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Aug 19, 2011Watch the Throne is far too good to condemn them thus, but not good enough to erase the possibility.
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Aug 15, 2011Watch the Throne feels all too fractured from the tension of two rappers (and two egos) at the top of their game, trying to get along.
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Aug 12, 2011Nothing can be accomplished if someone doesn't stand up and act as the new gold standard. Kanye West and Jay-Z have proven themselves to be, at the very least, kings of just that notion.
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Aug 15, 2011In place of politics, or any kind of point, all this album offers is a parade of premium brands, from Grey Goose to Louboutin. The overriding sensation is akin to reading one of those luxury-shopping magazines you get on planes while a mediocre hip-hop station plays over the headphones.
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Aug 11, 2011The music itself isn't really the issue. It's the conceit, the fact that even though Kanye and Jay-Z truthfully are nailing what pop can sound like, they use their royal stature not to communicate fresh ideas but pander to their subjects because they f*cking can.
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Aug 11, 2011Hype and arrogance created Watch the Throne and stifled the creative revelation it could have been. It would be nice if that could serve as a kind of lesson for the hip hop world, but somehow that seems unlikely.
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Aug 8, 2011In many ways, West and Jay-Z are saying something similar on their new album. But their approach is not to shine a spotlight on their community. Instead, they urge listeners to "watch the throne," and gaze in awe on their good fortune.
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Aug 11, 2011Watch the Throne is more notable for its general lack of impact. Neither as compulsively neurotic as Eminem, as languidly characterful as Snoop Dogg, nor as furiously articulate as Nas, the raps here represent a pretty mediocre, cardboard kind of throne, truth be told.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 625 out of 766
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Mixed: 71 out of 766
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Negative: 70 out of 766
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Aug 16, 2011
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Aug 12, 2011
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Aug 12, 2011