Back in 1998 Def Squad consisting of Redman, Erick Sermon & Keith Murray dropped the long awaited album El Nino. Being a fan of Redman’s and to a lesser extent Keith Murray I decided to go out and buy this album. I’ve never really been a fan of Erick Sermon as a rapper even dating back to his EPMD days and in my opinion the stuff he raps here is some of his best. I’ve like Murray for a while and at times can be an amazing lyricist. Erick Sermon shines here however his more recent stuff has been pretty sh!tty in my eyes. Redman who is obviously the best of the crew has dropped a few classic albums most notably Whut? Thee Album. Back in the late 90's the collaboration record was a huge thing as you saw different emcee's jumping on each others album everywhere. Each of these three rappers could often be found on each others solo albums as well and took the next step, joining forces and forming the Def Squad. With that said lets check out El Nino and see if it is a bonafide storm or a pestering little wind.

1. Shower(Intro) - N/A - This starts out with Redman having sex and the WDEF radio intro of Nasty Nadj in the background. The girl goes to the bathroom to take a shower and gets a gun goes back into the room and starts pulling the trigger and it isn't loaded. Redman's pulls one out shoots and kills her. Pretty Stupid.

2. Check N' Me Out - $$$$$ - This starts off with some ringing sound with the beat playing and Redman talking in the background. The bass thumps and the basslines is just dope. Redman opens up spittin some really tight rhymes spittin "If I gotta go out, I'm gonna out the full metal jacket style, Reverse suicide to do or die, Im broke, I lost my deal, my car, my broad, And me and my landlord be at war for the rent". The chorus is a classic Redman type of crazy a$$ sh!t. Erick Sermon takes the mic next and he opens up spittin some commercial bullsh!t then just switches it up and lights this muthaf!cka on fire. "Some rappers they Choose to be disobediant/Dummies, Advance you skill from Intermediate". After chorus goes one more round Keith Murray picks it up and just rips this joint up. He starts out with a pretty weak gangsta 50 Cent type sign song mess, but when he actually starts the rappin its crazy. He spits some pretty tight metafores. The album starts off on a good foot other than that garbage a$$ WDEF radio outro for the song.
"Violated, Re-instated, Genuinely Elated/
You Belated, You be checkin me out till the day i'm cremated/
I keep you heavily sedated, Illified, Illustrated/
The original juice, Not from concentrated"

3. Countdown(featuring Jamal of Illegal) - $$$$1/2 - Over a sick a$$ beat Erick Sermon just shines. He opens up just spittin crazy flames using references to various things of that time period such as the movie Preachers Wife and Chris Webber on the Wizards. Redman takes over and also just rips into this joint spittin some funny lyrics. The songs chorus is an old rhymes from Parrish on an old EPMD song "Emcee's, It's the final Countdown, You look tired, can you go the round? If you can, I'll slap ya hands and give you credit, If you can't I'll turn around and say forget it.". Keith Muray takes over after the chorus and spits some overly gangsta lyrics which is occasionally his downfall. Jamal comes up after Murray and he also starts off with some really gangsta lyrics but his flow and thw words he uses actually makes his verse pretty damn tight.

4. Full Cooperation - $$$$$ - The lead single from El Nino was Full Cooperation. The beat could be considered commercial because this song was played at parties and clubs back in 98' but its also still pretty raw. Keith Murray opens it up with a hard hitting verse in which he just opens up spitting some tight lyrics with a monsterous flow. He spits some punchlines here and there attacks wack rappers and biters. He also handles the chorus which is mad catchy but it isn't some sell-out 50 Cent type sh!t as it's just encourages people to smack a wack rapper. Erick Sermon also spits punchlines asking wack rappers how many lumps they want. Redman takes care of the last verse and just rips it spittin ridiculous sh!t. "My Death Row alliance be assigned and aligned to electric/So it flair like a chair in Texas. Such sick. This was the perfect single for this album.
E-Dub:
"My style ain't no walk in the park/
Got mainstream emcee's scared to rhyme after dark/
And there aint no half steppin'/
Im rappin like a nuclear weapon/
Manifesting, Emaculate conceptions/
Lyrically I rape an emcee, like sodomy/
Add Tragedy, to your Oddessy/"

5. (Siminila) WDEF(skit) - N/A - Another wack WDEF skit about getting siminila from dirty chicken heads. Wack, Skip it.

6. Ride Wit' Us(feat. Too Short) - $$1/2 - This song has a smooth laid back beat. Too Short opens up talking about what he usually does. Smoking weed, pimping and f!cking hoes. Pretty damn wack. The chorus is also laid back bump in your ride type sh!t. Keith Murray opens up spitting some nearly weak commercial raps but improves using some punchlines. Redman takes over rapping about smacking the hell out of various people. For the most part however its pretty commercial. After this song we get a pretty weak interlude with Redman killing some fake gangsters.

7. Rhymin' Wit' Biz(featuring Biz Markie) - $$$1/2 - This song has a funk-type of beat with weak basslines. For about a minute we get an intro with Biz Markie just talking about who's in the house. He gives a little rap which is followed by Keith Murray just ripping into the song. He spits some hard punchlines with some gangsta rap. Biz Markie kind of keeps it loose with his chorus. Redman takes over rapping some nice punchlines, some of them funny, some not. The song ends with the Biz making noises and a small WDEF outro.

8. The Game(Freestyle) - $$$1/2 - This song has a sample of Kurtis Blow's Christmas Rappin. Each Def Squad rap back and forth every eight bars. Each of them spit some pretty tight punchlines. The song is pretty short but each rapper does a pretty nice job with Redman probably having the best lyrics.

9. World Announcement(skit) - N/A - Keith Murray gives a speech talking about unity in hip-hop. At the end he starts yelling Can U Dig It!

10. Can U Dig It - $$$$1/4 - This beat will instantly make you nod your head. The chorus for this is the sample of Keith Murray yelling "Can U Dig It". Erick Sermon opens it up and does a pretty weak job here spitting a bunch of commercial lyrics. Redman picks him up however spitting venom. His punchlines here are impecable and he even throws various jabs at some commercial acts dissing people "who dance with shiny sh!t on". Keith Murray is next and he just goes nuts on this spittin some wicked lyrics just letting other hip-hop artists know that the Def Squad is here to set sh!t straight. This would have been a damn near perfect song if Sermon didn't drop the weakage.

11. You Do, I Do - $$$ - Stupid Commercial Beat here. Doc opens up spittin some pretty tight lyrics here which is obviously the savior to this song. The lyrics i mean, from all 3 emcee's for the most part. The chorus is annoying and weak as hell. Erick Sermon does a pretty above average job then he ruins his verse with some commercial a$$ rhymes even though with his last few bars he spits some pretty tight stuff. Keith Murray ends it with a pretty tight verse once again letting us all know Def Squad is here to stomp the hell outta wack cats. At the end of the song we get a very weak WDEF skit with various people calling the station and the radio DJ Nasty Nadj dissing them. F!cking Stupid.

12. Y'all N!ggas Ain't Ready - $$$$$ - This track has a southern hip-hop type of feel too it due to the beat. Erick Sermon starts it off spittin a pretty tight verse about how he gets sh!t done on his own without the help of anyone. The chorus is also kind of southern with the echoing Y'all N!ggas Ain't Ready. Redman takes it second and does a great job here also spitting some pretty good metafores. Keith Murray takes it last and out even spits a verse better than Redman's. It's like each rapper was trying to out do the previous one. This song is verse short but sweet, even though we still get a weak a$$ WDEF outro.

13. Say Word! - $$$3/4 - This song starts off with a much slower beat than most songs on the album, but Keith Murray rips right into it. He bounces from spitting some monsterous punchlines to 4 bar introspective raps and back, but it still flows like water. The chorus is pretty tight as well. Redman opens up spittin nicely then he just starts stressing the weed smoking a little be too much. Erick Sermons comes up last and bring it back up to snuff. He kinda spits using the Wu-Tang lingo of cuttin peeps up like ninja's and what not. Another wack outro which plays into the next track.

14. No Guest List - $$$$$ - This has a nice beat. It sets a nice dark mood for this track. Keith Murray opens up spitting some acidic battle raps. "I Step out the shell, like a black pearl/ Become the destroyer of all worlds/ Eat you inside out like stress/ The Best, I never lose a rhyme contest/". The chorus to this song doesn't have much to do with the song but the guys haunting voice still fits the mood. He tells a chick she can't get in the club, but none of these guys spit anything about clubby sh!t or any commercial rhymes. Redman takes over and he just goes wild on this joint. I get on the mic like, Ba-Doop-Ba-Doop, Kick roundhouse/You the tightest emcee n!gga, let me find out/ When I pull mines out/I could gaffle Mr. Keebler for all his Chips Ahoy out the trump townhouse. He continues to spit some more ridiculous battle rhymes. Erick Sermon also spits some good battle rhymes. It's not Canibus but it isn't bad either. In fact this song is tight as hell.
"I battle with words, Go to war with Idea's/
You defeat me? Not in a million years"

15. President of Babies Father(skit) - N/A - Another stupid as WDEF skit, I'm not even gonna stress it.

16. Def Squad Delite - $$$$$ - This is another single from El Nino and is the cover version of Sugar Hill Gang's Rapper's Delight. I really don't have to tell much about this song. Either you've heard this song or the Sugar Hill Gang song and they are basically the same thing with some minor lyrical changes. Redman starts it off with a rappin intro, ya know Bang, Bang, to the boogie to the up jump the boogie etc. Erick Sermon takes over rapping about sucka emcee's and pleasing Loise Lane will dissing Superman. Keith Murray goes off spittin just making it a party hit, however not a sell out or anything. Redman goes again after that and starts spittin about food at a friends house and its hilarious as El Nino ends on another good track.

In my opinion El Nino was one of the best albums of 1998. During a time when the dirty south was running around and blinging, in the form of No Limit and Cash Money, the Def Squad put together a pretty tight album amongst the bullsh!t to come in commercial hip-hop. Not just spitting about guns, weed and b!tches, these guys just are having a good time and listening to this album will put a smile on your face. Redman's delivery itself along with his lyrical humor makes just about anything he says pretty damn funny or if not funny, it was still pretty tight. This album seems as if it Def Squad time worped back into the early 90's to make this album and then released it during the birth of the commercial hip-hop era. Even though the WDEF skits are wack it shows they are about a good time and partying as well as sucka punching sucka emcee's. However i'm not talking about demeaning women which is what rappers do for a good time now a days. It just seems as if these three had fan making this album which is evident in the energy in each song, and the overall quality of the album. It seems as if each of these guys were actually TRYING to out-do each other and each rapper succeds at out-doing another atleast 3 or 4 times on this album. Redman is obviously the most popular rapper here and probably the best here but Keith Murray and Erick Sermon steal the show from him on various as he outdoes them on others. Erick Sermon's production here is just phenomenal. Other that You Do, I Do there are no weak beats on this. As far as subject matter these guys never really focus on one subject at any given time. Its just pure hip-hop as they bounce around spontaneously spitting metafores, references and flat out dope rhymes. No real themes to songs the only one that really comes close to a specific theme is Def Squad Delite. This album is hot for real. I usually play this a couple times every month ever since I got it back on the first day it come out. If you are a Redman fan and don't own these you need to hit the stores right now. The same goes if you are an Erick Sermon fan or EPMD fan and also for Keith Murray fans. These guys just have a chemistry and if they continued popping out albums they could be better than most trio's not only in commercial hip-hop such as LOX & G-Unit(which actually has 4), but in all of hip-hop. If you are skeptical download Def Squad Delite & Full Cooperation to remind you how hot these songs were. Also Recommended for anyone who likes a lot of punchlines.

4.2 Stars Rounded Down to 4.

Top 3 Songs:
1. Check N' Me Out
2. Def Squad Delite
3. No Guest List
Honorable Mention(s): Full Cooperation, Y'all N!ggas Ain't Ready & CountDown



$--------------------Limited Edition Bonus CD--------------------$

The Limited Edition Bonus disc is hosted by Redman and Method Man and contain snippets of different songs. I will gives a little review of these songs.

1. Ja feturing Jay-Z - $$$$$ - This is the song Kill Em All I think that was on Venni Vetti Vecci. This HANDS DOWN(!!) the greatest sh!t Ja Rule ever spit. This is one of the very few times I really felt his sh!t right here. The only other time he comes close is on Murder Gram also with Jay-Z and DMX. He gives us a pretty tight battle rhymes which was his first and only good lyrical display in his career. As with everything featuring Jay-Z we only get a snippet of him on the chorus as it fades out before his verse. NOTE: They spelled Featuring wrong...

2. Slick Rick - $$$$$ - Method Man starts off telling about how Slick Rick is out of jail...Funny how that is relevant as of now. This joint was sampled by Ja Rule for I Cry. Slick Rick spits a tight story about him and an enemy on the streets.

3. Jayo Felony - 0 - Meth & Red go to commercial break and we get a wack weather report followed with Redman giving an intro to jayo's joint. This song has a ridiculously commercial beat. Jayo Felony spits with a very 2Pac-ish delivery and he even patterns his flow after pac and its sad because he is f!cking wack. Needless to Say this song is trash along with the clubbish chorus which is eardrum shattering.

4. Keith Murray featuring LL Cool J - $$1/2 - Meth and Redman getting high over DMX's Stop Being Greedy. This is the joint Incredible. LL Cool J spits a pretty lukewarm battle verse that has its highs and lows. Keith Murray follows and his verse on this track isn't nearly as tight as anything he spit on the whole El Nino album.

5. Richie Rich - 0 - Meth and Red just acting stupid. Commercial beat and a very weak a$$ pimp song.

6. Cormega featuring Mobb Deep - $$$$1/2 - Stupid a$$ traffic report. Then we get a weeded out intro from Meth and Red. Man it's good to hear Prodigy rapping with some energy here. Cormega then rips into spitting some pretty sick straight up street life sh!t, with a pinch of braggadocio. The beat is tight as well.

7. Method Man Exclusive - $$$$ - We get another weeded out intro. I forget the name of this song but I have the album. It's pretty tight even though we only get about a minute of it.

8. Method Man & Redman - $$$3/4 - This is the joint Big Dogs from Tical 2000 I think it was. This song is pretty tight with a nice beat. However I don't really like reviewing half-a-song soo...

9. 4,3,2,1 Exclusive Remix - $$$$1/2 - This song is pretty tight. This isn't much of a remix they just seem to have chopped LL Cool J's verse and added one part after Method Man's verse and the last part after Redman's.

This is a pretty tight set of snippets and in my opinion the best of all the Survival of the Illest cd's. Well until next time.

Recommended: Yes