Eyedea & Abilities
By The Throat
Whoever said battle rappers can't make songs surely wasn't referring to Eyedea. The emcee half of the pair may have won numerous battles with impressive freestyle performances but he's also known for putting together intriguing song lyrics with thought provoking concepts. For instance, "Time Flies When You Have a Gun" is a gem with lines like "You can own it but mostly, it'll own you." Utilizing the same skill, "The E.Y.E." can become emotionally compelling: "Winter takes the warm away/Spring takes the cold away/Summer takes the rain away/Fall took away my friend...I'll always remember our companionship and what it meant/And on Sunday, October the 5th/ You took your last breath/ And you will be missed."
The lyrical output is mostly great, but the rhyme patterns aren't as complex as they once were. Fans may also be surprised to hear Eyedea singing throughout the 11 cuts. With side projects Face Candy and Carbon Carousel under his belt, it is only unusual in his work with Abilities. Here, he sings with more emotion than vocal prowess as he goes against the Auto-Tune craze. At times his crooning is tolerable, but it is often bordering on pedestrian.
DJ Abilities is more than capable of matching Eyedea with his production and scratching. To compliment the singing and aggressive deliveries, Abilities supplies rock-inspired beats. His drums show influences from punk rock music with heavy snare hits ("Hay Fever"), quicker paced drum patterns ("Sky Diver"), and distorted guitar riffs ("Spin Cycle"). Want more traditional rap beats? The closest you'll get is "Burn Fetish." Otherwise, Abilities takes chances experimenting with other genres and scratches with technical attention to detail but the fusion isn't always impeccable. It's almost reminiscent of fellow RSE artist P.O.S.'s Never Better, only not as seamless in its fusion. While it's hard to deny the chemistry between emcee and DJ, the result of this experiment are only adequate and often difficult to listen to.
E&A continue to fight against convention. With a decidedly more rock infused release, the duo isn't catering to longtime fans, which may not always be a bad thing. Abandoning the battle raps for more singing would have been great if Eyedea's voice was up for the challenge. Nevertheless, with Oliver Hart's introspective, abstract and compelling lyrics and Abilities' scratching mixed with unconventional beats, E&A does not completely fail. After all, intelligent rhymes and varied beats can't be knocked. Risk takers and experimental artists will always have hits and misses and this album carries both. Is it better to show fans the range of what you can do, or do what you do best? By The Throat is an album that answers that question.
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Comments 28 posts
Snuggles:
For everyone who says hip hop can't be mixed with rock, do you even know anything about hip hop? Look back at how many classic hip hop artists have used riffs and bass lines from rock songs. Look at how many rock songs have been covered as hip hop songs. The fact that you're trying to label this album as anything at all is retarded. E&A are artists making music. Period.
I loved this album because it's sounds unlike anything I've ever heard before. Eyedea may not be able to sing, but neither could Sid Vicious, Joe Strummer or Joey Ramone. If you listen to this album and don't enjoy it, that's fine. E&A have still done something you probably never could, which means it deserves admiration and respect.
I think it's funny that so many of you claim to have loved First Born, yet you seem to have missed the message. Convention is limiting, creation is limitless. E&A are still saying the same thing, just in a different tone. As long as they keep creating, I'll continue absorbing.
_riot:
Word the fuck up.
That guy:
Sid Vicious was a bassist, and he couldn't do that either.
The.Watcher:
Fuck a 2.5.
This is a near masterpiece.
This is what hip hop should be like, vocal & sonic experimentations, fuck the run-o-the-mill generic, radio-friendly, creative-less mainstream crap that's aimed at 13 year old girls.
12312312312:
this is the single biggest let down of an album i have ever heard. i love and i mean LOVE first born and e&a is a top 5 album of all time in my eyes, i even thought that the many faces of oliver hart was extremely respectable. so with that background i am not a hater, eyedea has the capacity to write some of the best lyrics and abilities is aside from 7l and maybe ant the best producer in the game but this seemed like a broken album or maybe a broken concept? way too heavy on the rock and not enought hip hop in this; i say if an artisit is going to make their fans wait 5 YEARS they better come with heat when they return. at the end of the day its not just a bad album but a HORRIBLE album
sure:
this album was amazing. it took me a couple listens, but it kept growing on me. its really emotional, and it makes you feel something. which is what i like most about hip hop. it makes you feel. 6 stars from me! i mean, common!! its e & a!
rroate:
This album breaks conventions, if you hate it, thats the emotion that it evokes to you...and that doesn't mean it sucks. E&A just got a rise out of you and stirred emotions inside of you when you first heard it. At least its not your rap radio garbage...you actually thought about this one and that speaks for itself.
cezeOne:
just listened to it and i feel the same i did when i listened to the new cage...great!. experimenting is always great and it's a fun album. albeit short my favorite track
is "burn fetish". some tracks' choruses were a bit off but i liked it overall. 5 x's bc yall are haters and auto tune dick riders
no:
This album is awful.
I am all for experimenting and trying new things with music....but you should be good at it. He cannot sing at all. The beats are trash. Everything about this cd is fucking garbage.
Like I said.....I am all for people experimenting with music. I dont really like shit that sounds like everything else. But this is just plain bad. Rhymesayers are idiots for putting this shit out.
thegreatsage:
ill
H2opologod:
I really enjoyed this album. It's a very creative style and is unlike an other hip-hop I've ever heard. My favorite track was probably "Smile".
moh112:
wasn't really my cup of tea.
bob dobalina:
POS made a good album, I've give you angry backpackers that. Eyedea did not. He's officially the Memphis Bleek of Rhymesayers.
mufucka:
After one listen, I was turned off by this. Prefer his more hip hop style to this new rock thing he has going on.
Assassin221:
Man, I'm cool with experimentation and all that but why does it seem like hip-hop isn't good enough for these underground cats?
The.Watcher:
Define 'hip hop' for me.
You are basing 'conventional' rap as the basis for your argument.
You have to understand that what's being played on the radio is just rehashes of something that's already proven to make money.
Who says that rap/hip hop has to sound generic?
Or that a rap record can't have drums & guitars in it?
delababywatsgood:
i dont like this album i dont know whats wrong with you guys... i think that the flow is disrupted by the beats and the pure sound makes me cringe.... some cool beats tho
dilla_disciple:
somebody got beef.
Jking0821:
The album is a 4 out of 5 to me. But the fact that dx Hated it so much I gave it a 5. Like stated before hip hop is about taking chances and being different and this album is that. You can't tell me This story and burn fetish aren't good songs. The album is way too short but well worth it. By the throat is prob my fav song on the album.
Kaydee:
I love the album!!!By The Throat is a great track!!! I'll give it 4 too
Jae Havoc:
ok, ive agreed with dx in most reviews and thought it was written well, but this is just ridiculous. This album was well done and very entertaining. It seems you don't have much experience with other kinds of music, especially not punk. If you knew anything about punk, you'd know that a lot of the greatest punk bands had vocalists with terrible singing voices, it's not about that, it's about emotion, message, energy, and rebellion.
I mean seriously, you guys have given shitty albums much better reviews. But I guess hip hop artists arent supposed to step outside of whats "accepted" as hip hop.
sageprice:
haha wow were they ever off while rating this. This and P.O.S's Never Better are the two albums of the year. This is real hip hop, this is what its all about. Making something different each album is what every artist should do, but they arent artists they're rappers so they dont know how. Perfect flow to the album, every song is great and there's never a need to skip a track. Hay Fever, Smile, By The Throat are some of my favorites.
Skiely_DaBo$$:
hahah you know that if HHDX gives it a low rating its a good cd!
HHDX you guuys fuckin suck at rating shit.
fuck a critic
this album is dope. i dig that they tried some new shit on this cd. i boughht it already and it keeps gettin rotation in tha whip
soma79:
dope album! 2.5???? the only thing i don't like about the record is that it is too short!!!!
I_Am_Beast:
2.5 is kind of harsh isn't it? I haven't heard
the album so I can't call it. It still seems a
bit harsh.
sh8909090:
i saw them at rock the bells so i picked this album up.. after getting over initial reservations, i havent been able to listen to anything else.. esp. the tracks burn fetish, smile, and spin cycle