Music Review: Eminem - Relapse - Page 2

Miraculously, Eminem doesn’t attempt to hang his problems on Kim this time out. That’s not to say that mom still isn’t a mark of derision, as the searing “My Mom” drives with hard-to-stomach lyrics and Dre’s swaying production. Em unloads, charging full steam ahead with troubling verses sealed off with his singing of the chorus: “I’m on what I’m on because I’m my mom.”

“Insane” features more upsetting content, lighting the fuse with lines like “My stepfather said that I sucked in the bed.” It is a stunning, potent piece of music.

Relapse offsets its darker moments, of which there are many, with attempts at clearing the air and the mood, but Eminem has a lot of hate on his mind and most of it is directed at himself. When he isn’t taking on his own sense of antipathy, he sounds deliberately vacant. As such, Relapse works most effectively as a complete character study.

Christopher Reeve gets it again (and gets his revenge) in “Medicine Ball,” while the knowingly-titled “Same Old Song and Dance” rolls out lyrics about Britney and Lindsay.

The only track not produced by Dr. Dre, the Eminem-produced “Beautiful,” is perhaps the album’s oddest track. Its hackneyed balladry somehow works in the framework of Relapse, with Em’s gangly vocals inelegantly telling anyone who’ll listen to never doubt their beauty.

Eminem’s negative energy on Relapse helps him avoid gratification. It also helps him drop some of the best work of his career with moments of damn-near-unlistenable frankness peppered throughout the album. And in working with Dr. Dre, Eminem has created a personal masterpiece that has enabled him to pile all of the hate and insults right where he believes they truly belong.

Article Author: Jordan Richardson

Jordan Richardson is a Canadian freelance writer and ne'er-do-well. He writes stuff here and here.

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