Horns lead in Ghostface‘s verse packed with tall bars. “Buckingham Palace” starts things off very strong with a boisterous soul sample. The standout tracks on here start and finish the album off (not including the indulgent, ego stroking intro and outro, both with spoken word from actor and noted rap fan Michael Rapaport). I’ve far outgrown calling men emasculating names intended to humiliate and the casual misogyny has long grated on me personally, so approach with caution if you’re sensitive to this stuff as it’s lyrically prevalent. It gives us things like the terrible autotune hook on “Cold Crush”. Braggadocio is one thing – an enjoyable thing if done well – but it can often cross lines into awkward and problematic territory.
It’s a good break in the record from the rest of the lyrical content, which is a fairly mixed bag.Īn unfortunate symptom of the hardcore hip-hop genre is overbearing machismo and toxic masculinity. This is one of the few tracks that’s rapped pretty firmly from the viewpoint of Ghostface Killah, the artist and, most importantly, human. Such is the life of anyone in the limelight. The song itself is a lament of the loss of a private life and the peace of mind that comes with it. “Constant Struggle” incorporates a prominent sample of Barbara Dane and the Chambers Brothers‘ mournful “Freedom is a Constant Struggle”. Silky smooth string samples build the main melody for a backing track that could be on the soundtrack of a modern Godfather reboot (or maybe a similarly themed album by Necro, who also employs this type of sampling and production often). “Majestic Accolades” is exhibit one here. Drug raps are an integral part of street-wise hip-hop, but with GFK, it’s more Sopranos than The Wire. Plus, the lyrics provide all the grime you need. The “Put the Ghostface on It” interlude and slick love song “Done it Again” contain some of the best production here. He typically imbues them with an appropriately grimy coating, but here the sonics are a little cleaner than usual, which fits modern hip-hop a bit better. Big Ghost is great at pulling those vintage soul samples and looping them into a deliciously crisp new life, aged like fine wine. Since this reads more like a mixtape, a collection of songs very loosely connected in tone and theme, some concessions should be made compared to concept albums, but I can’t help but miss the dense, purposeful storytelling that GFK is known for.Īnyway, now that we got that out of the way, let’s get to what’s mostly good about this album! Picking Big Ghost Ltd to produce was probably one of the best moves that Ghostface could have possibly made. It gives us lyrics like ‘ I walk down the block like it’s ’76/Pimp robe, fur hat just to match my kicks/And my chain’s like 80 pounds of frozen ice‘. True, the lavish kingpin life of Tony Starks is apparent here, giving us song titles like “Saigon Velour” and “Majestic Accolades”.
#Ghostface killah the lost tapes songs movie
It’s hard to look at that album – a concept story about violent gangster life informed by mafia tropes and fantasy horror movie angles – and not see something like The Lost Tapes as a marked step down in quality. So, now that I mentioned Adrian Younge, and given my immediate critique of this album, I feel obligated to bring up Twelve Reasons to Die, the album that Ghostface and Younge collaboratively created (actually, there are two of those). The Lost Tapes further bolsters the illustrious wordsmith’s discography, and puts a hearty notch on Big Ghost‘s growing production resume, but it lacks the brutal, trademark storytelling that Ghostface has indulged in before.
Now, he teams up with Big Ghost Ltd, ‘ The Mighty Hands of Zeus hisself‘, to deliver a collection of tracks action packed with straight bars and soulful production. He’s also got quite an ear for production, which has led him to collaborate with big names like composer Adrian Younge and contemporary jazz greats BADBADNOTGOOD for whole albums. Rightfully so his knack for storytelling and street-tough rhymes are the envy of many aspiring lyricists and the cream of the crop for fans. Ghostface Killah, Wu-Tang Clan member and distinguished solo rapper, is on a lot of people’s GOAT lists. Release date: Octo| X-Ray Records | Facebook | Twitter | Bandcamp The great Ghostface Killah indulges us with ironclad bars assisted by laser precise production from Big Ghost Ltd, but The Lost Tapes prove to be a small step back for storytelling and theming.
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