The Clipse are an anomaly in the today's music industry. Thanks to the universally revered We Got It 4 Cheap mix tape series and their arguable back to back classic albums in Lord Willin' and Hell Hath No Fury, Gene and Terrence Thornton otherwise known as Malice and Pusha have acquired chart success with sturdy street corner respect. They are without doubt, one of a few Hip Hop artists who you could likely hear being played in a bourgeois hair salon as well as the grimiest barbershop.
Their third official album, Til The Casket Drops is most notable because for the first time, The Clipse enlist production efforts not credited to The Neptunes. DJ Khalil, Sean C & L.V. are invited to the party and whilst their sounds bring an additional "rock-esque" flavour to the proceedings, they fit snugly with the spaced out arcade-ish style of Mr. Williams and Mr. Hugo.
The album introduction Freedom sets the tone perfectly. Pusha confesses that "with every line written, and all I have given/music's been nothing more than a self made prison". Lines like these, showcase the intricate beauty in their writing. They are deceptively simple in structure and execution but have an introspective depth that drives rap nerds wild. Cam'ron shows up on Popular Demand to spit more of his blissful ignorance. The chemistry showcased here is of Meth & Red proportions and will leave you wondering as to why this V.A. to N.Y. collaboration never happened sooner.
Til The Casket Drops is perhaps The Clipse's most commercial sounding album to date which might shock a few die hard followers, but they pull a few new tricks out the bag to keep things fresh and the results are impressive. The best examples of this is are the reggae vibes demonstrated on There Was A Murder, the paranoia inducing Never Will It Stop and the head banging All Eyes On Me featuring Keri Hilson.
The best way to describe the music of The Clipse is to compare it to a treasure chest. You can scrape the surface and grab yourself a few gold coins. But dig deeper and you'll find the rubies, emeralds and sapphires. No disrespect to Skateboard P and his boy, but the real gems are the rhymes which can be dissected, analysed, discussed but most of all enjoyed. As always with The Clipse, the beats are the bait but its the rhymes that will have you hooked. Curiosity kills, controversy sells but consistency rules. This album makes it three out of three for the Thornton Boys.
