GHOSTFACE - The Pretty Toney Album - 2LP - Fruit Punch Vinyl [SEP 29]

There's no Wu Tang Clan MC, outside of Ol' Dirty Bastard, who raps for broke like Ghostface, as if each album might be his last. Ghostface continues this tradition of flipping the most indescribable, gritty, grimy, and painfully honest rhymes imaginable. Ignoring current rap trends - ie., Kanye West-style sampling and speeding up of old soul loops - Ghostface doesn't mask his samples or up the b.p.m.'s. On the choice cuts 'Holla' and 'Be This Way,' he spits fire over great old-school Delfonics and Billy Stewart samples. Of course this is not surprising considering Ghost often says he doesn't care much for contemporary rap music. His flows magically capture the full range of human emotion on 'It's Over' and the RZA-produced 'Run.' Don't be fooled by the relatively frail single 'Tush' (featuring Missy Elliott) because it's not at all indicative of how strong the album is.