It’s a little intimidating anytime you review an album of this tremendous a magnitude. Public Enemy’s second release is considered by the vast majority of critics to be one of the most important albums of all time. Even if you don’t take much stock in the opinions of various music critics (and in some cases, understandably so) most reader’s polls and surveys hold this album in equally high regard. Though it’s widely considered a monumental cornerstone, I will attempt to review this legendary work, track by track, from beginning to end.
The album kicks off with the group being introduced to a London crowd over the sound of an air raid siren. This short, but interesting opening was recorded while Public Enemy was on their first UK tour. Their first song, “Bring the Noise,” hits the ground running; with jam-packed versus and clever hooks. Emcee Chuck D raps with speed and fury, afraid he might not get in everything he has to say. This is all done of course in his assured, harder-than-it-looks style, complete with interesting word play and lyrical turnarounds. Though the track starts to fade, Chuck keeps rapping as if there is more to be said than the song can contain. The next number, “Don’t Believe the Hype” is enjoyable as well, containing more of Chuck D’s creative rhymes in addition to some great sample work form other members of the group and a catchy hook. This is certainly the first memorable song on the album and an obvious single. I enjoy the complexity of this song as a result of the group’s collaborative nature of the group. I’m not sure, however, of Flava Flav’s role. He never really adds any rhymes, but merely introduces Chuck D and adds in various short vocal fills along the way. In this sense, he comes off less as an equal member of the group, and more like an annoying kid brother looking for a place to fit in. As if in response to this criticism, the next track, “Flavor Flav Cold Lampin’” features the emcee himself. I have to be honest, Flav really proves himself with this one. While his rhymes certainly aren’t as political, he does have a good flow. Still, I have to wonder how solid he would be without the rest of the group to support him. Also, certain lines such as “Flavor Flav is in everything you eat” leave something to be desired. Track five is “Terminator X To The Edge Of Panic.” Just as track four featured Flavor Flav, this one features DJ Terminator X. The lyrics of this song focus more on the group’s critical reception and the music is more sample based. This would have certainly been a hasher, and more jarring when it first came out in ’88. One of my favorite things about Public Enemy is that their music sometimes deals with controversial, real life subject matter. This is a refreshing change from the current all too common practice of using graphic, violent language to manufacture controversy in order to sell records (for example, Eminem). The sixth track is titled “Mind Terrorist.” This is a short interlude the purpose of which appears to be mostly transitional. This is definitely a fast paced, high-energy album that shows no signs of letting up.
“Louder Than A Bomb” is a showcase of Public Enemy doing what they do best. Lyrically, the tone is political in nature (ala Rage Against the Machine). Though their political views are, at times, a little too conspiratorial for me (I don’t believe the CIA had Dr. King or Malcolm X assassinated), I do agree with their over all message about the power of free speech and the government’s fear of it. As I listen to this album, I can’t help but notice the cohesiveness of this group. Unlike a lot of hip-hop acts, Public Enemy has more of a collaborative band-like feel to their music. Rather than featuring only the emcee, this group has various tracks throughout the album that showcase a variety of different members as well as full-group numbers. Track eight is “Caught, Can We Get a Witness?” This number has a live feel similar to the album’s opener and discusses the plagiarism lawsuits faced by the group as a result of their sampling. This not only poses the philosophical question of what constitutes a new, original work; but also serves as a poignant reminder of the history of rap music which is all to often overlooked or forgotten altogether. Though the group tries hard to make a convincing case, it’s difficult to buy into their ‘don’t beat up on little ol’ me’ mentality, when they begin their first half of their album with so much pompous, self-indulgent swagger. The next track is a sample-based number that features no rap and is one of the group’s most popular songs. Indeed, “Show Em’ What You Got” is an impressive display of the trail blazed by the group in the early days of hip-hop. While I love the sax sample used, I cringe every time I hear the one of Flavor Flav. I can’t help but find him to be the least substantial, most annoying member of the group. Ten is “She Watch Channel Zero?!” I find this track to be one of the album’s least essential. It attempts to make a point about the harmful nature of over exposure to television, one that I find to be trivial in comparison to the other concepts on this album. Again Flav proves that his shining moment is, by far, his featured piece. “Night Of the Living Baseheads” is a track that reminds me of just how much I enjoy decent ‘old-school’ hip-hop. This song also resonates with my love of message driven music. Interestingly enough, this song’s lyrics takes aim at the rampant crack use, which exploded in the 1980s. This is an interesting stand for a hip-hop group to take on the issue at that time it was written. Track twelve begins with a return, once again, to the London live sound prevalent throughout this album. I like this device, as it’s one of the things that give this work a more cohesive feel. Titled “Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos,” this number sees a return to a more political theme and contains some of the darkest, most disturbing lyrics on the album. Chuck D’s flow is great (as usual), his rap seeming as if it could go on forever. I’m not sure, however, if I entirely understand, let alone agree with, this lyrics for this one.
Like several of other tracks on this album, “Security of the First Word” features a specific part of Public Enemy. Often abbreviated as S1W, this group of people are more militant and political in their views. I don’t understand the purpose of this track, which consists of a lone, simple, beat and is less than 90 seconds in length. Overall, I found its inclusion on the album puzzling, as it was uninteresting and pointless, adding nothing to the work. “Rebel Without a Pause” on the other hand, is another great example of Public Enemy at their peak. This track features emcee Chuck D who always has good rhymes and a great flow. In addition, Terminator X adds his trademark style and remarkable ability to make an intricate instrumental sound bed entirely from samples. Among the samples used is a recurrent scratch reminiscent of the one heard in track five. Terminator X has a considerable ability make catchy hooks out of sounds that would be almost unbearable in any other context. Chuck D and Terminator X combine their respective abilities to create a fast-paced, enjoyable number that ends far too soon. Track fifteen, “Prophets of Rage” is another fantastic, sample-based piece. This time, a sample from “Pickin’ Up the Pieces” is used, to great effect. The lyrics are, once again, more political in nature. Indeed lines that rhyme Mandela with cell dwella are not common on most hip-hop LPs. In fact, I would argue that this lyrically focused music has more in common with Dylan than most of stuff being release by Public Enemy’s peers at the time. I enjoyed the message of this piece as well as its strong ending. The final rack on the album is titled “Party for Your Right to Fight”, an interesting jibe perhaps at the less-significant concerns of The Beastie Boys. The track creatively employs a Bob Marley sample and sounds far ahead of its time, musically. Lyrically, however, it leaves something to be desired. Again the chief problem stems from the conspiratorial nature of Chuck D’s rap. No matter how hard I try, I just can’t buy into the fact that J. Edgar Hoover set up Dr. King and Malcolm X. Also, the lyrics seem to tie religion into their racial philosophy, with the citation of figures such as Louis Farrakhan and the prophet Muhammad. Maybe these references are more tongue and cheek and not to be taken as seriously, but I don’t understand their purpose or agree entirely with their viewpoint. Nevertheless, the track is musically solid and places the subject matter of the Beastie Boy’s lyrics into their proper context. This is an effective closer on a watershed album for a legendary group who knew they were in their prime; ending prophetically with the line from which the album takes it’s title.
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