bigd99999's Full Review: Mic Club - The Curriculum [PA] by Canibus
Since the beginning of his career, Canibus is regarded as not just any old lyricist. Among a slew of others, Canibus is known as one of the greatest emcees of all time, and is close to reaching legendary status. All over Epinions there are Canibus fans, myself included, and this is my first review on a Canibus CD.
His first album Can-I-Bus was a lyrical masterpiece. Its uniqueness, unmatched lyrical mastery, and disses to LL Cool J made it near classic. Its only downfall is the fact that its production was complete garbage. Wyclef Jean did an awful job. Sorry 'Clef. His second album improved a bit on production, and featured such great lyricists as Rakim, Kurupt, and a few others. Another great 'Bis CD. However, his third album was a complete washout. The aptly titled C - True Hollywood Stories was unimaginative, and featured a useless diss to Eminem. When i heard this, i truly believed that Canibus' career was over.
However, near the end of 2002, Canibus made his return to hip hop with his newest LP Mic Club - The Curriculum. This time, its classic Canibus. This album is purely described in one word: "Redemption" He is back to busting classic lyrics and absolutely destroying the mic. As for production, its VERY much improved with better beats that fit his style better, and they are a bit louder and sound much much better than any other 'Bis CD before it.
From beginning to end, Mic Club is as close to classic as possible. You will notice every track is a battle rap, which is good and bad. His lack of subject matter has always been bad, but remember, Canibus isnt here to make you dance, hes hear to inflict fear in emcees, and he does it SOOO well. So that can be forgiven. Canibus' lyrics, along with his wordplay, similes, metaphors, and rhythmic patterns rival even those of the great Rakim himself. It makes me wonder how 'Bis can continuisly come up with so many hot lines. Throughout this entire album, there isnt even one wasted line, or one battle rap that doesnt come off as amazing. Not to mention his delivery, with his raspy, screechy voice, sound perfect for battle rapping.
One thing that makes this album special is its variety and originality. Now.. Battle raps are nothing new, but the way Canibus battles is VERY VERY unique. He not only spits out lyrical displays like a black belt in martial arts, but he also describes things down to the fullest details and never leaves anything out. He wont kill you with weapons, he'll destroy you with words. That motto is seemingly used throughout this LP. The most original track on this album is entitled Bis vs. Rip. On this very unique track, Canibus battles none other than himself. He splits himself into two personalities. Canibus and Rip the Jacker. Canibus is the rapper with the voice, who also tries to go commercial, and is the foundation. Rip the Jacker is the lyricist, and the brains behind Canibus. The true battle rapper is Rip. Rip seemingly tears into his alter-ego with a lyrical fury, and even his comeback is held down by Rip's amazing flow and lyrical dominance. Its a classic track which perhaps only those with an open mind, a lyric book, or true Bis fans will understand.
Another good thing about this album is the fact that Canibus uses very few guest appearances, but those he uses are AWESOME. He brings the legendary Kool G Rap for Allied Meta Forces. They both showcase great lyrics, but 'Bis is of course, much more skilled. He also brings up some underground acts to help him out. Luminati helps Canibus in one track also. But my favorite guest appearance would have to be that of underground lyrical masterminds Jedi Mind Tricks. Ive spoken of these guys before, and these guys are the closest to rival Canibus when it comes to lyrics and complicated rhyme styles. 'Bis and Jedi Mind join up here and explode on Liberal Arts. The instrumental is done by Jedi Mind, as i can easily tell. I really hope that this gives them exposure, because they really need a record deal. They F*ckin rule.
Anyways, this is a great album, and true hip hop fans will love it. 'Bis aint here to make you sing, dance, or take your clothes off. Hes not here to rap about jewelry, cars, and money, or even women. Hes here to destroy you lyrically, and im not sure anybody can compete with him.
Now im Breakin it down...
1 - Mic Club Intro (4 Stars)
The album begins with a soft intro with a NICE beat. Using a low-key piano, and synch sounds, Canibus begins with his deep voice and a slow flow, which isnt used much on the album. He busts some pretty amazing lyrics and delivers a great introduction as he explains what the actual "Mic Club" is. It loses a point for being short, but it gets the job done.
2 - Poet Laureate (5 Stars)
After that short intro, Canibus explodes with the true introductory track entitled Poet Laureate. With a very much high impact instrumental using a VERY hard bassline, piano loops, and some guitar strings, it sounds perfect for his style, making this song a pure classic. Canibus spits nothing but pure flames. This song, like many other on the album, has no chorus, hooks, or breaks. Its just 'Bis spittin flames non-stop for god-knows how many bars, non-stop. Makes me wonder if he even breaths. Sample:
But the limelight isn't where I belong
The top four don't even look in the mirror no more
If they did I'd be in the mirror looking back at em, ready to grab them
Kidnap them, and put them on my album
I rip jackers, Rip the time space fabric
Loop the future with the past tense looking for patterns
Eradicate Africans that sold Africans to Saxons
and forced black men to pay taxes
Attack a wack b*tch with counter tactics
Split your bullet proof chases in half with a rapid gatling
Keep firing at cha till you trapped in
Now come back and scramble for helicopter extractions
While I'm back and forth back braggin
How I tortured them f*ggots and stabbed them with Rip the Jacker daggers
Slay dragons with old passages from black magic manuscripts
I found in the cabinet written in Arabic
3 - Master Thesis (4 1/2 Stars)
Bis actually gets into some storytelling in this track. He raps about traveling to his hip hop version of Atlantis. He claims to be the best, once again, and its a battle rap. This is what pure rap music is, nothing but a beat and lyrics. No chorus, or breaks, or hooks, just rhymes. This guy's book of rhymes must be as big as a dictionary, because his complicated rhyme style is like no other ive ever heard. He even mentions Sydonian, which is the city of ancient Poenicia, which many people dont even know what that is! AMAZING! CLASSIC! Sample:
With processed Beryllium by the quintillion
They cooked on symmetrical stoves
with my logo etched above the hole where they inserted the coal
And they barbecued birds to the bone
They burned incense in a Buck Mister Fuller type dome
I talked to Mr. Fuller over the phone
and he said he had a contract to rebuild Rome
said he didn't want to do it alone
I told him I was busy writing poems, but I'll think about going
The process was slow, and the dough was low
but I took it as the perfect opportunity to grow
plus I never traveled that far from home
but I heard about the beauty of Sydonian snow
neon green grass, statues made from translucent glass
I'll be crazy to pass, I like nigerian Jazz
the blue twilight band, that plays tunes from a laser black sax
it sounds so laid back, it helps me relax
I brought the album after seeing K-Pax
4 - Behind Enemy Rhymes (4 1/2 Stars)
Bis continues with his advanced lyrics. This time he claims he will take out all enemy emcees with his lyrical flow, and hes right about it. The instrumental here sounds very catchy. It has a nice catchy piano loop, with some synch sounds, and a simple drum loop. He is the true teacher here. Sample:
Anyone who study Canibus past
knows he has to answer the questions you not advanced enough to ask
Super advanced, faculty man, chairman of curriculum class
85% never pass, 10% smile and 5% dont even laugh
When the chalks in my hand and I'm drawin up graphs
I present the contingency plan to the top grads
They probably think I'm on speed I'm talkin so fast
The body of the rhyme is smooth, like body in bath
The Submary is more explosive than a meth lab blast
5 - Allied Meta-Forces f/ Kool G. Rap (4 1/2 Stars)
After a very unique intro, this dominant track begins. Canibus and Kool G Rap trade off lyrically advanced and LONG verse for five and a half minutes nonstop. The only breaks you hear is between artists. Kool G. Rap's voice is a nice change of pace from 'Bis scratchy voice, and his lyrical takeover and delivery is awesome. His skills are as good as ever, but hes still not as good as Canibus. The instrumental uses a simple synch loop and some violin backdrops. Great Track. Sample:
The methods of my motivation is completely subjective
My perception is completely parallel to perspective
Rhyming is the reason I spit in faces
Habituation of my flamboyance without rational reservation
Whiskey, X-Ray, yankee, Zulu, unusual
Word-ologically my syllable position is beautiful
Only respect n*ggaz if the feeling is mutual
G Rap snatch the tools from you, I'll throw 'em in the crucible
6 - Cenior Studies 02 (4 1/2 Stars)
Bis continues with his no-nonsense rap style on this track. The instrumental is pretty unique, and hard, and i havent heard much like it. It uses a hard hi-hat, along with a fast tapping loop which i cant tell what instrument it is, or sampling. Canibus flows about success and his time at the top, and that he has returned. Awesome Track. Sample:
23 hours a day I study,
Dreamin about beautiful women I hate you gay teletubies
Dreams keep my alive you can't take em from me
The battlefield is bloody, mean, and ugly
My andrenaline rushes when the enemy rush me
Tryin to bust me cuz I swore I'd defend my country
If I could choose between being lucky and having money
Nothing negative could ever touch me
What must be is ultimately not up to me
But I sacrifice my life for yours if you trust me
7 - “C” Section (4 1/2 Stars)
After a short chorus intro, Canibus begins his lyrics hard and fast, and speeds it up a bit more than before. The instrumental is a classic, using a flute loop, loud organ, and synch sounds. It fits perfectly with 'Bis' style. Canibus once AGAIN battle raps describing his complicated rhyme style. So instead of wasting time, ill just put a sample:
Facially hairless igogarious Jamaican-American
Lyricist turned microphone terrorist
Airlift me off the front line to my therapist
So I can sit in his chair and tell him how much I care for this
This is what they want this is what they love
To engage in the exchange of ideas and drugs
While I'm in the cut satellite trackin you rappers
With months of food rations beneath the catacombs of Paris
Theories of super-lattice and super-savage
Atomic attack tachometers flash when I punch the gas b*tch
8 - Drama A/T f/ Luminati (4 Stars)
Bis is joined by Luminati here on a hard beat, which sounds a LOT like the beat from Cenior Studies, which makes it lose some points. Canibus spits some flames here, but everything isnt as good as it usually is. It knocks points for that too. Luminati spits some equally unextinguishable lyrical flames which complements 'Bis' lyrics, but 'Bis is still the teacher on this track. These guys truly belong together, and Luminati is a great graduate of the Mic Club.
9 - DR C PHD (4 1/2 Stars)
Canibus returns alone here with another great track. The instrumental is a fast piano loop, which matches this track nicely, and it sounds VERY underground. Canibus rivals Rakim here in lyrics, and his similes, metaphors, and rhythmic styles are top-notch, like they are in the rest of the album. The vocabulary spat here by Canibus, along with his scratchy delivery make this track an awesome part of the album. This album doesnt seem to slow down at all. Sample:
Dr C, PHD graduated from UMG
bright as the LCD display on a new MP
prototype of a true MC
with 3D Topography Maps you can't see
Butcher on Broad Street, wrapping CDs
in butcher paper, doing artwork with Sharpies
if you don't like the quality, then talk to me
what the f*ck you on the website for you creep?
punching the keys, remember that sound
that's exactly what it sounds like when i'm punching your teeth
kick a rap, b*tch, if you've got the gumption to speak
stand next to me, i might put a lump in your meat
diss you and your man, double the beef
to tell you the truth, I thought your rebuttal was weak
10 - Bis Vs. Rip f/ Rip the Jacker (5 Stars) PURE CLASSIC. My favorite track on the album, and perhaps one of the best overall rap songs of the year. This SCREAMS Classic. As i mentioned before, this is the aptly titled track where Canibus and his super-dangerous battle rapping alter-ego named Rip the Jacker battle each other. Rip the Jacker spits flames about commercialism, and even drops the names of DMX and Funkmaster Flex here. Its very difficult to explain the meaning of this track, because its so genius.
Behind a very ominous, dark instrumental with a dark violin loop, and a simple drum loop, its nothing but fire. Rip the Jacker sort of storytells about Canibus' career from beginning to end, including the LL Cool J rap wars. Of course, he sort of re-disses him here, just a little bit. Rip tells Bis that he owes him because he wrote the best of his lyrical rhymes. Whats funny is that Rip has the typical scratchy voice, and is angry, but Bis' voice sounds a tiny bit different in tone, which is genius by Canibus. Bis' reply is pretty damn good, but nowhere near as good as Rip's destructive flow. This is genius, and this album should be bought, just for this track. Here is a Classic Sample:
Neither do I, Its a d*ck between your mother's thighs divided by pi
I'm the sickest linguistically, illicit lyrical misfit, in the business
And probably in existence. What's your consensus?
Study my own syntax statistics since '96, with CPA certified assistance
I made a decision that my standards are above precision
The only thing I can honestly say I love more than women
Are dope writtens, If it ain't dope then don't spit it
Don't be sensitive and get on the defensive
Just practice your penmanship
If you can't spit at high temperatures then just quit
Be careful of the tongue it tends to bend to the left
According to manufacture's specs you'll make a mess
And rupture the blood vessels in your neck f*cking with Rip
Got millions of blueprints on zip disk
Stock versions of sick verses that come with conversion kits
With a course every Thursday that teaches you how to burst like Rip
You never experienced work like this, B*tch!
Welcome to the serpentine world where I spit
The world where I twist, the world that I rip, the world where I live
11 - Liberal Arts f/ Jedi Mind Tricks (5 Stars)
The album continues with this classic. Using a sample from an old movie to begin the song (typical Jedi Mind), the track begins. Using a simple guitar strum loop, along with drums, giving it a jamaican influenced instrumental, Ikon from JMT joins Canibus. Both rappers spit nothing but flames and prove that they are both ill emcees. I really hope that JMT gets a deal soon. Im not putting a sample, because i really want you to buy the CD to hear this song.
12 - Curriculum 101 (5 Stars)
The album's last full track is here. It begins with an ominous start, and the lyrics explode. Canibus spits NON-STOP for 4:44. The instrumental is awesome. It uses a low violin and flute flow, with a hard bassline. He finishes the album just as he started, on the top. What is interesting of this track is that Canibus disses Eminem once again here in an ominous, and un-directed diss. Im not sure how this thing got started, but i think its just a lyrical thing where they BOTH Think they are the best... and they are. Classic Ending to the album. Sample:
F*ck the promo, n*gga I do this for dolo
Flow from the first album, the 24-0-0
Round the clock launce, I got a cup of coco
When I be a no show with my girl fives don't go
And she give me blow more than 2 times on the row
And I'd rather chill with her than kill you with a rhyme that I wrote
Count how many mics that I smoke minus the gold
Bust dope, my battlin' average higher than most
When I'm on the mic I release fire from throat
If you disagree please do it quietly folks
Anybody better than Bis must be a hoax
Black man NO, what about the great white hope?
What? Man you must be sniffin' the great white coke
Don't you that's like Gary Coleman fightin' a hulk
Still not even quite that close
A great mic fight in ya rubber dingi boat 50 miles out from the coast
What the f*ck is the "Mathers" with you?
13. Mic Club Outro (4 Stars)
Simple outro which is VERY similar to the intro, with a small flow to end the album.
In conclusion, for battle rap fans, its 5 Stars, but its lack of variety costs it 5. So I give it 4 1/2 Stars, rounded down to 4. This is definetely one of the best albums of 2002, no doubt. BIS IS BACK!!, and better than ever....
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