Customer Reviews

Infamy

5 star:		(38)
4 star:		(26)
3 star:		(24)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I'm a Mobb Deep fan. The Infamous . . . is a hip-hop classic. Infamy, however, is not. The Edgar Allan Poe of hip-hop, Mobb Deep created a following who loved their macrabe imagary and all too real story telling. They would manage create reality rap while adding a human side to tales project life and gangbanging.

Now is sounds as if my favorite fight rhymers are tired, they live in the 'burbs now and there's probably not a lot of action out there. Their lyrics are repetitive and uninspired. Havoc hasn't written a decent rhyme since Hell on Earth, and he seems to by enamored by the concept of the refrain because he has on in every song. Prodigy's lyrics are lame also as he must be saving his good material for his next solo album. Even his disses on Jay-Z are uninteresting.

The only consistent thing on this album as compared to previous Mobb Deep albums is the production. Havoc does a decent job. All of the other elements of a good MD album: the awesome guest rappers, the story telling, and the all-to-real skits are all gone. Oh, but there is a song with 112 . . .GIVE ME A BREAK!

Like I said, I'm a fan and I bought Infamy. There are 3 good songs on the album . . . but this will be the last MD album I'll ever buy again.

This album probably deserves 3 stars, but it's grown on me a little since I've been playing it out trying to cope with their change of style. I've have loved all of their previous albums (including H.N.I.C. and excluding Juvenile Hell) but I'm just not really feelin this one like the others. They trash Jay-Z pretty hard but they gotta deal with Nas now that he's seemingly turned on Prodigy after P's appearance on that Cormega song (I guess that was probably the biggest catalyst). Anyway, most of the beats are tight, especially tracks like Pray For Me, My Gats Spittin, Nothing Like Home, and a few others. However, the Mobb done tried to change their flow up and it sounds [like it]. Like in the first song, Pray For Me, the beat's awesome, but they use a simple aabb rhyme scheme pausing before the words that rhyme making those rhymes stand out which is kinda weak and it's slow. They do this on various other songs and it just don't flow very well. They're still hard but having guests like 112 on Hey Luv doesn't really keep that hard appearance making it look like they're trying to be a little more commercial than they have been. Don't get me wrong though, even though this really isn't up to the standards Mobb Deep has set in the past, it's still better than most albums, such as um...Blueprint, and any other Jay-Z album. Hardcore Mobb Deep fans will probably be disappointed but maybe this will get Mobb Deep more in the public eye, whether that be good or bad, I'm not sure. But if you want some classic QB representin harcore awesome beats and flows, go get Stillmatic, it's good. As for this album, oh well, might as well get it, it's decent enough.

Basically, "Infamy" is another hardcore release from Mobb Deep. It is a dope album full of bangin' beats, potent lyrics, and reflective thoughts from the classic duo. They stepped up their creative flavor with a mixture of East Coast beats and West Coast beats. Scott Storch mainly provides the West Coast layout for standouts like "Live Foul" and "Kill Or Be Killed" feat. Ron Isley. Lil' Mo blesses "Pray for Me" arguably one of the best songs on the album. "Get Away" has a soothing voice sample that just relaxes the listener and at the same time embraces the mental of a thug who is on the verge of killing his enemies. Mobb Deep also have something for the ladies on "Handcuffs"- Havoc solo, and "Hey Luv" feat. 112. The bonus cut, "So Long" is an uplifting song to all the homies who are locked up, and it's basically saying to all of them, "Hold Ya Head". Interestingly, Havoc outshines Prodigy lyrically on a lot of the songs, but Prodigy's calm, thug attitude mixed with his master, deep rhyme flow manages to serve as proof to why people demanded that P-Dolo come with a solo project. "Infamy" is EAST COAST GANGSTA RAP TO THE THIRD POWER!

i think this is a great cd to listen and ride to. it has great beats and serious flow! i love prodigy and havoc. buy this cd if you love non commercial rap! every last song is great!

The cd INFAMY by Mobb Deep was an amazing cd. This cd had all good songs and none of them were bad. When I heard this cd it brought rap to a whole different level. When I hear the grimy lyrics that they have and the way they explain they're life you can almost picture your their with them. I give this cd 5 stars because it deserves a good rating for the hard work that they put into it, and because its a good cd to listen to. All the songs in this cd stand out for me. All the tracks have good lyrics and have good beats. Every new cd that I hear from Mobb Deep is always better than the last. They are always coming out with new hot tracks. You could say they're spitting fire.

True this album has some 2 or 3 hot joints, but the majority of this is that watered down electronic style that we had to deal with since Murda Muzik. Mobb Deep has kissed the concrete beats and the intricate "reality rap" style that they had mastered goodbye. Now they kick basic "thug rap" and use experimental electronic (synthy) beats. "Get Away" and "Burn" are my favorite joints on here. But make no mistake, the Infamous/Hell On Earth Mobb Deep will never be back.

Plus the old Prodigy is dead, so we have to listen to his new super simple (and super slow) rhyme style once again. After taking a heavy beating from both Jay-Z and Nas, be prepared to throw a rose on their career's casket.

Not sure what was going on with Mobb Deep at the time when this came out. Around this time this album came out, I was 16 and was basically loving everything that they were putting out, since I got into them with Prodigy's "H.N.I.C.". Especially with the whole ordeal with Jay-Z who took a few shots at them (i.e. "Takeover") I couldn't wait for them to respond.

Back when I was a teenager, I thought this was an excellent album, but when I listen to it today, I just see it as very good. If I recall correctly, the lead single was "Burn" featuring Big Noyd (BET might have played the video a total of two times), in which I thought the song was dope as hell. Their second single was more radio/pop friendly with "Hey Luv (Anything)" featuring 112 that was okay to be honest. Another great song was "Clap" where Havoc comes off stronger than ever. Infact he outshines Prodigy in a lot of the songs like on "My Gats Spitting" and "Get Away". Prodigy does come correct on some songs, but don't expect him to blow you out like he was on "The Infamous" or "Hell on Earth". He does drop a few dope verses, like on "Get At Me" and on "There I Go Again" as well as "I Won't Fall". But there were some that you expected more from him, like "Crawlin'" where he drops some weak lines dissing (if you want to call it that) Jay-Z.

Other inferior moments on this album include the song "Bounce" and "Live Foul" where both Havoc and Prodigy sound weak, making those songs skip material.

Overall, Havoc and Prodigy drop a very good LP back in late '01. It could have been better, but it's still good. You have some strong moments that outweigh the weak ones. If I were to review this 4 years ago, I would have given this a higher score. If you're a fan of Mobb Deep, this should be in your collection. Peace!

Lyrics: B+
Production: B
Guest Appearances: B
Musical Vibes: B

Top 5 Favorite Tracks:
1. Burn (featuring Noyd and Vita)
2. I Won't Fall
3. Clap
4. Get At Me
5. My Gats Spittin' (featuring The Infamous Mobb)

Favorite Mobb Deep Albums that I own (best to worst)
1. The Infamous
2. Hell on Earth
3. Murda Muzik
4. H.N.I.C.
5. Amerikaz Nightmare
6. Infamy
7. Mobb Deep, Free Agents: The Murda Mix Tape
8. Blood Money

Haven't heard: (amazon wouldn't let me link all their albums)
Juvenile Hell
The Infamous Archives

Before I start this review, I'll say one thing that is apparent: Havoc FLOORS Prodigy on every other song. It's not that Prodigy's rhymes were terrible, it's just tha Havoc stole the show most of the time. So much so that you even forget that Prodigy is on some of these tracks. Clap is a fine example of this. This album has some dope cuts on it but dont expect Prodigy to come out of the gate spittin flames like he did on The Infamous and Hell On Earth. The Learning(Burn)(feat Big Noyd and Vita) was a hot first single. Get Away was a nice third single. My Gat's Spitting has Infamous Mobb joining in on the track. Prodigy takes shots back at Jigga on Crawlin. Nothing Like Home(feat friend turned foe Littles) is tight and the bonus track So Long is hot too. There are songs that stop this LP from being a classic Mobb Deep album. Handcuffs sounds utterly ridiculous. Lil Mo doesnt sound good paired up with Mobb Deep and Pray For Me is proof. Live Foul is corny and I hated Hey Luv(Anything) feat 112 since day one. Not because Mobb Deep was doing a chick record but because it sounds forced and awkward. Other than that this album is a good release. Bottom Line: Mobb Deep's Infamy is the last great album they've made. The production is intact and even though Havoc stole the show on most of the album, Prodigy had his moments(So Long, I Wont Fall and Get At Me) too. Standouts: GET AWAY, CLAP, KILL THAT N****, MY, GAT'S SPITTING, THE LEARNING(BURN), GET AT ME, CRAWLIN, NOTHING LIKE HOME and SO LONG.

With Jay-Z's shot on the Mobb, many expected the Mobb to come back with a respond to Jay's "Takeover". However we did get a reasonable album with exception production work from Havoc. Unfortuntely for Prodigy, who doesn't live up to his pre-Mobb releases where he had the world attention on cuts like "Shook's One's Pt. 2" and "Survival Fittest". With their more commercial approach with their hit-single "Hey Luv (Anything)", which features 112. An exception effort, but with a questionable outcome, hmmm....

This was Mobb Deeps 5th album released in 2002. They have had 3 scense them. It is there most comercial album ever. "Pray for me" has an excellent beat but Lil Mo should not be on a Mobb album. "Get Away" is smooth and has a excellent beat to it and is also soulful."Bounce" kind of feels like a party type track and you can tell. "Clap" has a completely underground style beat as do the previous 2 or 3 and is one of the best beats on a Mobb album. "Kill that N****" has a bad beat but it is of
good quality. "My gats spitting" sounds like a good song a little experimental to other beats. "Handcuffs" has another underground style beat. This music is definantly different."Hey Love" is always dissed but 112 does okay on it this one is a little experimental not typical beats. "Burn" does have a typical beat and I just do not like it that much. "Live Foul" has a dumb chorus but has a Nas Stllmatic era beat to it. "Hurt N*****" does have a experimental beat but sounds different. "Get at me" also has a weird beat in a good way sounds a little like ESPN Football beat. "I Wont fall" also sounds like maybe an alchemist beat. "Crawlin" he raps a little mainstream the beat is not. "Nothing like home" has a soulful type beat to it. "There I go again" has another good type beat that sounds increddible. "So Long" has a nice beat. This is Mobb Deeps most unsettling, most experimental, most mainstream all at the same time. When it works it is excellent when it does not it does so very badly. I don't know it's hard.
Lyrics 7 Production 8 X Factor 5 Classic 7 Replay 6
Total=6.5 out of 10 Fingers

1.Clap
2.Get Away
3.I won't fall
4.Hey Love
5.There I go again