Royce da 5'9"

As G.M. and Ford teeter on bankruptcy, a disaster that would surely plunge Detroit further into the abyss of unemployment and crime, its hip-hop scene has been having distinctly different luck. Better luck. And Royce Da 5'9", a longtime staple of Detroit hip-hop (having been linked at various times to such rap luminaries as Eminem and DJ Premier), is looking to capitalize on it. While The Album won't be what launches him into stardom, it does do a good enough job at keeping Royce's name popping in the streets in the meantime. Is that enough, though?

First, the good. Royce is in full lyrical heat on The Album, and his voice–slippery and slyly menacing, able to flip from whisper to growl in half a bar–perfectly complements the grimy, lo-fi production. His flow, always his strongest point, is at full strength on good chunks of the album–listening to him effortlessly segue from mercurial to stuttered and clipped frenzy without skipping a beat is Royce at his best. With all of his enviable skills, though, the album is a slightly disappointing mixed bag. The good outweighs the bad, of course, with tracks like "Promised Land" and "We Deep" outweighing the duds like "We Everywhere," but few joints ever grab you by the throat like a good Royce song does.

Except for one. And it's songs like "Been Shotown" that serve to illustrate what is so great and disappointing about Royce in one fell swoop. The peak of the album, and certainly one of the best tracks released this year, Royce alternates every bar with an absolutely mesmerizing double-time flow over a slinky, shifty beat, tackling violence, black leadership and his real (and imagined) enemies with aplomb. It's show-stopping stuff, and it demonstrates exactly what Royce is capable of when he's firing on all cylinders.

He isn't on for most of the album though, and once you're done with it, you can't help but notice that Royce is just treading water here, letting his formidable skills keep him afloat for the time being while he goes through the motions. Aside from "Been Shotown," there are no real standout tracks, and while the rest of the album is serviceable enough, it never hits the heights you would expect from a rapper with Royce's talent. That, of course, has always been the problem with Royce, whose defining trait as an artist thus far has been unrealized potential. It's not the worst thing that can happen to an artist–being a never-was is better than a never-could-be, I suppose–but it's certainly not the best. And if Royce ever wants to really ascend to the ranks of elite emcees–which I think he's capable of–he better get to realizing that potential in a hurry.

—Matt Mundy
11.19.08