The Big Bang [PA] - Rhymes, Busta (CD 2006)

Busta Rhymes is one of the most gifted emcees in the industry today; he's an underrated lyricist and the energy he can bring to a track is undeniable. We're talking about a guy who upstaged each and every member of A Tribe Called Quest on "Scenario" and stood toe to toe with the likes of LL Cool J and the Notorious B.I.G. on the famed remix of "Flava In Ya Ear", so let's be clear here: Busta's no slouch on the mic when he's focused. Unfortunately, that last phrase is why he's also one of the most frustrating emcees in hip-hop as well, as evidenced by his solo career. Ever listened to a Busta album all the way through? Neither have I. For a guy with his gifts, why does he only have one album in his catalogue that can be considered even near-classic (The Coming)? Each and every effort since shows flashes of his potential, what Busta could do if he just put his mind to it and fully applied himself, but each is ultimately uneven and inconsistent- the signs of an emcee who lacks focus. His new album, The Big Bang, is no different, continuing Trevor Smith's streak of "what if" albums.

Track Listing and Ratings:
Get You Some Ft. Q-Tip and Marsha Ambrosius (2 Stars)
Touch It (4 Stars)
How We Do It Over Here Ft. Missy Elliot (3 Stars)
New York Sh*t (4 1/2 Stars)
Been Through the Storm Ft. Stevie Wonder (5 Stars)
In the Ghetto (4 Stars)
Cocaina Ft. Marsha Ambrosius (3 1/2 Stars)
You Can't Hold the Torch Ft. Q-Tip and Chauncey Black (5 Stars)
Goldmine Ft. Raekwon (4 Stars)
I Love My B*tch Ft. Kelis and Will.I.Am (1 Star)
Don't Get Carried Away Ft. Nas (5 Stars)
They're Out to Get Me Ft. Denaun Porter (3 Stars)
Get Down (2 1/2 Stars)
I'll Do It All Ft. Latoiya Williams (3 Stars)
Legend of the Fall Offs (5 Stars)

Opening tracks usually serve to set the tone for the entire album, so I wasn t exactly expecting big things of my experience after hearing "Get You Some". Put bluntly, this song, to quote Tony Yayo, is BO-RING, from the handclaps and guitar plucks that make up Dre's plodding beat, to Busta's verses. Even Marsha Ambrosius and Q-Tip sound uninterested as they trade lines on the hook. As for the subject matter, it's the usual "I m back" track which sees Busta proclaiming how he's going to save the rap game. I know I should be excited when listening to this song; he even shouts at the end of some of his bars for effect. Unfortunately, he just doesn't bring the heat lyrically here. However, things do get better with the first single, "Touch It"; Swizz Beatz hooks him up nicely with some minimalist production while Busta spits some par for the course sex rhymes. It's not the deepest track he's ever done, but then again, this is a single aimed at clubs, and his flow and energy do compensate enough to make the song work. After this track, he tries his hand at making another club banger with "How We Do it Over Here", but it just doesn t work as well. The energy from "Touch It" is almost nonexistent here, and Missy Elliot's her usual useless self as they both kick more raunchy sex lines. Really, the only saving grace is the beat, which is almost guaranteed to get a*ses shaking with the Arab vibe it has. These three tracks are an early microcosm of the album as a whole: inconsistent and always hinting at something greater but never reaching the mark.

For the time being, however, he changes his fortune and reels off a string of great tracks after this, going beyond the club and showing his reflective side. "New York Sh*t" gets this roll going, as he pays tribute to his home state over a flute-driven DJ Scratch beat. Busta's verses are simple, but effective, and were it not for Swizz's verse at the beginning, this would be a 5 star effort. "Been Through the Storm" and "In the Ghetto" receive assists from Stevie Wonder and Rick James (or rather, a verse from an old Rick James song) respectively while Busta reminisces about his life on the former and details the ills of ghetto life on the latter. "Been the Through the Storm" is the better of the two, as he shows true emotion for the first time on the album. The track reaches it climax during the second verse:

" .Like we innocent, actin older than should
Walk around broke in the hood, watchin all the rich n*ggaz
These younger thugs who try to choke and try to get n*ggaz
Thinkin 'bout my mom and pop, while I'm monopolizin
To hell with just gettin by and economizin
It's kinda hard bein humble in the belly of struggle
Doin things that probably get you in trouble
That's why we stay up on the block, gettin money while we keepin it safe
In front of churchgoers keepin the faith
Mom and pop be worryin for they son
Despite they struggle and their honest livin look and see just what I become
A scavenger, in brute pursuit to be happy, another young'n that's wildin "

It's a shame he isn't able to maintain this stretch of quality songs throughout the course of The Big Bang.

Skipping past "Cocaina", we get to the gem of the album in "You Can t Hold the Torch"; J-Dilla gives Busta the best beat of the album while he and Q-Tip talk about the state of the game and lament the disconnect between love for the music and the music itself. While the song definitely works in the way that it's intended to, there's also an unintended irony to be found in it as Busta Rhymes himself is guilty of trading in his artistic integrity for sales. H*ll, he gets outshined own his own song by Q-Tip, whose verses are more in-depth while he seems content to simply pepper insight in amongst his bragging. However, Q-Tip's sharp rhymes and J-Dilla smooth production compensate, and, combined with the subject matter, make this song great. The track that follows this, "Goldmine", isn't nearly as good, as the tired subject matter (hustling and pushing weight) bogs it down a bit; it doesn't help that Busta gets upstaged for the second time in as many songs, either- this time by Wu-alum Raekwon. While Rae's street poetry is on point, complete with his trademark imagery, Bus-a-Bus only manages to give an average performance here.

Then things get ugly for the album. "I Love My B*tch" kicks in on the speakers. I'm not one to hate on singles, but good God this is a horrible song, from the stereotypical title (WTF? Did Busta sit down with Kelis and Will.I.Am and decide that they d TRY to make the worst single ever?) to the tired lyrics. Rhyming "b*tch" with "sh*t"? Is this really the same Busta Rhymes that tore up "Scenario"? This can't be him. Really, the only saving grace for this song is the beat, and even that s not all that great to be honest. Save two fantastic tracks, this is the second half of the album in a nutshell: a collection of mediocre to terrible songs that kill the momentum that the first half builds up. "They re Out To Get Me" isn't a bad song in and of itself, but haven't we heard enough songs about fake friends and how they can betray you? Busta does a decent job with the lyrics, but not nearly enough to keep the subject matter from sounding stale. "Get Down" is Timbaland's attempt to create another banger, but his stripped down beat fails here and so do the lyrics, which aren t much else than Bus-a-Bus rapping dance instructions (and someone, please shoot the next producer who decides to ad-libs after every line of the song). The string of subpar tracks ends with "I ll Do it All", which gets a major assist from Latoiya Williams while Busta goes through the motions behind the mic, spitting about a woman he wants to get with. It's basically a more sincere version of "I Love My B*tch", and while it's a much better track, it's still not enough to be eye opening at this point in the album.

It's ironic then that the closer is entitled "Legend of the Fall Offs"; here, Busta "buries" rappers who are past their prime and don't put out quality music anymore. Much like "You Can t Hold the Torch", it works in a straightforward manner as well as in a way that Busta probably didn t intend. While listening to the lyrics, one can't help but realize that he's deftly described himself and his career. His flow, once captivating, is reduced to being second string in the face of Busta's attempts at garnering sales. His lyrics, once jaw-dropping and unpredictable, are lazy and uninspired. Yes, he shows that he can still spit with the best of them at some points on this album, but I can't help but think that the Busta Rhymes of old wouldn't have let himself be so easily outshined by two emcees past their primes in Q-Tip and Raekwon, or even a focused and on point Nas. Because this happens, though, The Big Bang, like so many other of his past releases, is consigned to the ever-growing scrap heap of what ifs and what should have beens. And at 35 years old, chances are that Trevor Smith won't be able to answer those questions before he retires.

Final Rating: 3.5 Stars

Standout Tracks: You Can't Hold the Torch, Been Through the Storm, Don't Get Carried Away, Legend of the Fall Offs


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