Customer Reviews

E.L.E. (Extinction Level Event): The Final World Front

5 star:		(111)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

E.L.E. is arguably Busta's best album. With a concept (the end of the world) that is unheard of in mainstream/conventional Rap/Hip Hop, Busta schools us like a psychic history teacher. If you take one look at the cover of the album and then remember the recent events of the past couple of years, you'll know what I mean.

From the diabolical Intro AKA There's Only One Year Left!! where destruction and peril is foreshadowed, to the dark and disturbing Outro AKA Burial Song, Busta has hit us with a concept album which usually hurts careers more than it helps, and pulls it off with flying colors. The tracks are generally hard hitting with lyrics that peirce and cut and sting, and typical Busta Rhymes production (you know when you hear a Busta Rhymes' song) to damage you car's audio system. A definite must have for any Busta fan, because it really shows that he is one of Rap's best.

Best tracks (to me) are:
2. Everybody Rise (an Earth and speaker shattering track)
5. Tear Da Roof Off (Old School meets Busta Rhymes)
7. Just Give It To Me Raw (Oriental flavor, good track)
8. Do It To Death (crazy beat)
10. Gimme Some More (My favorite Busta track ever)
11. Iz They Wildin' Wit Us...(if you want to get a party hyped and hear some crazy air tight flows... this is the track for you)
13. Do The Bus A Bus (a good song to ride to)
14. Take It Off (Latin music meets Flipmode)
15. What's It Gonna Be (Janet really enhances this song)
17. What The F--- You Want!! (another crowd hyping song)
19. Burial Song (Outro)(what I listen to when I feel... upset)

Basically, Busta has lost his mind.

Yo this CD is the Bomb. All these song are great. I like Tear da roof off, gimme some more, party is goin' on over gere, do the bus a bus and what's it gonna be. he's the ***, keep doing what you doing Busta.

Busta is a very consistant mc and most of his albums are never disappointing. E.L.E is a great follow up to "..disaster.." and i recommend this cd. busta is great and he'll leave askin give me some mo

rating A-

Nowadays, it seems that all you have to do to make it in the mainstream rap circuit is to know somebody, or at the most extreme get shot for street cred. I'm sorry, but suffering bullet wounds doesn't make you a gansta anymore than wearing a bun on your head makes you a delicious cheeseburger. Rap is about one thing: words. And in that kingdom, Busta rules over all.

The whole cd is a concept album, focusing on the "cataclysmic apocalypse" which will show itself at the turn of the millenium, and Busta is there to narrate us through it, from the disturbing narration in "Only One Year Left" to the hope that comes with "The Burial Song". And in the middle is an incredibly solid rap album. I wouldn't venture so far as to say it was the best album ever, but could be the best in mainstream rap. A lot of the tracks aren't particularly special, but even those are good for blasting in your car ("Just Give It To Me Raw", "Everybody Rise").

Generally, the best tracks are found in his collaborations. In "Against All Odds", he works with the Flipmode Squad and a killer sample to make one of the coolest gangsta tracks this side of Method Man. Mystikal joins in for the pumped up "Iz They Wildin Wit Us", Ozzy lends his voice and the tune of "Iron Man" to the powerful "This Means War", and Janet Jackson teams up with Busta for "What's It Gonna Be", the ultimate grind track. But Busta's real talent is working alone, and writing the fastest rap out there. The big single, "Gimme Some More" is still incredible after hearing it edited on the radio a hundred times, and "Where We Are About To Take It" is Busta at his best: raw, rhythmic, and cooler than you'll ever be.

I love his funky beats , he has an interesting concept. I think he threw so much of his energy and time into this album. He is a very creative indivisual who has alot of style.

Busta Rhymes will always stay detached from any other MC in the business, defined by a fierce growl, unhinged, dark and creative music videos, and space-like beats. And although "Extinction Level (The Final World Front) remains uneven at times, with a few throwaway tracks, the standout tracks are simply outstanding, ecclectic and exhilariting. "Everybody Rise" is a bouncin', funky beat with Busta calling out to all the states, telling them lyrically to rise with him. "Where We Are About Take it" has a spacey, synth descending beat with fairly average lyrics, not yet expressing Busta's musical genius. The self-titled song has a catchy chorus, and to follow it up is the single "Tear Da Roof Off", an energetic, collaborative track with a raw, vibing beat that is great. "Against All Odds" is in the same vain, with the whole Flipmode Squad coming together, rapping over another funky beat. Lyrically, the next few tracks all display Busta Rhymes as a great MC, with mystical beats. However the songs themselves are simply not very memorable. "Gimme Some More" is the biggest hit single off the album, with an orchestral beat and Rhymes flowing quickly and sharply.

"Iz They Wildin' Wit Us & Gettin' Rowdy Wit Us?" is quite simply a boisterous rap expression, with Mystikal guest starring. Both rappers are flowing at astounding speeds, and the track stands out strongly on the album. "Do The Bus A Bus" is one of Busta's ludicrous singles, but it is catchy. Groovy Hip Hop seems to be the theme of the album at this point, as Janet Jackson joins Busta in a collaboration, and "Hot Sh*t Makin' Ya Bounce" has a very laid-back, stylish beat with sensational lyrics. The last few tracks are less memorable, except the sampling of "Iron Man" in "This Means War" with Ozzy Osbourne making an appearance.

It seems people are making many subjective statements as to Busta's prime in his career, and I personally think he chose to take a new direction with each and every album. At this time, he is set to release his latest album "The Big Bang" in July of 06, featuring a great track called "I'll Hurt You" but also releasing a single called "Touch It", which is less impressive. At this time, he has officially signed to Dr. Dre and Aftermath, so he will have access to the best beats out there. Overall, I would recommend this album to any Busta fan, and if you are looking for somewhere to start, I would begin with "Genesis".

This album could have easily been a 5 star masterpiece had Busta shown a bit of restraint. Like most of his 90's work though this is simply a bit too bloated for its own good. Bloated or not though, this still stands as one of busta greatest achievements. You would think that at 19 tracks the album would be riddled with filler, but in truth its not. There are 2 skits that get their own track, plus a few more that are tacked on to the end of a few songs, which is a shame because had the skits alone been trimmed it could have saved this album from dragging on too long, none of them are worth keeping and the only real purpose they serve is to fill out the disk.

As far as the music is concerned though? utterly amazing, the only bad track worth noting is track 5; 'Tear da Roof Off'. the song suffers from a flat out terrible beat courtesy of Swizz Beatz, this coupled with an annoying hook and awkward flow make the song a complete disaster, 'Do the Bus a Bus' could have been done without as well (even if Busta's second verse is jaw dropping). Other then that though the album is near perfect, the production is masterful, 'Where We Are About to Take It', 'Everybody Rise' and 'Gimme Some More' stand out as some of the greatest beats of the 90's. The rest of the production isnt far behind these classics and give the album a very diverse and live feel to it.

Busta himself is in top form, his flow is as crazy as ever and his lyrics are tongue twistingly fantastic. When paired up with artist like Mystikal things are bound to get a bit crazy, and crazy they do. Busta and Mystikal feed off of each others energy and turn in performances that would make MOP sound subdued. The running times for these tracks also help keep the album moving forward, some tracks clock in at 5 minutes or more, while others are just a shade over 2, it helps create a diversity that keeps the albums sound from getting redundant.

Overall - I honestly think this is a fantastic starting point for people looking to get in to Busta Rhymes, the album straddles the line between mainstream and underground fantastically. The raw production mixed with Busta's poppy hooks and flawless flow create a truly one of a kind sound. My advice? take the album, chop the skits and track 5, and enjoy this for the classic that it could have been.

Pro's
-Amazing Production
-Strong Songwriting
-Strong performance from Busta
-The at first odd Guest list turn out to be awesome.

Con's
-Track 5 is flat out terrible
-Too many skits tacked on kill the flow

as a young'n lookin' for hip hop, i only listened to Fugees and 2Pac cus those were the only 1s i knew at the time, then Busta Came with "Gimme Some More" i bought this album, and the others. i love this album so much. i still listen to busta, love all hes stuff.

If the world had really ended we would have went out vibin'.This cd got hard,eerie sounding beats u can't find nowhere else. This is definately a classic.

Only one word can describe Busta Rhymes' third solo effort...dull. Maybe he was just worn out from a hectic recording schedule of putting a new album out every year. Maybe it was the lack of DJ Scratch on the production end. Maybe as fans we are just tired of hearing him on MTV everyday. Nomatter what the reason is, the album only has a couple worthy tracks, including the bouncy "Gimme Some More" and the incredible Black Sabbath "Iron Man" remake "This Means War!!"