Product Description
Following the relentless intensity of his early-'90s albums, particularly his post-{|Rodney King|} statement, {|The Predator|} (1992), {|Ice Cube|} reclined a bit and put his {|rap|} career on autopilot beginning with {|Lethal Injection|}, the last album he would record for five years. Yes, it's a disappointing album, but it's not terrible by any measure. Even if {|Ice Cube|} is a little devoid of substance here relative to his rabble-rousing past, he's still a talented rapper, and he has one of the {|West Coast|}'s premier producers, {|QDIII|}, joining him for almost half the album. Unfortunately, much of what made {|Ice Cube|}'s early-'90s albums so electric -- his thoughtfulness, wit, hostility, energy, and social consciousness -- is sadly in short supply. For compensation, {|Ice Cube|} offers a few standout singles, namely {|You Know How We Do It|} and {|Bop Gun (One Nation).|} The former follows the successful template that worked a year earlier with {|It Was a Good Day|} -- a laid-back {|G-funk|} {|ballad|} laced with an old-school {|funk|} vibe; the latter clocks over 11 minutes, an epic ode to {|George Clinton|}'s {|P-Funk|} legacy. These two songs undoubtedly rank alongside {|Ice Cube|}'s best work ever. There are a few other songs like {|Really Doe|} and {|Ghetto Bird|} that also stand out, but even these songs sound rather lackluster relative to {|Ice Cube|}'s previous work. He's obviously not interested in making an album as daring and ambitious as {|The Predator|} again, and you can't really blame him. After all, {|Ice Cube|} had delivered three brilliant albums, and a similarly brilliant EP as well, {|Kill at Will|} (1990), in just three years, not to mention his then-burgeoning role as an actor. He deserved a break. But at least he took the time to craft two standout singles that alone make this album worthwhile for fans. ~ Jason Birchmeier
