Why is it that two of the best lyricist to ever grip a mic have never found the beats to carry their words? While Ras will be releasing an album with beats from tried and true legends (Primo & Dre), Canibus has taken the canvases of an underground dynamo. “Canibus is a dope lyricist, but…” Those statements are over, and Bis has Stoupe to thank. Bis recorded his vocals before heading off the boot camp and he left them in the hands of Stoupe, beatsmith behind Jedi Mind Tricks. Stoupe spent the winter crafting incredibly detailed and distinctive beats around the words of Bis. The result? The best album in the career of Canibus.
There is just no way you can listen to a Canibus album and front on his skills. His lyrical dexterity and the pure relentlessness in which he attacks the mic can be matched by very few. The term ‘dropping science’ is something Bis takes quite literally as his highly complex rhymes may require a biology textbook and a dictionary for some to grasp. Oh, and 16 bar rhymes? Don’t expect any of those.
“Genibus” is indicative of what the album is all about. Canibus drops his wordy rhymes over Stoupe’s expressive instrumental of eerie chants and xylophone chimes. The vibe is continued on “Levitibus,” but the tempo increases and the beat is even richer. The complex wordplay hits stride as well, “I’m above average with verbal semantics/the aurora borealis in the form of a rap ballad/they look at me like ‘poor bastard’/why can’t you manipulate Billboard with all your metaphor magic?” Stoupe continues to please the ears with more ill manipulation of vocal samples and Spanish guitar licks on “M-Sea-Cresy.”
The albums zenith is reached on “No Return,” as Bis’ storytelling is phenomenal and Stoupe’s Caribbean stylings are only outdone by his infectious chorus. Canibus becomes “Spartibus” and battle-mode is turned on and Stoupe cooks up another sick chorus with a classic Rakim sample. Canibus’ breathless flow is matched beautifully by a racing, colossal beat on “Cemantics.” With “Poet Laureate II” closing out the album, you will likely be left breathless just listening to Bis tear through Stoupe’s vocal loop for over 7 minutes…with no hooks, or run on beat. Ladies and gentlemen, that is how you rip a mic.
After “Mic Club” and now “Rip The Jacker,” signing with Babygrande was undoubtedly the best career move Bis ever made. With the help of his labelmate, Bis has made an album that is worthy of his talents. For all those who wrote off Canibus, one listen to “Rip The Jacker” will have you reaching for your erasers.
CAN’ FRONT
fLAWLESS ALBUM!!
CANIBUS IS LYRICALLY AMAZING!!!
ALL HE NEEDS IS GREAT BEATS AND HE’S UNTOUCHABLE
probably his best album 🙂
How the fuck you gon fuck up that FUCKING BAD! This shits a fucking classic; its been out for eight years now, and the people that listen to it all say its a classic. Fucking idiot writes a review praising the album, then knocks off a star. Why? Cause its Canibus.
Fuck you J-23.
Yup.
Great album, no doubt! 5 stars worth!
The guitar in “M-Sea-Creasy” is Portuguese, though, not Spanish. The sample is taken from “Fado Nocurno”.
4? lol…
still listening to this ablum. its timeless
Dope Album 5/5
5/5
Straight up 5/5, no question whatsoever
Apparently I’m not the only one who decided to check the review several years after this came out. Canibus’ best album, I was just listening while studying,here in 2016.
Writing this in 2018, this album is timeless. One of my fave of all time. Stoupe made Canibus sound better than he ever has. Ever!! It’s a shame they never got together again.
Perfect album from beginning to end.
This album is one of a kind. In my years of listening to rap and studying hip hop, I have never come across an album as incredible and different like Rip the Jacker. Canibus is an extremely skilled lyricist and poet with an unfortunately spotty discography. His debut album Can-I-Bus in 1998 was a great listen with killer production by Wyclef Jean, Clark Kent, etc. Next, Canibus releases 2000 B.C. and it was a solid release with just a little odd beat choices which is a huge problem that Canibus suffers with. C True Hollywood Stories was forgettable to be honest. Its a decent listen but what albums that come next are truly something special. Micclub and Rip the Jacker are released very close together. Micclub is easily a 4/5… but then there’s Rip the Jacker. Easily is on of the most impressive rap albums of all time. Around Rip the Jacker’s release, MF Doom’s Madvilliany dropped and it was an extremely impressive lyrical roller coaster. So, Canibus had some lyrical competition, but that didn’t stop him from making one of the greatest rap albums of all time. The top tracks on this album are everything except “Intro” and “Indibisible”. Oh man is the beat on “Indibisible” is annoyiny, but it is not Bis’s fault. At the time of this album being born, Bis’s joined the army and left the vocal clips in the hands of Jedi Mind Tricks producer Stoupe. He made some incredible and memorable beats on this album. So, what the hell happened with this beat? The vocal sample that was chosen probably wasn’t bad from the beginning but the decision to make it high pitched was a bad one. Other then that, everything else is a classic track. “Genabis” kicks off with a clever nod to the very beginning of the Bible talking about the origins of the universe and the earths creation. Canibus changes it to talk about his own beginning of when he started rapping. “Levitibus” is a hard hitting lyrical bumper track. Definitely one of the best tracks on here. “M-Sea-Cresy” has a eerie European sounding beat that works so perfectly. “No Return” is a track that can’t be explained but it can be summarized as 3 short stories that end up meaning “hear no evil, speak no evil, and see no evil” in that order. Listen for yourself and be prepared to be blow away by the amazing story telling. “Spartibus” has an Egyptian sounding beat behind the incredible and odd lyrics of Canibus. Super dope track. Next is “Indibsible” and I’ve already talked about it. It’s just a shame that Canibus’ lyrics were ruined by a pretty annoying beat. “Showtime At the Gallow” is a decent track with a decent beat that has a Spanish vibe. Bis’s lyricism kind of lacks at some parts but doesn’t drag down the song or album that much at all. “Psych Evaluation” is… something else. I have listened to horrorcore type rap songs before, but this song creeps me out. It’s truly amazing. The sampling and ghostly female vocals really send shivers down your spine, and at the end of the song, there is a snip of someone calling for help and I have no clue where it’s from. It freaks me out every time. Definitely a great experience though. Right after that, the song “Cemantics” kicks off with a quick beat and truly amazing lyricism. “Poet Laureate II” is the final track and is the best song on here. It is one of a kind. It’s hard to explain this song so go listen to it for yourself. Overall, this album is a 4.8/5. It’s one of the best rap albums and experiences ever.
So many stans on here lmao.
Let’s be realistic for Canibussy here.
Fire !!!