Tag Archives: Eminem

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Song of the Day #532: ‘Deja Vu’ – Eminem

Best Songs of 2009 – #7

Following 2004’s disappointing Encore, Eminem’s Relapse was a welcome return to form, sort of. Like most of his work, it is split about equally between the frivolous, the violently misogynistic and the powerfully personal. This time out, though, that formula felt a bit strained.

I found myself tempted to skip the “shocking” stuff (ok, ok, you cut off her head, next!) to get to the confessional material. Eminem is not going to grab headlines for being outrageous and controversial — not anymore — so he should settle down and craft an album that sounds, start to finish, like it was written by a grown-up.

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Eminem – Relapse

relapseIt’s been five years since Eminem’s last album — the mediocre Encore — and I’m torn on whether his new one, Relapse, was worth the wait.

On the one hand, it is a return to form in many ways — the rhymes are fast and furious and Dr. Dre’s production particularly strong — but on the other hand, I wonder if Eminem in form is really enough of a draw anymore. The violent sexual fantasies that were so shocking and unsettling on his first two albums, especially when you found yourself guiltily chuckling through them, feel like retreads all these years later.

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Song of the Day #263: ‘Rock Bottom’ – Eminem

eminem1After seeing Ben Folds in concert recently my sister made the astute observation that Folds is half sensitive, perceptive songwriter and half obnoxious frat boy. She’s a big fan of the former and not too keen on the latter, and was upset that the frat boy played a prominent role in the live show.

Well, Eminem is sort of like that times a thousand. He’s guilty of some of the most obnoxious, juvenile and downright stupid lyrics known to man but he’s also capable of real insight and emotional honesty. Songs such as ‘Stan,’ ‘Cleaning Out My Closet’ and ‘Sing for the Moment’ are both great music and gut-wrenching poetry. But ‘Big Weenie,’ ‘Ass Like That’ and ‘Cum on Everybody’ … well, I’ll let the titles speak for themselves.

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