Mobb Deep
became a street-level sensation with its second album,
The Infamous
, and the duo saw no reason to tamper with its signature style on the follow-up,
Hell on Earth
. The first words on the record announce "You know how we did on the
Infamous
album, right? All right, well, we gon' do it again," and that's exactly what they do.
refines the
formula, amplifying much of what made
a success. The bleak street narratives are even more violent and extreme, and the production is even grittier and creepier. It's still indebted to -- but more dramatic than --
the RZA
's work with
the Wu-Tang Clan
: eerie strings and bits of piano, underpinned by deep, echoing beats. Although the overall flavor is pretty much the same as before, it's a bit more sophisticated and cinematic. For those reasons, some
Mobb
fans actually prefer
over
, although it's missing some of the thematic unity and clearly emphasized details that made the world of
so cohesive.
also lacks some of the freshness, but even if
is repeating itself, it's doing so very effectively. The album is superbly moody and haunting, with the swirling horror-film atmospherics of
"G.O.D., Pt. III"
and the hypnotic
"Hell on Earth (Front Lines)"
standing out in particular.
"Drop a Gem on 'Em"
is another highlight, an answer song in the
2Pac
beef that happened to appear not long before the rapper's murder. Special guests
Method Man
,
Raekwon
, and fellow Queensbridge native
Nas
all put in worthy appearances. Even if it isn't quite the landmark that
was,
is nearly its equal in many other respects. ~ Steve Huey