Amazon.co.uk Review
That
Beneath the Surface is not a worthy follow-up to the GZA's now-classic solo debut,
Liquid Swords , is something of a conundrum. Consolidating his crown as the thinking man's Wu-Tang,
Beneath the Surface is a solid combination of intelligent, entertaining lyrics, tight, dextrous delivery and catchy, inventive production. The album spans a wider menu of flavours than its predecessor--from the slow and laidback title track and Latino-guitar laced "Victim" to the more sinister, spine-tingling piano loop of "High Price, Small Reward" or the horrorcore finale of "Outro". "Publicity", a follow-up to his debut's "Labels", is distilled
Wu-Tang, cobbled together from the sparsest bars of regal, oriental strings; "Hip Hop Fury" is just that: a frenetic blizzard of piano notes aggressively broken by the RZA's vocals. Nonetheless, with
Beneath the Surface comes a mysterious whiff of mediocrity. Despite his undeniable talents, when placed beside his more colourful cohorts the GZA can seem somewhat drab. On an album with very little posturing and self-promotion, with some of the most earnest and po-faced skits ever committed to vinyl and with only a couple of tiny portraits hidden deep within the CD sleeve, what is striking is the author's anonymity. There are standout tracks, but it's easy to feel that while we hear a lot of talk, the GZA himself is both strangely absent and sorely missed. --
Paul Philpott
CD Description
GZA is something of a mad scientist-easily one of hiphop's most intellectual and complex MC's. Here he drops his third solo album, BENEATH THE SURFACE. Filled with guest vocal appearances from his Wu-Tang Clan brothers Ol' Dirty Bastard, Killah Priest, Masta Killa, and RZA, BENEATH THE SURFACE is another classic work of GZA word-art. Look no further than the media-hype wordplay of "Publicity" to see why GZA is in a class by himself.
Mathematics and Arabian Knight handle most of the production on BENEATH THE SURFACE, but check the title cut, produced by Inspectah Deck. Don't miss the first single, "Breaker, Breaker", "Amplified Sample", and "Stringplay (Like This, Like That)", the latter featuring a hot verse from Method Man. Who knows when or if we'll see another Wu-Tang album? Until then, BENEATH THE SURFACE is a gem you'llwant to spin over and over again.
![Legend of the Liquid Sword [Explicit] [European Import]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41TSBHPRR0L._SL500_SS90_.jpg)
![No Said Date [CD + DVD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51QDAX27S3L._SL500_SS90_.jpg)
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