Customer Reviews

Fire & Glory

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Theres 3 or 4 good songs on here but that's about it. Don't waste your money unless you can find it used for like $5.

Ok Ok....some people like this album some people don't like it that much. Let me break it down for yall

1. Kardinal is as Original as it gets
2. Kardinal stays true to his form
3. Kardinal writes and produces all his stuff...or most of it
4 Kardinal does not sound like all that garbage on the radio US or CA
5. Kardi aint rhymin about that same ole bling and 24's like you here on the radio or see in the videos

This is what makes him such an extrodinary artist. I have been a Hip Hop head for years, and I always look for someone who is different and stands out from all the other programmed artists who are just trying to sell records, and don't really put any creativity behind their music. I mean how many times can Manie Fresh or those Dirty South dudes rhyme about money and cars and S**T like that..come on man. BIG UPS TO Kardi and the T-DOT for holdin it down. To all you other Canadian Artists keep the good music flowin to the States. Artists like K-OS, Choclair, Socrates, Swollen Members, SweatShop Union just to name a few.

Finally an official album from Kardinal Offishall! His last major album Quest For Fire was released back in 2001, and we were left waiting for ages thanks to trouble from his label MCA. The frustration of not getting his followup released made Kardi release the excellent underground album Kill Bloodclott Bill Vol.1 last year, an album aimed at MCA and music industry big shots.

Fire And Glory isn't a straight Hip Hop album, neither is it a dancehall album. Rather, it mixes flavours from several genres, and mixes them in a consistent, natural way. Kardinal's trademark flow and superb lyrics could easily save a flat, boring beat, but thankfully on this album they rarely have to. Most tracks are produced by Kardinal himself, and his production is as versatile as his rapping. Especially The Best Man and Neva New stand out as well produced tracks.

EGG (Everybody Gone Gangsta) is an old mixtape favourite which also was on Kill Bloodclott Bill. The teamup with dancehall don Vybz Kartel is pure genius, and the production is spot on. Several other tracks - Last Standing Soldier, Neva New and Mr. Officer - have an revamped old school reggae fell to them, and are all the better for it. The Best Man with Spragga Benz on the mic is really good. Sunday has a very different, soulful production, with Kardi singing the hook! Watchalike with Busta is produced by Kardi, and has the kind of simple, handclap driven beat you could expect from the Neptunes. Good if that's your thing.

Unfortunately, many of the remaining tracks fail to impress. Especially the last two tracks should have been replaced with some of the bangers from Kill Bloodclott Bill, like the incredible Empty Barrel, See The Fire, Gas and Kill Bloodclott Bill (Bang Bang).

With those replacements this would have been a 5 star album, but Fire and Glory is still one of the best releases of 2005. Rumours have it that Kardinal has recorded about 100 tracks of equal quality between 2001 and 2005, so maybe we can hope for a release of The Waiting Years Vol.1-3?

For many, the wait has been long for this album, and it's a relief to see that Kardinal has lost none of the fire displayed on Quest For Fire. He has developed his flow and become more versatile while still staying true to his own particular blend of hip hop and caribbean music. Hopefully we won't have to wait too long for the next album!

YO KARDINAL BROUGHT THE HEAT MAN
WHERE'S THE EXTINGISHER WE GOTTA COOL HIM OFF
can't wait for his next album

Kardinal Offishall is back with a vengence! It's been four years since Kardinal has released a major album.

I own this album and let me say that some of the other reviews are wrong. One review by some kid says that Kardi needs to get back in the lab and that he will listen to Kanye West until Kardi gets a new CD out. Well let me tell you kid that Kardi is better than Kanye any day. Kardi is more original and is a better rapper.

I personally enjoyed the album. It is a tasteful mixture of reggae and underground rap. I would agree with the other reviewer when they state that the West Indies heavily influence The T-Dot's unique sound.

My favorite songs are:
#1: Mr. Officer
#2: Kaysarasara
#3: Last Standing Soldier
#4: Everybody Gone Gangsta
#5: Everyday (Rudebwoy)

Just a note, the first review on the page is a kid's review. For that kid's information, "Kardi" is the correct abbreviation, not "Kardie"

Kardie has a few big tunes on here still. My personal favorite is "feel alright". I've seen what other people be saying about how this album from kardie aint good enough and i agree. Kardie did release Firestarter Vol. 1 (sick album) back in 2001 and Kill Bloodclot Bill mixtape in 2004 but people were waiting for vol 2 or any second album for him to drop. I know what most of u are sayin...this is it? but the truth is that this was released only in Canada unlike the Firestarter Vol. 1 sold under MCA. But not to worry....cuz i am pleased to say that Kardie finally has a good record deal with Konvict Music after Akon signed him this month. I am expecting big things from Kardie's next release and in case anyone wanted to know Konvict Music only has three artists...Akon T-Pain and now Kardinal Offishall!!

This album from Torontos best is not as good as his first but still better than hip hop albums avialable. Except for one or two songs on the album, you can definately lisen to the album straight through. Unlike other albums with lots of fuller and one or two good songs.

Rating/review of each track:

The Last Standing Soldier - 4.5/5 (Great way to start off the album)
E.G.G. - 5/5 (Nice beat, great rhymes, straight underground with a dancehall flare)
Heads Up - 5/5 (Sounds like a Neptunes beat, nice rhymes from Kardi)
Everyday (Rudeboy) - 5/5 (Another great single)
The Best Man - 4.5/5 (Crazy flow from Kardi)
Freshie - 3.5/5 (Good story but the song isn't structured)
Sunday - 5/5 (Soulful song, inspirational)
Kaysarasara - 4.5/5 (Nice production, good message)
Neva New (Till I Kissed You) - 5/5 (Continues where "Maxine" left off)
Mr. Officer - 4.5/5 (Fun song)
Watchalike - 5/5 (Club banger with Busta Rhymes)
Fire and Glory - 3/5 (The beat is off-key witht the singing, rhyming is a bit uninspired, could have been better)
Feel Alright - 5/5 (Nice mix of reggae and rap)
All The Way - 4/5 (Rhyming has influence from "Bakardi Slang" but the beat is subpar)

Overall Rating: 63.5/70 (4.5 Mics)

Kardi is one of hip-hop's most exciting artists and I would definitely recommend this album. The production on this album is amazing (listen to E.G.G) and Kardinal's flow and lyrics are great as usual. For those not familiar with Toronto, Fire and Glory provides a great example of how West Indian culture plays a huge role in the nature of this city.

but dont know how else to do this. so here goes.
Kardi is a creative mind, every song on this album has POTENTIAL, but kardi please please get back in the lab. Everyday Rudebwoy is a good song, only because it has Rays smooth vocals, and has a very flemo-esque vibe:). im also pleased with feel alright.. but thats pretty much as far as it goes. freshie might have a good storyline, but man, thats about it. it lacks flow, and the tone is too angry.. nothing really matches up. This could have been a great album. I also like neva knew(till i kissed you) but i mean i dont really LOVE any of these songs with the exception of rudebwoy and feel alright. His rhyming needs to be improved upon, and I see the creativity in his ideas but instead of RAW, it comes out UNFINISHED. i dont know, maybe he needs another four years? im not totally impressed, although i DO love kanye, and he NEEDS to get with some uber-hot producer or something and make a GOOD album, maybe re-release this one starting from scratch? I dont know, but I'll listen to College Dropout while I wait for the next release:).