha i like anonymous review, 10 if you like hip hop 0 if you dont, so he gave it an 8 thats pretty humorous... but seriously this is a great album... the w is a gem of an album (and i like hip hop so i give it a 10, anonymous) Expand
  2. IronMike
    Feb 5, 2006
    10
    if u listen to it first time u will say suck this fucking kack. but if u liston to it more and more u will see what a fantastic album this is
  3. JamesM
    Mar 31, 2007
    10
    "10 if u like hip hop 0 if u dont" i agree... but why did u give it an 8 then ?? :S
  4. MalikMajid
    Aug 18, 2005
    9
    This album has a hidden track after conditioner where GZA spits fire on a RZA track that reminds me of the 93-95 years of the Wu. The entire This album has a hidden track after conditioner where GZA spits fire on a RZA track that reminds me of the 93-95 years of the Wu. The entire crew is on point as usual, but Deck stands out even more so on this album. Expand
  5. Feb 4, 2023
    9
    mit dem ersten „Neger“, mit dem ich sprach, gings über Wu-Tang, sonst kannte ich nur Michael Jackson. Klingen, die schneiden sind Wörter, warmit dem ersten „Neger“, mit dem ich sprach, gings über Wu-Tang, sonst kannte ich nur Michael Jackson. Klingen, die schneiden sind Wörter, war mein Aufhänger. Expand
  6. Apr 22, 2015
    9
    With a New York street sound, dope beats and rhymes as sharp as a knife, the W keeps up with the Wu-Tang clan's reputation as one of the bestWith a New York street sound, dope beats and rhymes as sharp as a knife, the W keeps up with the Wu-Tang clan's reputation as one of the best rap groups ever and grows even more its influence on hip-hop. Expand
  7. Sep 22, 2014
    8
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