The Hip Hop Mortuary

Who says I'm not into alternative rap? MURS aka Nick Carter has been Making Underground Raw Shit (the acronym for MURS) for over 10 years now. He has affiliations with the Living Legends, The 3 Melancholy Gypsies, and FELT with Atmosphere's head man: Slug. And who was MURS able to snag to produce this whole album? None other than the production king of alt rap: 9th Wonder. And what sets MURS apart from the other thousands of unique west-coast rappers who own their own label and operate outside of the hyphy movement? For one, he has a somewhat embarrassing namesake, but more importantly he has the arrogance of a man who knows how to control the mic, and has made his name for himself in the underground without glossy hustle anthems and Lil Wayne features... that is someone I can respect.

The Good:

1. Murs Day- This instrumental could make nails scratching a chalk board sound poetic. Murs' ability to grasp a mic and your attention is quite vivid on this track.

2. Murray's Law- Listen to the man's lyrics people... he's actually saying something beyond "Fuck bitches and get money".

4. Barbershop- Just kick Phonte out and you got a better version of Little Brother, Pooh is somehow able to evoke that Southern California in the summer mood.

5. Yesterday & Today- This is an anthem for everyone 9-5ing. And the production is just amazing.

6. Dreamchaser- And this is alternative/underground rap at it's best.

7. L.A.- The ever-present rep your city/hood presented in a unique context. Mr. Carter spits some hot shit all over this jazzy 9th instrumental.

9. D.S.W.G. (Dark Skinned White Girls)- I got to say the "Excuse me" sample fucking rocks, as does the whole production job which makes MURS' average lyrics sound a hell of a lot better.

This album is a great introduction to the other type of West-Coast rap. 9th Wonder does an amazing job, he has a few bad songs, but all the rest are amazing, not amazing as in good, amazing as in really FUCKING good. MURS is an average lyricist with way above average delivery, every punchline just sounds that much better...

0-20: Terrible listening experience
21-40: Maybe one good song
41-60: A few good songs
61-80: Half are good songs, half are weak
81-100: Great listening experience, almost all are great songs

I give this album a 73... it's a decent listen, and I know you will love at least one of the songs:

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