Liquid Swords

I admit, ever since buying the infamous Wu Tang Clan’s first album, I’ve only listened to it on a couple of occasions- sometimes it sounds disjointed, other times it has sounded pure genius. Which gets me onto my next subject- GZA, one of the numerous members, also known by the moniker “Genius” (and unlike most of his clan members, little else). Through the wonderful tool that is Spotify, I started exploring the clan’s solo attempts, and the first album I turned my attention to was Liquid Swords- GZA's sophomore release. At the moment, there’s no question this is my favourite rap album in the collection; the samples RZA uses to back GZA’s wordplay are genuinely spooky and mysterious (Unlike on Raekwon's Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, where they sound almost comical in my opinion) , and definitely add another layer to GZA’s excellent wordplay, shown on songs like “Labels”, where he manages to rap about what seems like hundreds of record labels in a form of rap double entendre. Killah Hills 10304 is another stand out track on a stand out album, where he hardly takes a pause to breathe to tell a story of smuggling and bribery, which contrasts heavily with the last track on this album, B.I.B.L.E (Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth), which is much more upbeat, complimented by a holistic sounding organ and more excellent beats by RZA, where Killah Priest guests and nearly steals the show. This album to me is a classic, and the next time you're in your local record shop looking for a genuinely top dollar rap album, leave the Wu Tang's first record on the shelf and pick this up instead- you can always add it to your shopping basket on the next visit.

10/10