New Music Review: Eminem "Relapse"

ed. note: Due to complications in the availability of Carbon Leaf's Nothing Rhymes with Woman I have pushed up the Eminem review to today, and will be replacing the Carbon Leaf album with Jason Lytle's Yours Truly, The Commuter. I will attempt to review Carbon Leaf if I can find it. Also, I'm going to try to fit Passion Pit's Manners and White Rabbit's It's Frightening this week too. It was a busy busy week for new music.

Now, on with the Review.

Eminem - Relapse (10/10)

Ok, it's been a very long time since we've heard from Marshall Mathers, in any one of his incantations. After his hiatus, he returns with relapse, and the perhaps the wildest of his personalities, Slim Shady.

Some of the more conservative readers have probably already stopped reading, but Relapse is the Slim Shady album everyone knew Eminem could pull off. Keeping the leash short fresh out of rehab. He still pulls off the celeb-bashing, mom hating rants and raves, but now there is much more onus on him, discussing his demons and how they've haunted him while he's been away.

The skits retain more hilarity, including his attorney reminding Em that Christopher Reeves is dead and claiming "..and the whole gay stepfather, incest, rape thing? I don't have your back on this. I can't fucking handle it"

The music (which is the point of a music review) is FANTASTIC. The first two tracks address to key issues with Mathers; "3am" (drug addiction and rehab), and "My Mom" (FINALLY acknowledging that he and his mother are the same). Of course there is the celeb bashing lead single "We Made You", a fantastic song to lead with, flashing Eminem's brilliance in both flow and delivery, mixed in with traditional Shady antics. Then comes THE song of the album, "Old Times Sake" which features a drop in from the legendary Dr. Dre. That song turns the tide of the album to a more mature flow the likes of which has yet to be heard from Marshall Mathers, ever.

The entire album is fantastic and worth the wait that Marshall put his fans through (although the hiatus was much needed for Em's health and sanity). I'm hoping that this album is the beginning of a new era of Eminem's fantastic career.

Tomorrow: Jarvis Cocker - Further Complications