Kurupt is considered one of the greatest lyricists to hail from the west coast. His body of work and influence speaks for itself. One of the most popular artists of his time. "Down And Dirty" is a compilation album featuring songs recorded from 2002-2003 and 6 tracks recorded from "The Row Era" featuring 2Pac, Petey Pablo and Danny Boy among other artists. It's very similar to the recent Death Row Sessions released by Snoop Dogg. So does this album give most of us what we would expect from Kurupt? I'm going to say yes.
From the beginning of the album Kurupt sets the mood with the signature "Fuck you, you and you and the media and everyone that don't agree with me" type of mentality you came to love from the Death Row collective. On the first song "Speak On It" featuring Val C Kurupt talks for about a minute and a half or so about how there is was no Eastcoast and Westcoast beef and that was just the media and it was a war betweeen individuals and not coasts. He also says there is only ONE Death Row and ONE 2Pac and ONE Biggie and that Nas, 50 Cent, DMX, Ja Rule and others could never take their places so people needa get off of their dicks. So if you're feeling nostalgic and wanna here Kurupts opinion on dead rappers and dead beefs then you may find that interesting. Anyways from the first few tracks of this album you get the feeling that you're listening to a seasoned veteran on the mic. It's everything you'd expect from Kurupt, a great mix of the G-Funk sound, gangsta rap and clever yet simple lyrics that are pleasant for the listener. Kurupt doesn't insult the listener by trying to leave you dumbfounded with wordplay or multies. He just handles his business. This album has a great blend of songs for the hardcore Kurupt fan or someone who just wants to take a listen to Kurupt and decided this would be the first thing he listened to. It's got good gangsta/hardcore songs like "U Don't Know Who U Fuccin Wit", "Jealousy", "Hustlin" and "Anarchy" but it's also got nice songs to play at parties that remind you of other tracks such as the Dogg Pound classic "Let's Play House". The song "Can U Feel It" is catchy and simple.
One thing that really impressed me on this album is the production. No one beat is the same as another. A very well produced album. Beats that definitely stand out is the hard hitting beat of "U Don't Know Who U Fuccin Wit" that'll have you replaying the song over and over because it's just one of those songs that you listen to when you ready to kick somones ass or you're just mad in general. Another beat that needs to be mentioned is the beat on "Jealousy". Another hard hitting bass track. All in all the production is very good on this album and was greatly impressed.
It took 2 listens to appreciate this album fully. I was gonna give it a 3 out of 5 at first listen but after evaluating this whole album for what it is I'm happy with it. For a compilation album it's almost as good as it gets. Well produced, 4-5 stand out tracks and it doesn't make you wanna fall asleep. There isn't a general direction of the album but the whole thing is very enjoyable and I'm not even a Kurupt fan per say. So I have to assume the Kurupt fans in this world will enjoy hearing unreleased material of this quality that doesn't seem half assed. I could be an ass and really nitpick at little things but I feel this album deserves a 4 Out Of 5 so that's what it is getting.
On another note I'm also aware that a lot of these tracks have already been released on Against Tha Grain but I don't make the tracklisting I just review the album. Therefor I just treat it as normal.
Rating:
4 Out Of 5
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