Padded Room got pushed so the Budden fiends found a quick fix in Halfway House, a mixtape compiled of all new material which has every making of an album besides the cover which looks as though it could have been made by the crackhead in the background with the “Just Say No” shirt. Here’s my review…
+Positive
Joe has come along way since the days of “Pump It Up”, in my book he has now reached the level of “Punchline Rapper”. A title much better than my previous dubbing of him, “One-hit wonder”. He actually has some clever lines throughout this one.
-Negative
Too much clutter. He’s got a hype man on a couple of the tracks, you know, that guy who goes “Yeah!” or “What” after every break in the lyrics. Shit is just annoying, I don’t really know what to tell you. Also, on ALOT of the tracks there is a “double-voice” effect. This is when rappers think it’s cool to make it sound like two people are rapping the same lyrics at once. Along with echos and some other voice stuff, this lowers the overall experience of the listener.
+Positive
Alot of rock influenced production, which sounds pretty good with Budden’s voice and style. It’s also different than most of the stuff coming out right now which is always good, no one wants to hear the same thing over and over again.
-Negative
Joe blows his horn a bit harder than he should on this one. If Joe Budden’s mouth determined his skills this guy would wake up every morning and shit a platinum record. I’m not saying he isn’t good, but maybe he should make sure everyone else thinks he’s great before he announces it.
Final Word:
If your a Budden fan, which I’ve found that there are many of, this is worth your money. Otherwise, scroll down to the “Top Tracks” and pick up a couple of those. This album could have been a lot better.
Top Tracks:
“Sidetracked”
“The Soul”
“Slaughterhouse”
Before you comment about it, “Touch & Go” was horrible. Might as well have called it “Pump It Up x2”
Grades:
Production: B+
Lyrical Content: B-
Lyrical Delivery: C+
Originality: B-
Overall Grade: B-
The Hip Hop Post 
November 2, 2008 at 1:10 pm
UNDER THE SUN IS THE HARDEST AND DEEPEST OF THIS ONE, I LIKE SLAUGHTERJOUSE TOO. IM GLAD HIM AND ROYCE LEARED UP THERE MISUNDERSTANDINGS
November 3, 2008 at 6:41 am
your review is fucking garbage. i hope to god you dont get paid for this cause you really fuckin suck at it.
amalgamdigital.com go cop halfway house $8.99
joebuddenonline.com
INTERNET SOLDIERSSS!!!!!!!!!
November 3, 2008 at 6:41 am
Whoever wrote this review is a complete fucking ignorant dumbshit moron! he said nothing of relevance, is points about the voice overlays and the hype man thing made no sense whatsoever. in fact none of this made sense..guy is like a 14 year old kid or some shit..
November 4, 2008 at 1:47 am
^^^This is what happens to Joe Budden fans when you refer to him as anything below excellence… They render into a state of pure incompetence and rage.
They know that everything I said is true and that the rating I gave is fair but they are in denial about it.
Oh and if you need me to break down the voice overlays and hype man thing in words that you can comprehend…
Joe Budden uses a voice effect that makes it sound like two people are rapping at the same time. This effect is ok if used in moderation but he uses it too much and it is annoying in the same way that the auto-tune effect is annoying.
Is that easy enough for you or do you need me to break it down another grade level?
Dumbass. Get the fuck out of here with your stupid shit you Budden stan.
November 6, 2008 at 9:53 am
Calm down, why are you getting heated up over what the others said? You sound so unprofessional, cotdamn.
I agree with most of what you said, but to a certain extent you said some irrelevant things, going off to tangents which shouldn’t have been discussed in the first place.
This isn’t Budden’s best work, a B is what I would’ve graded it, but it’s still better than half the release this year if that makes any sense. MM2 and 3 are still Budden’s best works though.
And yes, that overlaying vocal effect is annoying as hell, Budden should remove it unless for emotional effects like he did on If I Die Tomorrow.
Touch and Go is garbage by the way, worst hook ever.
November 7, 2008 at 1:03 am
Haha you think I’m heated? That’s just how I am, I’m not mad at all.
I don’t give in easily and love to prove my point… Call it unprofessional, I don’t really care.