Watch The Throne – Album Review
It’s finally here, the highly anticipated album from rap moguls Kanye West & Jay-z entitled “Watch The Throne”. Living in Pakistan I couldn’t be one of the lucky fans to go buy the album in physical disc form so I pre-oredered mine in iTunes. I’m one of those fans who still listens to Kanye’s “Last Call”, the 21-minute track from College Dropout and Jay-Z’s “Black Album” which was and will be a classic forever! When I first got news of the two doing an album together, it was surreal and impossible. Taking two highly skilled rappers and producers, putting them in the same disc carrying both the rappers’ vibes was highly impossible. I’m glad to report that the album delivers more than it promised. This review is going to feature some of my personal favorite songs from the album and also an overview on the rest.
1. No Church In The Wild: The first song off the album starts off with a soothing soul-like feel, which I anticipated from Kanye. As soon as Jay starts spitting those verses and the beat changes, the song becomes everybody’s favorite! The song is the perfect choice for first track as it sets the mood for the rest of the album, in the end the song connects with “Illest Motherf*cker Alive” with the outro being the intro of the latter. Dope all the way!
Is Pius pious cause God loves pious? – Jay-Z
2. Otis: Otis was the first real single from the album, which was released three weeks ago. In my opinion, this song shows how good Kanye and Jay can sync their skills together. The chorus and beat features Otis Redding, the king of soul. Both Kanye & Jay keep coming verse after verse, each being more unique than the last. The track has a very gospel feel to it, thanks to Mr. Otis.
3. Why I Love You: This song basically is a solo by Jay with Kanye adding to it in the end. The track has a very pop feel to it, a very emotional track especially when Kanye steps in in the end and rhymes with Jay. The second verse is just incredible!
Showed love to you niggas, you ripped out my heart,
And you stepped on it, I picked up the pieces before you swept on it,
Goddamn this shit leaves a mess, don’t it?,
Shit feelin’ like death, don’t it?,
Charge it to the game, whatever’s left on it,
I spent about a minute, maybe less on it,
Fly pelican fly, turn the jets on it but first I shall digress on it,
Wasn’t I a good king? – Jay-Z
4. Illest Motherfu*ker Alive: This is by far the best song in the album in my opinion. Features both Kanye and Jay with solid full verses. Continues from where No Church In The Wild ends with that creepy jungle music and starts off with a bang! Kanye shows his rap skills in this one and kills the song!
Damn baby p*ssy can’t be your only hustle,
Unless you bad as Naomi Russell,
I mean a lot of niggas got money,
So basically, Russell ain’t the only Russell,
Russell Brand, Russell Crowe,
Zero Zero Zero Zero, a whole lot of 0′ – Kanye West
5. H.A.M.: This is the song that made the album what it is now, this was the first thing to come out of the studio. H.A.M. was released 6-7 months ago when the album was in the works and it left people stunned. The beat is the best in the album, it isn’t featured in the album unless you get the deluxe version. Makes the deluxe album worth it!
Other tracks:
The above-mentioned five tracks are my personal favorites I have in my iPod but the album has other awesome tracks too. “Lift Off” is the only song which features someones other than Jay and Yeezy, Beyonce. It’s a good song but the chorus didn’t get me excited. “Niggas In Paris” features a very different beat and feel, Kanye and Jay rap at random in it which makes the song awesome. “The Joy” is a G.O.O.D. Music track which was released about a year ago, I have no idea what it’s doing in this album but it’s only in the deluxe version. “I Can’t Stop” is the track Kanye goes totally auto-tune, reminds me of his 808 days. “That’s My B*tch” was leaked quite a while back, it’s not that different from the leaked version.
All in all, the album is a classic in the making. It’s not easy putting two great artists with different mind-sets together in one disc, but these two managed to pull it off way better than anyone would’ve expected. A MUST-HAVE!
To buy the album: Click Here