So 1997 happened for the Wu-Tang Clan. Wu-Tang Forever dropped, and it was their biggest album. This feral specimen of virility also thinks that it's their best album to date. You'll probably hear me repeating this in the bathroom, too. I digress.
Naturally the Wu's Abbott, one Bobby Diggs bka RZA has stated by then that, since the famed '5-year plan' ended in success, his dictatorial control over the various Wu generals is effectively done. Now, everyone in the group is free to direct their career moves whichever way they see fit. You can probably guess what happened next: Everyone in the Clan veered off into various directions of the hip hop spectrum fully convinced that they were owed time in the spotlight, and RZA wouldn't lift a finger. So if, say, Cappadonna wanted to treat most of the studio sessions RZA payed for him as sessions of absolute debauchery where he'd be so far gone by the time his sessions are up that only option left for his stupid ass is to record some utter psychobabble and pass it off as rhymes, RZA would simply stand there and watch it happen. I know that description was too on the nose, but I'm trying to make a point here. In retrospect, mainstream hip hop media considers this period to be the beginning of the Wu's decline from relevancy. And the very first album blamed for such decline on such a large scale was Cliffy Cliff Smif's Tical 2000.
Don't get it twisted, Cliffy bka the mighty Method Man has fully lived up to his status as the face of the Wu, a status he actually didn't want until his brethren forced it upon him. The dude debuted on a straight up classic friggin' album, followed that up with another classic friggin' album and was one of the cameo kings of the mid-90s, appearing on multiple classic collaborations with many an artist of similar stature, most notably with Reggie Noble aka DJ Kut Killa bka the mighty Redman of the Hit Squad (You read right. I said Hit Squad.) who was a cameo king himself and meshed together with Mef so well that they made it official and formed a duo. Back on Mef for a bit: Despite what he thinks, his form was at its best on Wu-Tang Forever, ripping the shit outta any instrumental that came his way. His sword was so sharpened that everybody, inside the Clan and out, wanted to work with him. And he was equally enthused to collaborate, almost as if he depended on the very nature of collaboration to bring the best outta him.
Which was exactly the beef the media had with this album. They have grown so accustomed to consuming his products within collaborative environments that they subconsciously shut out anything else. Even Tical, if we're being totally honest here, is simply a collaboration album with RZA. And that means that this album represented the very first time where Mef was truly a solo artist. And his thematic choice here might make more sense than you think.
So, if whomever reading this who is, in fact, not a fetus remembers correctly, NY hip hop in the mid-90s had two predominant themes: one was mafioso rap, upheaved by Raekwon's Purple Tape. The other was the obsession with the apocalypse, the genesis of which is unknown to me at the moment. The point is Wu-Affiliates like Sunz Of Man and the Gravediggaz (like it or not, they're Wu-Affiliates by this point.) have already dabbled in said theme. And being that Mef is around these guys for most of his early career, it's only natural that he gets a few drops of inspiration from them in this theme. Add that to the fact that he was constantly around dudes like Onyx & Busta Rhymes, whom have both released albums reflecting their own obsession with the end of the world, and this direction was almost a foregone conclusion. Of course, the Def Jam fuckfaces he was signed to may have also had a hand in influencing him but I'll gladly rob them of any credit they deserve. As one might expect, this led to Mef releasing the album's lead single one month before it was released. And back then, he could get away with that shit for the simple fact that word of mouth actually mattered back then. None of this 'social media' bullshit where everyone can overdose on the quick fix and move on to something else. When Method Man promoted something, many were interested.
Now when Mef first came out, he became famous for going out of his way to introduce absolute nobodies on his album. Hell, he almost put on RA The Rugged Man (tka Crustified Dibbs) years before anybody ever heard of him. As a result, Wu stans everywhere have become very familiar with dudes like rappers Carlton Fisk & Patrick Charles bka Streetlife. Hell, Streetlife became an official Wu General on the strength of that favor. Pity Carlton Fisk was locked up for a long ass time back then, or else I fully believe that he would've taken the exact same route, if not outright replace Streetlife. For I distinctly remember RZA being bigger on Fisk. Lemons of life n'all. It was once again an act of kindness from Mef's part that lead to Streetlife appearing on an exact third of this album's songs. (And they shout Carlton Fisk out here. Mef can be such a sweetheart sometimes. *evil sneer*) This obviously leads to Streetlife and Mef becoming inseparable, a beautiful brotherhood that has lasted to this very day, where you'll probably see Streetlife whenever Red & Mef swing by your town.
Despite what the media was saying about the album, Tical 2000 was a commercial smash, selling one million copies stateside in one month, yet another statement of the Wu brand's strength then. I will admit that for the longest, I fully bought into the backlash and steered clear from this album. Time to see if I regretted my decision or not.
Tical 2000: Judgement Day boy/girl (pick one):
JUDGEMENT DAY (INTRO)
Yeah, so Y2K, end of the world n'shit...
PERFECT WORLD
RZA debuts his first of four productions on this album. His digital beat is paranoid enough to inspire Mef to deliver two verses chock full of grim imagery, as well as continuing down the route of introspection that he began on albums like Liquid Swords. Add that to the fact that his flow hasn't skipped a beat, and this becomes one hell of a reintroduction. The overall combination actually does a phenomenal job setting the album's intended atmosphere up nicely. Salute, Cliffy.
CRADLE ROCK (FEATURING LEFT EYE & BOOSTER)
Some dude called LB Da Life Bringa pulls a Darnell Scott on the unsuspecting public, his lone contribution to music being this banging-ass beat. The instrumental, briefly sampling Bright Tomorrow, sounds epic enough and is an absolute perfect fit after Perfect World. Mef clearly understands that as he barrels through with yet another two verses filled with apocalyptic imagery that riddled the previous song . RIP Left Eye, she & Bring The Pain mainstay Booster played their roles something lovely. Left Eye sounds especially invested on hook duties and, although I'm not the best person to ask about her portfolio, I'm quite certain this is one of her more aggressive outings, which makes me a happy man. 2 outta 2.
DANGEROUS GROUNDS (FEATURING STREETLIFE)
This was the b-side to the lead single, which we’ll discuss later and… Ah yes, Derrick Harris aka Savior of The Pillage bka True Master debuts his first of five productions on the album. Now we know what this guy can do with a dude like Cappadonna, so we'll see what he brings to the table when Mef and fellow album debutant Streetlife are locked, loaded and ready to smack fire out ya bitch ass. He does not disappoint, choosing to bring a vintage Wu-sound composition that sounds like two metal pillars clanging into each other. For their part, Mef chooses to lodge Street's epic verse right between his three epic verses. For his part, Street really came into his own on Wu-Tang Forever and this song continues his form. Mr. Sandman first showed how these two play off each other. Spoiler alert: They do so very well, and this song successfully continues that tradition. This did so well that it was actually released as the 2nd single
SWEET LOVE (SKIT)
In an infuriatingly recurring theme throughout this album, the momentum established by a group of songs is stopped dead in its tracks by a misplaced skit. Cliffy? What the fuck?
SWEET LOVE (FEATURING STREETLIFE & CAPPADONNA)
True Master produces this abortion of a track as well, although it ain't really his fault that it's an abortion. Nope, the ire of the masses should be directed at Cliffy, Paddy & Oh Donna for the most misplaced sex rap since Maria off the Forever double album. I guess it's fitting that Oh Donna would choose this song as the lone track he blesses with his sewage. And believe me, Mef-N-Street sound equally as bad here. If this song was a person I'd rip his spine outta his nostrils.
SHAOLIN WHAT
Yes, I know the tracklist says this is a skit, but it's just so much more. Selwyn Bogard bka Killarmy’s 4th Disciple provides a smacking beat that continues to exhibit his mastery of the art of production. And Mef simply excels when provided such beats, giving a short intro that redirects your focus on the thematic settings and gets the fuck outta the way as the drum break chews its way through your physical. He then unleashes a fiery one-verse wonder chock-full of his trademark punchlines. Hindsight being 20/20, this should've opened the album. Still, this short but oh so sweet track washed the preceding garbage outta my ear.
TORTURE
Now, I really don't get how anal some of y'all fans get: This was one of the most shit upon tracks on this album, and for the life of me I just don't see it. To prove it, let's break it down: A brooding True Master beat that completely fits the album's overall aesthetic so far? Check. One of Mef's best lyrical displays ever where he further emphasizes on his newfound introspection, while matching said beat's atmosphere skillfully? Check. What more do you fuckfaces want?!
WHERE'S METHOD MAN? (SKIT)
Now this is what I was talking about. While I love Ed Lover, I just hate the fact that this skit has no place whatsoever on this album. Truly a waste of his talents. Sorry, Mef, but it is what it is.
SUSPECT CHIN MUSIC (FEATURING STREETLIFE)
The b-side to the 3rd single, the upcoming Break Ups 2 Makeups. RZA's back behind the boards and somehow Mef has succeeded in bringing out the best of his newly-found digital approach to production, providing Mef-N-Street with one of the few beats lauded by everyone ever since. Our duo successfully utilize it to show off just how well they work together, bouncing off each other effortlessly with enough punchlines and grimy imagery befitting of Tical 2000's concept to wet the most hardcore boom bap fan's appetite for a full collaboration album between these two. I assure you, this combo is up there with the RAGU's and the Red-N-Mef's. This song is that good. Why didn't Streetlife get a solo deal in 1998, again? Especially when he was heavily featured on the b-sides?
RETRO GODFATHER
The final RZA production on the album is a straight up jacking of a Montana loop that serves as an unabashed homage to 70s disco, and the loop actually fits the album given that it's inspired by Close Encounters Of The Third Kind. Anyways, so Mef starts with a Denroy Morgan interpolation as the hook. Cliffy, I don't think anyone's confusing your intention for this to be anything but a 70s tribute, so chill. The rest is two verses of Mef being himself to the fullest and that's perfectly fine with me. He keeps his rhymes in check so that the album's theme isn't disrupted too much. Amazing song, although Suspect Chin Music is my favorite outta the three RZA productions we got.
DOONEY BOY (SKIT)
I actually see how such a personal 10- second recording of Mef's son chatting with his father can follow the previous song, so I don't really gripe that much about this particular skit. Although it remains perfectly skippable.
SPAZZOLA (FEATURING STREETLIFE, MASTA KILLA, INSPECTAH DECK, KILLA SIN & RAEKWON)
The lone Wu-Element besides RZA to hold Wu General status, Inspectah Deck, debuts his first of two beats on the album. And it breaks his hot streak, although I'm not saying it's a bad instrumental. I concede however that it can get a bit grating to some people, on account of Deck looping the most droning Aretha Franklin piano sample. Shame, really, as it's very clear that he and the rest of the Wu lineup featured here intended the song to be, as Masta Killa states, Deadly Melody part 2. Believe me, their BNB rhymes reflect that intention pretty clearly. And yet Deck still finds a way to steal the song with one line: 'Heads are under siege down to the youngest seeds'. Nice! Also, Killa Sin finally catches wreck amidst a slew of Wu Generals, sounding right at home doing so. His similarities with Raekwon are further focused on here with the Chef following him back to back. Other highlights include Mef interpolating Frukwan on the hook. Don't know how this song fits the album's overall picture, though
CHECK WRITER (SKIT)
Now, this is a return to bullshit land, instead of getting on with the album's theme. I didn't need to hear Lyor Cohen's bitchass pathetically pretend to be the mad Def Jam figurehead chastising Mef for the delay. According to these skits, this album should be called Tical 2000: Can't Believe This Shit Dropped Day. Cliffy, what the fuck? Just in case my sentiments are clear enough: It's FUCK Lyor Cohen all day round here!
YOU PLAY TOO MUCH (SKIT)
Now this skit, I can't really blame Mef for. Because I'm old enough to remember how people listened to cassettes back then. They actually appreciated skits that bookend each side. And this skit is done by the skit-master himself, Prince Paul. He actually utilizes Mef and a Chris Rock who was at his peak and wasn't yet too big to appear on hip hop albums. While the skit remains funny, it still doesn't fit the album's theme in any way possible. Therefore, it remains a very skippable skit.
PARTY CRASHER
The final RZA beat on the album, and it's a damn digital snoozefest. I suppose he gave Mef this beat to mirror the hazy sense of stupor that Mef was aiming for in his story, which is admittedly pretty detailed. Shame that RZA's beat didn't really fit the tale, unlike the original beat done for this song by True Master, bless him. The original was a vastly superior type of clunky, one which we could've enjoyed and one that could've fit the album's concept. Alas, those pesky sample issues rear their ugly rear end once again. You can find the original version easily on the web so git.
GRID IRON RAP (FEATURING STREETLIFE)
Remember the Dangerous Grounds song reviewed above? This beat has the exact same attributes, only executed much better this time. True Master surely wasn't half-assing his duties to this album's theme. Mef-N-Street up the ante on what they did on Suspect Chin Music. This time, you can feel the lyrical blows as they bludgeon the beat to death with their punchlines, up until the point where the instrumental actually flatlines after their performance. Streetlife is on a mission to prove he belongs in the Wu's lineup and, with performances like this, you'll be inclined to believe him worthy. Their best track together, bar none.
STEP BY STEP
Remember how I told you Mef hooked up with Red? Turns out he was immediately welcomed into Red's crew at the time, Erick Sermon's Def Squad (literally a Hit Squad offshoot.) That association came with its benefits for sure, one of which was the production services of Erick Sermon, the lone member of EPMD who continued to invest in his production abilities, for better or for worse. Well, mostly better back then, because this shit's funky as all fuck. E-Dub samples Preem's scratching on Gang Starr's classic single Step In The Arena off its eponymous album while providing a bouncy beat for Mef to catch wreck on with his punchline game. Boy/Girl, he delivers. This was awesome.
PLAY IV KEEPS (FEATURING STREETLIFE, INSPECTAH DECK, MOBB DEEP & HELL RAZAH)
From one 90s production giant to another as Mobb Deep repay Mef's cameo on Extortion off their best album Hell On Earth. Mef is so ecstatic he jumps on Havoc's beat first and does his best Mobb Deep impression. Typically, he pulls it off as he's in his comfort zone: collaborating with other artists. And since Hav produced the beat and it's 1998, the Mobb feel right at home and proceed to wreck shop reflecting such. Deck shows up again and he & Streetlife also share Mef's collaborative spirit here, with their rhymes delivering on what's expected from them. Pity both were so short though. The only minor downside is the hook by Sunz Of Man's Hell Razah, which sounds how a carton feels. Overall, three dope tracks in a row so far.
DONALD DRUMPF (SKIT)
I can only wish to know what Cliffy thinks about this decision. And I don't really care if I brought out the ancestral name.
SNUFFED OUT (STREETLIFE)
DJ Mathematics gives you his lone beat on the album, and I can't really decide whether it's a worthy contribution or an effective sleep aid. It's somewhere in between. Maybe it's due to the Chambers Brothers sample being so boring. Anyway, Streetlife is left alone in the booth for the very first time in mainstream recording history. And, like the beat, it's very hard for me to decide whether the one-verse tale of former friends beefing is skilled or a paint-by-numbers clone of D'Evils by Jay-Z. I guess I can only say it somehow fits Tical 2000's aesthetic. Yay?
ELEMENTS (FEATURING STAR & POLITE)
For his second & final production on Tical 2000, Deck gives you a skillful chopping of a Dionne Warwick record. Maybe he did it to spite the anti-rap figure. Anyway, this was the beat you should've used for Spazzola, Jason. It's way too valuable to waste on just one Wu member who isn't you. For Mef is so out of American Cream Team members Polite & Star's league, it's not even funny. And if we're being really whiny here, Jason should've kept this beat, Spazzola's lyrics and hogged them for his own album, but that's a story for another time. I will say, though, that Mef's dedication to the apocalyptic concept is unwavering, and him choosing a beat like this & rhyming the way he did shows that.
KILLIN' FIELDS
Mef turns to True Master for the last time on the album for a one-song Mad Max movie, where Derrick decorates the track with a Bloodstone sample that allows Mef to let his punchlines take center stage. It all works, of course, as Mef yet again proves his doubters wrong and delivers another fantastic solo track. By this point, I have to point out the lack of merit of a vast majority of the criticisms I've come across regarding this album.
BIG DOGS (FEATURING REDMAN)
So, this can really be considered a full Def Squad track, given Mef's newfound status as Red's brother-in-arms. E-Dub's sampling of the Ohio Players unleashes Redman for the first of many times featuring on a Mef album. As one would expect by this point, these two's chemistry is addictively potent, with each one trying to come up with a wittier line than the other. I will say, though, that Mef loses a smidge of points for allowing the Def Squad influence to overcome him, when his own style was perfectly fine, but that's really a minor nitpick. Dope track. Interestingly, this was released as a double b-side, a “Month of the Man special”, to the title track lead single.
BREAK UPS 2 MAKE UPS (FEATURING D'ANGELO)
Trackmasters. We meet again. Seriously, Poke & Tone were everywhere back in the late 90s dishing out mainstream appeal to whomever was looking for it. Combine that with a D'Angelo feature back when the demand for his services was molten lava, and you have the perfect radio pandering play recipe. Did I mention that this song was supposed to be a bid to capitalize on All I Need's monster success? So how did the end product fair, might y'all ask? The song… was actually pretty good. Gasp! But how? Well, Mef decided for once to lean into the sex symbol image he seemingly abhors and fully dedicated himself to writing a track about a cheating ex-lover who feels jealous of Meg’s new relationship. He actually commits, boy/girl, and the results are commendable. I don’t feel any type of way towards D’Angelo’s performance, who apparently can do no wrong in the eyes of the masses. I’ll even say that his inclusion fits the song’s theme perfectly. Interestingly, Quran Goodman bka Q-Ball from Da Youngtsas contributed to the track. I will say that Q can come up with the odd timeless joint, like Bloodshed & War with Mobb Deep. I end this gargantuan paragraph with the one major gripe I have with this song: It doesn’t fit the theme of the album, at all which unfortunately leaves it sticking out like a sore thumb thereby emphasizes the fact that it was a cash grab by the fuckfaces at Def Jam. Le sigh.
MESSAGE FROM PENNY (SKIT)
Another bullshit skit, this time shoving the absolutely irrelevant fact that Cliffy is on speaking terms with Janet Jackson down your helpless throat. GROAN.
JUDGEMENT DAY
The title track and the lead single. 4th Disciple is chosen by Mef to co-produce alongside him, and the result is admittedly one of the weirdest beats I ever heard. Maybe this is why Mef stuck to MCing from that point forward. Mef spits three verses, all of which he already debuted on a certain duet with Scottish band Texas. Alas, their basic nature is somehow a plus for this song. Well, until you arrive at the fact that Mef repeats his first verse for the third. Now, this wasn't something new in hip hop: Among other examples, Large Professor already did this with his solo debut single Mad Scientist. Difference between the two songs is that LP was rhyming his ass off on his first two verses, something I can honestly say that Mef wasn't doing. Very unfortunate, that. Overall this song serves its purpose.
C.E.O.UTRO
Ten seconds of the now-excommunicated Russell Simmons saying absolutely nothing. Vital to your spiritual well-being, this.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Yeah, why do people still bash this album again? Sure the skits are overkill and there's approximately four tracks that drag the intelligence level of the human race down a couple of notches but other than that, a Judgment Day album from fucking Method Man is exactly what you got. He actually committed throughout the majority of the album to said concept, without compromising the Wu sound everyone still expected from him. Every Wu-Element he called in brought something to the table that kept the aesthetic intact, with True Master taking the lion's share once again. All this album needed was a lack of compromise from the labels, and this would be right up there with his debut. Having said this, I was able to come to such an appreciation only because I listened to this on my iPod, where I could delete any unwanted nuisance (Yep! No skits!) from the proceedings to my heart's content. I say that now knowing full well that said luxury was not an option if you owned this on cassette & vinyl. You had to suffer through the despicable orange cheeto in charge's bit along with the rest of the nuisances. And I don't know how many people owned this on CD, neither, because they could skip them shits easy. Maybe that's why so many people hate the shit? Because they can't skip through the skits? I dunno. All things considered, I will still maintain that Tical 2000 is for sure the second-best album in Mef's discography. And when you take into consideration that he and he alone bore its creative weight, you'll be faced with the reality that this is his true solo debut, because RZA wasn't holding his hand every step of the way this time. And as such, this was a smashing success.
WORTH IT? If you can see, read and comprehend the last sentence, then I think you have your answer. If not, surely you must be a Lil Yachty fan.
TRACKS TO TRACK DOWN:
IT'S IN THE GAME (FEATURING RICKY WATTERS)
Another weird combination, courtesy of the NFL Jams album. I already reviewed a track Ghostface Killah did with Andre Rison here in which he debuted his awesome rapport with DJ Mathematics. Now it's Mef's turn with him flaunting his True Master connection well with his trademark grim punchlines. True Master appreciates the look as well because he gives you a beat that's as strong and clanging as anything he's done throughout Tical 2000. I feel an obligation to warn you, though, of the impending doom that is Ricky Watters' verse. Seriously though, his shit is so laughably atrocious you might even catch yourself adlibbing said ordure. And we're done.
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