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Music Review:
Eminem - The Eminem Show
Artist: Eminem
Album: The Eminem Show (2002)
Label: Interscope
Genre: Rap/Hip-Hop
Release Date: May 2002 |
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Eminem:
Bitches and gentlemen, it's show time!
Hurry, hurry, step right up!
Introducing the star of our show, his name is...
Lady:
Marshall!
Eminem:
You wouldn't wanna be anywhere else in the world right now,
So without further ado, I bring to you...
My
much, much, much delayed review of Eminem’s latest release, The
Eminem Show. Yeah, yeah, I know this CD came out a few months ago,
but it dawned on me the other day that I’m STILL listening to the
damn thing, so I figured it was worthy of my time to review…
I’m not a rap fan in the least, and I was not a fan of Eminem when he
first exploded on to the mainstream music scene in 1999. Yeah, I liked
the single, "My Name Is", but stray from my usual music tastes
and pick up a rap album? Hah… When The Marshall Mathers LP came
out in 2000, I was equally indifferent, until a buddy of mine brought
the CD over for a listen. There were a few songs I didn’t like, and I
was actually a little offended by "Kim", a song in which Eminem raps
about violently killing his wife of the same name. However, a few
tracks caught my attention (in a good way), mainly "Marshall Mathers"
and "The Way I Am". Both had a beat I liked, and for some reason
the “this-is-me-deal-with-it” feel to the songs with his personal
feelings woven throughout really got to me. Those songs are still on my
Winamp playlist.
When I heard about Eminem's upcoming CD in 2002, I was actually
excited. I heard the mood of the CD was not as angry and dark as the
past album, and of course, "Without Me" was a catchy song. Due to rips
from the album already being shared on peer-to-peer networks, Interscope
released Eminem’s third CD, The Eminem Show, a week early. I picked
it up right away, popped it into my CD player, and was absolutely blown
away…
"To me, this shows a great
amount of courage, and an incredible amount of love for his daughter."
The album
starts off with a brief skit titled "Curtains Up", which is just
a cute way (am I allowed to say something on an Eminem album is
cute?) of opening the CD, by making it sound like the rest of
the album is an event at a carnival, with the sound of a curtain
opening, footsteps, and Eminem clearing his throat and tapping
on the mike, obviously getting ready for the big show…
I could just have a
rundown and grade of every song, but I don’t need to do that for such a
great overall album. However, there are a few tracks I believe deserve
mentioning. First, "Cleanin’ Out My Closet". If you haven’t yet heard
the second single from the album, you must be living in a cave
somewhere; or maybe in Tennessee or Alabama. This slower song is one of
many on the CD that shows a piece of Eminem’s personal life, with this
track focusing on his relationship with his messed-up mom. The beat is
great, but the lyrics are what do it for me here. They are heartfelt,
painful, and obviously written by a man with a lot to say.
Another song I’m
struck by is "Hailie’s Song", an ode to his clearly much-adored
daughter, from his marriage to ex-wife Kim. The incredible thing about
this track is that Eminem sings. Yes, you read that right, he SINGS.
Now he’s not blessed with a great singing voice, but he knows that, and
even acknowledges it at the beginning of the song:
“I can’t sing / I
feel like singin’ / I wanna fuckin’ sing / Cuz I’m happy, yeah, I’m
happy / I got my baby back.”
To me, this shows a
great amount of courage, and an incredible amount of love for his
daughter. It caught me a little off guard, not by the singing, but by
the unconcealed emotion he shows. Goes to show you, image isn’t
everything.
Lastly, my favorite
song on the CD, is "Superman". Everything on this track works for me:
they beat, the lyrics, the rhyme, everything. Probably not the best
track on the CD, and the lyrics might bother some people, due to
“negative connotations” in the lyrics towards women. But for some
reason, I just can’t get enough of this one. It’s also one I’ve managed
to completely memorize!
The disc is filled
with other awesome tracks, such as the "Dream On" cover,
"Sing
For The Moment", "White
America", and "My
Dad’s Gone Crazy", where his daughter, Hailie, supplies some of
the lyrics. My only problem with the disc is that the catchy first
single, "Without Me", doesn’t seem to fit with the rest of the tracks.
The mood just seems different, but I guess you still need a single to
catch the masses’ attention. Also, I would have really liked "Lose
Yourself", from the
8 Mile soundtrack, to be included on the CD, but with the
running time already passing 77 minutes, there simply isn’t enough room
for the great five-and-a-half minute song. Guess I’ll just have to pick up the soundtrack too!
Eminem has an
incredible gift of rhyming words and phrases that you normally wouldn’t
see rhymed, or even have thought possible. He’s been able to do this
since his pre-fame days freestylin’ in Detroit, and most critics have
noticed it already, I just had to mention it again. This gift is present
on nearly every track he releases, and combined with amazing songwriting
and producing, The Eminem Show is definitely worth the ticket
price.
- Greg Elliott paid the
ticket price.
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