Category: reviews with a 3 of 5 rating

audio review : Back In Black ( album ) … Cypress Hill

audio review : Back In Black ( album ) ... Cypress Hill

The title seems to be a reference to Black Sunday, but it could also nod at the fact that the music is produced not by DJ Muggs but Black Milk. It’s a head-scratching move; Milk has no previous association with Cypress Hill; but a fitting replacement. If you didn’t know any better, in other words, you’d think that was Muggs on the beats.

On an album packed with marijuana references; Open Ya Mind celebrates its legalization in the group’s home state of California; The Original is a minor highlight. Most of the rest is merely decent. The worst songs are the ones with the worst hooks; namely Come With Me and Bye Bye. They should’ve called back Brevi Wood.

my rating : 3 of 5

2022

audio review : Saturday Afternoon Kung Fu Theater ( album ) … Rza

audio review : Saturday Afternoon Kung Fu Theater ( album ) ... Rza

It’s unclear why one of hip-hop’s most acclaimed beatmakers decided to limit himself to the role of MC for this project, which, with just six songs and an Intro, straddles the line between album and EP. The boom-bap is provided by DJ Scratch, who does an admirable job substantiating his “superproducer” moniker.

Every beat is composed of gritty drums juxtaposed with a layer of melody; Shaolin-style strings, horns and pianos. Rza’s raps help make Kung Fu Theater a fairly enjoyable show. The most crowd-pleasing act is Fate Of The World, though the song probably should’ve been saved for the next Wu-Tang joint.

my rating : 3 of 5

2022

audio review : IMAMCRU12 ( album ) … KRS-One

audio review : IMAMCRU12 ( album ) ... KRS-One

This album is best at The Beginning and end. The former has KRS-One rapping “straight thru”; something he should do more often because, like most MCs, his skills decline at the breaks. When he passes the mic to a guest vocalist with “the right hook”, as he does with wife G Simone on the latter; a melodic life lesson entitled Think Bigger; “the song becomes a knockout”.

The ones in-between are mostly mediocre. At 50-something, Kris still spits better (raps) than most of his students, but Can You Dance; a tribute to old-school hip-hop dances like the wop; sounds like an unfinished demo. The worst thing about the album though is the title. IMAMCRU1? Get it? No? Well, there’s a whole song to explain it. Not that it’ll make it any less lame.

my rating : 3 of 5

2022

video review : Johnny Walker versus Jamahal Hill at UFC Fight Night

video review : Johnny Walker versus Jamahal Hill at UFC Fight Night

Johnny Walker fights usually end with him either knocking someone out or getting knocked out and this bout is no exception. Jamahal Hill finishes him with a punch to the forehead, of all places, which, after being dropped twice by Ryan Spann when they fought, suggests he simply can’t take a punch. Perhaps it’s that same brain defect that makes his body react in cartoonishly amusing ways. Here he goes unconscious after a delayed back flop 脿 la Ric Flair.

my rating : 3 of 5

2022

audio review : BODR ( album ) … Snoop Dogg

audio review : BODR ( album ) ... Snoop Dogg

If you’re wondering why Snoop (Doggy) Dogg is Bacc On Death Row, which should be the actual title instead of the silly initialism, it’s because the record label is now owned by him. This album serves as a toast, rather a puff of that “sticky icky”, in celebration of the news.

There’s a song called Daddy about his allure when it comes to “bad bitches” young enough to be his daughter. It’s better than anything from Tha Doggfather, but BODR, his third album on Death Row Records, doesn’t come close to matching his “classic” Doggystyle debut.

my rating : 3 of 5

2022

video review : Jeremiah Wells versus Blood Diamond at UFC 271

video review : Jeremiah Wells versus Blood Diamond at UFC 271

Mike Mathetha, known as Blood Diamond and better known as Israel Adesanya’s training partner, fails to live up to his hype in this UFC debut. Jeremiah Wells makes a blunder at the very start of the bout, which Diamond attempts to capitalize on, but he allows himself to get grabbed and eventually taken down. That’s the beginning of the end for the “highly touted” kickboxer who misses his one strike thrown.

my rating : 3 of 5

2022

Quaker Instant Oatmeal [ Protein ] : Cranberry Almond

Quaker Instant Oatmeal [ Protein ] : Cranberry Almond

The aroma that arises when you pour “hot milk or boiling water” into a bowl of this oatmeal, from the Quaker Protein series, is quite delectable. It smells like fresh-baked soft and gooey Cranberry Almond oatmeal cookies, but the taste is a comparative letdown. It’s not as sweet as you expect or “delicious” as the box claims.

That’s a drawback of trying to balance tasty and healthy, but there’s a way to make eating this and other run-of-the-mill oatmeals an enjoyable experience. Add just enough bowling water to make it wet, stir, make a milk well, pour in cold milk and eat mainly the milk with a spoon while scooping in bits of warm oatmeal.

my rating : 3 of 5

video review : The Twilight Zone : Eye Of The Beholder

video review : The Twilight Zone : Eye Of The Beholder

The best thing about this Twilight Zone episode, about a hospital patient who’s undergone a series of medical treatments to normalize (“fix”) her grotesque appearance, is the suspense in the build-up. She’s first shown with her face wrapped in gauze bandages. It’s not until the story is almost over that it, and the twist, is finally revealed.

Maxine Stuart gets annoying when she goes into a fit of overacting to convey the desperation/frustration of Janet Tyler, known by hospital staff as patient 307, but that melodramatic bit doesn’t last long. As the title suggests, the overall lesson is that beauty is in the Eye Of The Beholder; something ugly people have to repeat to themselves.

my rating : 3 of 5

1960

audio review : For The Fkn Love ( album ) … Arrested Development

audio review : For The Fkn love ( album ) ... Arrested Development

The abbreviation in the title is silly; Effin would’ve been a more appropriate edit; but the worst thing about this album are the “Configa” tags that start nearly every song. He’s a damn good producer; this is vintage hip-hop that could’ve come out any time since the 3 Years 5 Months And 2 Days it took for Arrested Development to enter the world stage; but the constant credits give the set a sloppy mixtape feel.

Those beats are also the best thing about the album. Speech remains a pro-black poet; guest verses from rap veterans like Monie Love, Masta Ace and Big Daddy Kane come as nostalgic surprises; but it’s only when he stumbles upon a catchy chorus that we’re reminded why we fell in Fkn Love with his group in the first place. Highlights include We Are Not In Kansas, Where Lions Roam, Do It Up and Yes Always.

my rating : 3 of 5

2021
 

Dr Configa (PhD) :

Thanks for the review and the props when you gave them. Many producers have tags and tbh – it鈥檚 the best marketing tool I ever created. When you have ppl getting their kids to say it and ppl literally hashtagging it to you, you know it鈥檚 a winner. I鈥檝e also used it for YEARS 馃槑

African Pride Olive Miracle Braid Sheen Spray : Tension Relief And Shine

African Pride Olive Miracle Braid Sheen Spray : Tension Relief And Shine

I’d gladly recommend this Braid Sheen, formulated to nourish the hair and scalp, if not for the last item on the ingredients list. It’s the inclusion of an azo dye known as CI 19140 that makes the spray not clear but urine Yellow, which gives the head a noticeable tint.

Aside from that major aesthetic drawback; the lighter your skin, the more noticeable it is; it seems to do a fine job of “deep conditioning” with its trademark Olive and tea tree oils, which “help prevent dryness, breakage and split ends”. It also feels and smells good going on.

my rating : 3 of 5

video review : The Twilight Zone : The Man In The Bottle

video review : The Twilight Zone : The Man In The Bottle

The Man is actually a genie able to grant wishes. The one caveat is that you only get four and can’t wish for more. That would be plenty to make my life everything I’d ever want it to be; he actually gives you time to think it over before making it “official”; but the plot of this story relies on the stupidity of its protagonist.

Enter Arthur Castle. When the genie is summoned to the struggling antique shop he runs with his wife, he’s at first skeptical and wastes his first wish on a trivial test. Once he realizes he’s for real, he wishes for money but isn’t thoughtful enough to make it limitless. His last two wishes are even more idiotic.

my rating : 3 of 5

1960