Hip Hop loves being nostalgic. Many of today’s biggest artists pepper their music with callbacks and shout-outs to an earlier era. Everyone, it seems, longs for the feel of New York City in the mid-’90s. In that spirit, the new album from Mobb Deep is a throwback to the sound that made them famous.
The Infamous Mobb Deep
B
Mobb Deep
Infamous Records
The Infamous Mobb Deep comes 19 years after the duo’s greatest work, 1995’s The Infamous. It’s easy to see the connection that Havoc and Prodigy are trying to make here; this album is the spiritual sequel to a street-rap masterpiece. The record has a gritty, throwback feel, and the two rappers trade bars over stripped-down beats that evoke modernity and a classic feel at the same time. Song titles like “Timeless” and “Legendary” make it clear that the pair of Queens-bred rhymers have not lost a step.
It is difficult to stay relevant after two decades of making music, yet the veteran emcees are on their eighth studio album — no small feat by any means. The 17-song project is a celebration of this accomplishment, and the lengthy tracklist takes the listener on a tour of NYC Hip Hop from past to present. Nas and Busta Rhymes, two of the East Coast’s all-time greats, are featured, and both deliver stand-out verses that prove once again why they are among New York’s finest.
There is the requisite French Montana feature, an indictment of the present-day state of New York rap. “All A Dream” features all three members of The LOX and a prominent sample of “Juicy,” one of the most famous rap songs of all time. It is clear that Havoc and Prodigy want to associate themselves with elite company. In addition to interpolating The Notorious B.I.G., The Infamous Mobb Deep has guest verses from Snoop Dogg, Bun B and Juicy J, all bonafide rap legends.
While The Infamous Mobb Deep is not a classic by any means – it’s too long and too predictable – Havoc and Prodigy deliver a competent album that regales the listener with everything you would expect: boasts of beating cases, lots of talk about wealth and multiple “Scarface” references. In a way, the lack of inventiveness on The Infamous Mobb Deep is refreshing. Mobb Deep knows their strengths and have once again painted the picture of street wealth.
The production is catchy yet sparse, and the oft-menacing beats perfectly accompany tales of drug dealing and murder. Other tracks focus on success and opulence over expensive-sounding beats, provided by Havoc himself, Boi-1da, Illmind and The Alchemist.
“Whole life, we grinding for the dough / and leave behind a legacy,” Prodigy raps on “Legendary,” discussing how he and Havoc will be remembered. Mobb Deep will never be as successful as Jay Z, as critically revered as Nas or as iconic as Biggie. There are countless New York rap legends who have entered the public conscious. The Wu-Tang Clan, Puff Daddy, Big Pun, Big Daddy Kane, Black Star, Pete Rock, A Tribe Called Quest and countless others helped make NYC the hip-hop capital of the world. Still, Prodigy and Havoc deserve to be considered members of that elite fraternity of pivotal members in New York rap history.
The Infamous Mobb Deep is not a great album, but it is a serviceable reminder that Mobb Deep was once among the hardest groups in rap. There is no “Shook Ones Part II” on their new album, but Havoc and Prodigy are as grimy and threatening as they have ever been. “Guts spill, have you praying to the Lord” is a pretty terrifying line, and it is delivered with complete conviction. This is the perfect soundtrack to an empty street corner at night. Even after 20 years in the rap game, The Infamous Mobb Deep sees the duo sounding as fresh and as menacing as ever.