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Lupe Fiasco: The Cool

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Kastro said:
I'm trying my hardest not to listen to this.. I don't want to blow my load on some crappy MTV stream.
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I listened to about 7 songs then had to stop. I'll wait for the rest. Liked what I heard for the most part though
 
I'm one of the bigger lupe fans here, and I can't feel this album at all. The production lacks. Paris, Tokyo is the best track easily, and one of the best songs of the year.

UGK still has that number 1 spot to me.
 
someone has to keep a free chill count on this album.

(I'm on Paris Tokyo, which is shaping up to be my favorite of not only the Album, but of Lupe)
 
cashman said:
Love the kids with guns intro in Little Weapon
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Yeah, the songs I can't stop listening too as of now are

- Go Go Gadget Flow
- That Die
- Little Weapon
- Gotta Eat
- Hi-Definition
- Gold Watch
- Streets on Fire

I'm in a fast pace mode right now since I'm so happy I'm listening to the album and these songs deliver.
 
ant1532 said:
Yeah, the songs I can't stop listening too as of now are

- Go Go Gadget Flow
- That Die
- Little Weapon
- Gotta Eat
- Hi-Definition
- Gold Watch
- Streets on Fire

I'm in a fast pace mode right now since I'm so happy I'm listening to the album and these songs deliver.
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No Paris Tokyo? Failure
 
cashman said:
No Paris Tokyo? Failure
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I agree. This is easily one of his best songs ever. It sounds like it came straight ouf of 1995.

I'm not going to listen anymore until I get the retail/legit copy. As of right now, I'm not sold... and this is weird because I would have bought this blindly if it were in stores today.

The production kinda reminds me of that Shinoda album.
 
I got that go go go go go go go go go go go go gadget flow.


Easily one of the most catchiest choruses I've heard. I love that song lol.

Day one buy for me.
 
so the interlude, track number 2, "Free Chilly"

Is that referencing a real person? It sounds like someone was wrongfully locked up, and lupe is writing a song to him/her
 
j-wood said:
so the interlude, track number 2, "Free Chilly"

Is that referencing a real person? It sounds like someone was wrongfully locked up, and lupe is writing a song to him/her
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yes his partner and good friend Charles Chilly Patten, was sentenced to 44 years prison for pushing six kilos of heroine.
 
j-wood said:
so the interlude, track number 2, "Free Chilly"

Is that referencing a real person? It sounds like someone was wrongfully locked up, and lupe is writing a song to him/her
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love the production on that one

its refreshing to play an album without skipping. (currently @ hip hop saved my life....)

l_c35de8175174e59d536cc0966f0df40a.jpg



The Cool.
 
I think people here will probably like this. Give it a shot even if you aren't a fan of a lot of rap music. Stream it at MTV if you dont want to buy it.

I'm still not a fan of the music, but Lupe is killing it.
 
Nabs said:
I think people here will probably like this. Give it a shot even if you aren't a fan of a lot of rap music. Stream it at MTV if you dont want to buy it.

I'm still not a fan of the music, but Lupe is killing it.
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What are your biggest complaints? I only listened to like 7 songs and liked most of what I heard, although the Go Go Gadget song has one of the worst hooks I've ever heard.

I downloaded it and put it on my iPod; I'll listen to it later tonight. I'll buy it when it comes out. Lupe makes good music and deserves support
 
my name is ed said:
Is it me or did Hip Hop have a really great year? Isn't Nas supposed to have a new album out soon as well?
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Hell yeah it did. His album is gong to release in February too
 
ant1532 said:
Hell yeah it did. His album is gong to release in February too
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Looks like a picked a great year to get into Hip Hop. I still listen to F&L quite a bit, hopefully I get as many repeat listens out of The Cool.
 
ant1532 said:
Hell yeah it did. His album is gong to release in February too
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I hope Nas drops on the same day as Lil Wayne. Would love to see the reaction of stans on message boards if either sold more then the other.
 
methodman said:
I hope Nas drops on the same day as Lil Wayne. Would love to see the reaction of stans on message boards if either sold more then the other.
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If that happens and lil Wayne beats out Nas..... then I don't know what I would do. If Nas does gets to name his album how he wants it then that might be enough to counter lil Wayne's popularity.
 
On a side note, Matthew Santos is fucking fantastic. Look him up on YouTube. The songs he did with Lupe Fiasco, while cool, don't really do his voice justice.
 
methodman said:
I hope Nas drops on the same day as Lil Wayne. Would love to see the reaction of stans on message boards if either sold more then the other.
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I certainly can't wait to drive around bumping "Fear of the Black Man's Dick". Nas lost :lol
 
it's a term used at all hip-hop websites. probably invented by jay fans who couldn't come to grips with reality. :lol
 
Nabs said:
it's a term used at all hip-hop websites. probably invented by jay fans who couldn't come to grips with reality. :lol
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yeah the whole beef with ether and takeover. I just find it weird he uses it when the topic is not about Nas vs Jay-Z. IMO Jay-Z may be more successful when it comes to women and money but Nas won when it came to the music. Which is what matters
 
Nabs said:
it's a term used at all hip-hop websites. probably invented by jay fans who couldn't come to grips with reality. :lol
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it was created because Nas is constantly losing. At everything. For example:

kelis.jpg

Nas lost.
 
It's a toss-up for AOTY between this and American Gangster for me.. but that's only based on 1 listen of The Cool. It could jump ahead on repeats.
 
j-wood said:
Anyone else think that the song "fighters" is amazing? I love the flow of that song and the chorus
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Yea it's great, flow is sick. Really enjoyed this album, sad thing is, it's gonna flop. I haven't seen any advertising for it, or heard much buzz. I really hope this album sells real well, it's one of the best albums of 07.
 
radiuhm said:
Yea it's great, flow is sick. Really enjoyed this album, sad thing is, it's gonna flop. I haven't seen any advertising for it, or heard much buzz. I really hope this album sells real well, it's one of the best albums of 07.
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Agreed. The conceptual nature of the cd is amazing. It's so refreshing to hear rap music that has meaning. Lupe is pretty much the only hip-hop/rap artist I listen to.
 
Ninja Scooter said:
it was created because Nas is constantly losing. At everything. For example:

kelis.jpg

Nas lost.
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6h3y2cg.gif


:lol :lol


j-wood said:
Agreed. The conceptual nature of the cd is amazing. It's so refreshing to hear rap music that has meaning.
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Co-sign. I love the album.
 
my name is ed said:
Is nas lost :lol a motto of yours? I think I've seen you post that whenever nas is brought up.
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I love Nas but the phrase is sooo relevant. Dude went from ethering Jay to working for him. And Ninja Scooter brought up the main reason he lost :lol


The Cool:

On first listen this completely blew me away. The Cool is what Kanye wanted to create with Graduation; despite the overall dark overtone it manages to emit a celebratory vibe without compromising lyrical quality. Long rap albums often are inflated with annoying skits or filler tracks, yet at 19 tracks and clocking in at over 70 minutes, The Cool manages to avoid both of those pitfalls. I knew Lupe was special the first time I saw the Kick Push video, and after hearing Food & Liquor it was clear he was a great rapper that was going to grow into a great artist. Despite some flaws, The Cool is clearly Lupe's coming out party, and he's catapulted ahead of his class.

Lyrically Lupe has always been a great rapper, but here he takes it to another level in terms of his flow; Food & Liquor may be more complex lyrically but The Cool is more structured. On songs like Go Go Gadget Flow and The Coolest his flow is effortless without being over bloated with nonsense; unlike many rappers he has a point as well as a flow. Food & Liquor was very impressive in terms of use of metaphors, and here Lupe outdoes himself on a few tracks, especially Gotta Eat - one of the most inventive takes on the rather cliche street crime topic. Hip Hop Saved My Life is a great storytelling track which manages to dissect the roots of generic rap without being condescending or critical; for every studio gangsta out there attempting to make quick bucks there's a guy just trying to feed his family. And then there are those who lose themselves at that point, chasing the fame and glory - The Cool. Lupe manages to cover a wide variety of topics instead of focusing on the "I got money!" type tracks many albums are filled with; Gold Watch is materialistic but how many bravado tracks feature Street Fighter II quips?

I haven't seen the production credits yet but it seems like most tracks weren't produced by big names. Despite that it manages to be quite lush, focusing on a collection of strings, pianos, and live drums instead of vocal sample loops. In this regard it reminds me a bit of Late Registration, although not as orchestrated of course. Hello/Goodbye sounds almost like a nu metal track with the downward chord progression and crazy drums. You certainly don't hear anything like that on most hip hop albums. Paris, Tokyo feels like a long lost Midnight Marauders track featuring a nostalgic flow that's reminiscent of Resurrection-era Common; it's a classic throwback track.

If I have any complaints about The Cool it would be the choruses on many tracks. Often they boil down to repeating a few words over and over again, with the worst offender being Go Go Gadget Flow. Some other hooks seem almost phoned in by singers I've never heard of, such as the female singer on Intruder Alert; the track would have benefited from a stronger voice to pull off the more soulful parts. Also as the album progresses the production gets a bit repetitive, although I certainly wouldn't complain about the quality of the beats. Finally, Dumb it Down is not a bad track but it doesn't work much as the lyrics seem to outweigh the song.

Overall The Cool is amazing on nearly every level. Lupe just dropped the rap album of the year (it's better than Ghostface's Big Doe Rehab, my previous fav). It might even be my favorite album of the year. Clearly Lupe has come into his own; lyrically he doesn't have much competition in terms of young MCs. I'm sure the album will receive critical praise which will hopefully get more people interested in him.

4.5/5
 
Going through a first listen now (11 tracks in)...


Man, I don't think I've ever heard an album begin so worthlessly as this one. The first 4 tracks are complete throw-aways. The album should've began with "Superstar". It's pretty good from there on out, asides from Snoop's laughably bad verse and the unavoidable fact that Lupe is god awful at writing hooks. That and Hip-Hop Saved My Life , Intruder Alert, Streets on Fire are too similar to be put right in order. Lupe's strong lyrically, but he doesn't seem to be as creative (This concept record is more restricting than liberating, IMO), but it's enjoyable so far, outside of the first 4 tracks.


And this is what Kanye wanted to create with Graduation? wtf? It's not even close.
 
"The Die", "Paris, Tokyo", and "Gold Watch" are the best tracks on the album.

I have a lot more respect for Lupe on this album, and i think it is way better than Food & Liquor. His rhymes were always on point, but it was always clean-cut with no real style. This album has a lot more flavor to it.

Also: :lol @ STACK THAT CHEESE
 
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