Raekwon the chef has been on a serious roll for the past
three years, seemingly making up valuable time lost in the late 1990’s and
early 2000’s. He now offers a mixtape to
tide fans over until he can accommodate them with something a bit more
filling. The between meal snack is
titled Unexpected Victory, and
features plethora of shaolin soldiers in training, as well guest appearances
from fellow lyrical kingpins. The collection
reveals its chief architect’s varied musical tastes, while also exposing his
artistic limitations.
Producer Scram Jones proves himself to be musically agile with
three versatile offerings. He effectively
channels Rick Rubin era Run DMC on “The Brewery.” Providing a suitably sharp contrast is the
aptly titled “Silk,” which emanates a mellow Marvin Gaye style vibe. Violins maintain a steady low key whine in
the background. Rae adjusts his delivery
just so in order to suit the mellow vibe, as does guest CL Smooth. “That Good Good” is a pulsating pimp strut
down the Soul Train line. A monotone hum
blows trough the cavernous landscape of the track as bass heavy horns burrow
underneath the ground. Harpsichord
strings complete the heroin laced players ball ambiance.
9th Wonder adds a haunting old soul sensibility
to “Pinebox Story” another of Rae’s patented tales from the crack side. The sample plays as though lifted just as the
needle began to skip on the vinyl. It consists of tambourines, xylophones,
jutting bass, and mournful singing. The suitably short story tells the tale of flossy
young hustler who gets caught slipping by his elders and pays an ugly price in
the process.
Semaj expertly manipulates Loose End’s soothing “You Can’t
Stop the Rain” for “Luxury Rap.” “This
Shit Hard” features hard rock guitar wails over keys that creep along like a
centipede, giving the listener the sonic willies. The title speaks of going straight to the
source to cop the purist cocaine available, and then properly cooking it up into
crack: “Fuck a middle man, I can get it direct/Cook it up, let it bubble up and
cook in the Pyrex.”
Producer Vin Da Chin injects a bit more sonic diesel into
the listener’s bloodstream on “MTV Cribs.”
Triangles twinkle in the night sky as violins escalate into the heavens. Flutes blow softly in the breeze as bongos
beat out a bubbling tribal rhythm. Rae
gives the listener a virtual tour of the ultimate hustler’s abode and all its
accoutrements. Featured guest Busta
Rhymes adopts a spoken word cadence, making for a nice change of pace from his
manic, rapid fire spit. “Chupa Cabra” sounds like the title creature peering from
the tall grass and waiting to pounce on its prey. Capone-N-Noreaga join the chef, and engage in
a bit of their penchant and forth.
Unexpected Victory
switches between musical modes, juxtaposing an 80’s rap/rock sound with various
forms of R&B. The mellow tracks prove
to be more musically appealing than the harder edged ones. The production remains consistent throughout,
despite the long list of contributors. The
one unforgivable misstep is R&B singer Altrina Renee’s solo offering
“Facetime.” Not only is it woefully out of place here, but its faux radio show
opening proves better than the actual song itself.
As with other Wu projects, affiliates and proteges
abound. All are adequate, but the by now
tiresome subject matter and routine deliveries make them all sound the same. Raekwon himself is similarly hampered by his
seeming lack of growth, though he proves to be as lyrically dexterous as ever. The lack of surprises makes this Unexpected Victory play more mundanely
than it would have in an earlier era.
The album maintains it's unifying theme of an O.G. passing on
game to younger players, hoping that they dutifully carry on tradition. Though it sits comfortably as an extended interlude within the Cuban
Linx chronology, it’s apparent that Raekwon himself remains in a time
warp. His subject matter stopped
evolving a long time ago. As a result, his
pupils may feel as though they’ve heard it all before. Though the sermon still sounds good, it would
be nice to see a bit of an evolution on the part of the preacher.
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