Search - Murs :: Murs 3:16

Hip-Hop is still alive in 2004!!!

warrior33 | San Jose, CA | 04/01/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"First Jay-Z drops the Black Album, then Kanye West hits us with The College Dropout, now Murs gives us another classic album. The beats are amazing thanks to 9th Wonder of course. and Murs gets very personal with his lyrics. Another thing I like about this album is that it's short, no filler, no skits, and every song is tight. The best 10 track album since Illmatic in my opinion. And since it's shorter than your average album I'll go through every track.1. Intro - This is a short song but it's tight, I like the beat he talks over better than the beat he raps over. (4.5/5)2. Bad Man - I love this song, the beat is sick and I like the voice in the background. (5/5)3. 3:16 - Another tight beat and Murs rips it. (5/5)4. The Pain - One of the slower songs on the album, Murs talks about how he can't get any women. (3.5/5)5. Trevor An' Them - A funny story about how Murs bumps into his friend while he's robbing a liquor store. (4/5)6. Freak These Tales - A great song about Murs' various relationships with women over another hot beat, I really like the chorus. (5/5)7. H-U-S-T-L-E - This is a great song about how Murs used to try to hustle everythig except drugs. (5/5)8. Walk Like A Man - This song starts out with a country type beat, then goes into a soulful beat, then finishes with a jazzy beat while Murs tells some personal stories. (4.5/5)9. And This Is For... - This is a really deep song, Murs talks about how rappers nowadays are too flashy, and how he's losing all his black fans, and even though he has mostly white fans he's not selling as many albums as white rappers. (5/5)10. The Animal (feat. Phonte) - The CD ends with a great appearance from Phonte of Little Brother. Murs tears it down once again, and the beat is tight, what more could you want? (5/5)"

Short but Sweet

Jesse Smith | 04/05/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Murs is one of my favorite rappers. He's not really all that skilled, at least on as far as lyrically assaulting people not the mic, but he has a really personal way of rapping that makes anybody feel like they can relate. I haven't heard any Little Brother so I don't know much about 9th Wonder other than this album, but he's been getting a lot of hype, so I expected nice beats and I got them. It's a good pairing. This album is short, which tends to be a turn-off for me, but on the bright side it doesn't get boring and there's no filler. I bought this more for Murs than 9th. Most of the time on this album, he's story-telling and/or talking about women. The intro is a good way to kick off the album, with a good verse to get us in the mood and a nice electric beat from 9th Wonder. An intro that adds something to the album, not one of those pointless ones that needs to go. "Bad Man," "Rainy Days," and "Freak These Tales" are about women. The first is about how he just can't seem to be a nice guy and a player at the same time, the second about his troubles finding a woman, and the last about getting laid. With all these tracks, Murs does what he does best...he comes across as an average guy you might meet off the street, kicking rhymes about real life, but with his own quirky style to make it entertaining. "Sitcom rap," as he himself calls it. "Trevor an' Them" and "Walk Like a Man" display his story-telling abilities. The first is a just a funny story about a robbery gone wrong, but the second takes a more serious turn, talking about the death of his best friend and his quest for vengeance. Again, it's nice because he does it as a guy with problems and not a hardcore thug. "H-U-S-T-L-E" talks about his different methods for making money when he was a kid. It seems like it's taking a jab at rappers who brag about selling coke. "3:16" and "The Animal" are more or less battle tracks, which are Murs' weak point because he has neither the lyrics nor the voice to command the mic. Still, his slightly off sense of humor makes these worthwhile. "And This is For" is a total surprise, because it confronts real issues, which Murs didn't really do on his last album. He attacks thug rappers and whites who don't respect the hip-hop culture, which is dangerous but perhpas all the more admirable since most of his fans are white.9th's production didn't blow my mind, but I can see where his success comes from. He reminds me of DJ Premier because of his skill for putting samples together and knowing how to set the right mood for each track. "The Pain," similar to RZA's "Rainy Dayz," perfectly captures the sorrow Murs is trying to get across. "Bad Man" is fun and energetic. "And This is For" sounds...how do I explain it...conscious. It matches Murs' grief at the problems in the hip-hop world. The "Walk Like a Man" beat changes between grieving for Murs' friend and truimph at his revenge. I liked the tones in the beats. My problem is their lack of intensity. You can barely tell the drums are even there, and the instruments just never seem sharp or aggressive enough. They suit Murs alright, since he's not a very intense rhymer, but they wouldn't be good for battling. You couldn't call them "hard beats." Maybe he makes them harder for other rappers, though. In the booklet for Murs' Def Jux debut, it says "Murs is your best friend." I don't think that really came across as much here. Partly, there were more sad tracks, but I think it's largely because of the track "And This is For," which has caused a lot of controversy online. Maybe it's because I'm white that I think the thoughts expressed in this track lowered my enjoyment of the album, like I'm not 100% comfortable listening to it. Nevertheless, that song speaks the truth for the most part, and it would be wrong of Murs to make his music too "white-friendly" if that's not what he's feeling, so I still think it's good he put it on here and I commend him for making it. As for the rest of the album, his main strengths...personality, quirky humor, and story-telling...shine through clearly. One of the best in 2004 so far."

4.5 beats, 3.5 rhymes

Jesse Smith | 03/28/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"After a couple of shaky releases last year, Def Jux looks to be back on track with a second album from MURS and one of the hottest producers around. It's a combination that mostly works, more because of 9th's amazing beats than because of MURS.It might be a sin to criticize an underground king like MURS, but there's a defensive quality to his tone and attitude on this record that makes him sound like he's not happy being where he's at. And I don't blame him; by this time he should have sold millions. All I'm saying is, it shows. He's kind of stuck between underground and mainstream right now. He's not the super-confident Jay-Z style MC with no fear of anything anyone might say, but also he's not the laid-back MF Doom type who's accepted who he is. Don't get me wrong, he is incredibly smart and insightful (his rhymes about race are totally on point), but something a little shaky in his persona throws me off here. Given how incridibly talented & dedicated MURS is, I know he'll find his way forward though.Meanwhile, 9th Wonder is just coming into his own. The fat, squishy beats he does so well are definitely in evidence here, but there are some new types of beats as well. The real gold mine here are his hooks, which are flat-out amazing. Not a weak song in the bunch.You could almost say that the rock solid-production makes MURS mid-career crisis stand out more than it otherwise would. Whatever. Even though this is a short album, it's definitely going to be one of 2004's standouts.Now I must get back to deciphering the Madvillain album. Thanks for reading."