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 