Tech N9ne is a recent favorite of mine. The man is strange and slightly twisted, his style is different and good, he raps fast, he’s sick in an Eminem type of way…he’s great. Tecca Nina is a favorite underground artist hailing from–gasp–Kansas City. One would think (and many have said), how can a good artist come from Kansas City? Well, listen and learn.
1) Devil Boy
A hard snare laced with a piano, Tech spits on people calling him “the devil” with sick verses and a suitably haunting chorus; true to his style, it’s hellish and a little goofy at the same time, something like one of those Disney songs that are supposed to be ‘scary.’ Good way to open the album, sets the flavor perfect. (Great)
2) Hellevator
A short interlude with a deep-voiced demon/satan welcoming us to hell.
3) Tormented
More demonic, Tech trades rhymes with a deep-voiced, chanting-style “demon” voice over a hard-beat track with violins. (Great)
4) Stamina
Very short; Tech spits AK bullets over a “beat” that sounds like a typewriter typing really fast. (Good)
5) Sinister Tech
Tech spits another of his strange flows over a creeping piano beat. The beat is a bit sloppy and the high-pitched laugh in the background gets annoying, but it’s good if you like Tecca’s weirder stuff. (Poor)
6) Psycho Messages
A skit about a psycho stalker ***** (like most of Alicia Silverstone’s movies) leaving messages on Tech’s machine. Leads into the next track.
7) Psycho *****
Over a high, actiony beat Tech rhymes good shit (some fast, some slow) about stalker *****es. (Great)
8) Real Killer
Tech spits a story about having to kill his babies (abortion) over a creepin, piano-laced beat, with a chanting chorus. (Good)
9) Cursed
Starts slow, Tech spits about his life on a low piano beat. After a few seconds the drum gets harder and the violin heavier and he starts rappin about sex and women. More strange, true to Tech. (Great)
10) Suicide Letters
Tech gets a deep bass beat counterbalanced with a high string beat and rhymes some suicide letters he wrote for real, when he was deeply depressed, in rhyme form–and great lyrics at that. Deep shit. (Excellent)
11) Purgatory
A short clip explaining purgatory.
12) It’s Alive
YES! My favorite track on the album–favorite Tecca track period–Nina comes with real energy, alternating slow and fast flows over a great rock/rap piano beat. Spits about repping Kansas City. LOVIN this track; love the line “people makin jokes sayin we off to see the wizard/but me and dorothy and toto’s on yo ass when you visit.” (Excellent)
13) Einstein
An old vampire movie-style organ with a cut clip of a man saying ‘Einstein’ make the beat interesting, and Tech spits well on it. (Great)
14) Breathe
Tech spits as fast as the tempo, with a great flow, on a quick, creepin-piano beat. (Excellent)
15) Who You Came to See
Opposite of the last track, N9ne spits it slowish (about himself, of course). The beat is almost G-funk, the piano bouncier than usual, with better verses than usual. (Excellent)
16) Wake Up Call
Tech wakes up to a phone call, supposed to get to the airport soon. A lot like the clip at the beginning of Biggie’s ‘Going Back to Cali.’
17) This Ring
A track about marriage & divorce, with a halloweenish disjointed string beat accompanied by a howling whistle. The verses are good, tho the beat seems a little overdone. Still, Nina’s great lyrics carry it. (Great)
18) God Complex
Unfortunately, since I downloaded this album, I don’t have this track. And since I d/l’d it from a site on recommendation from someone on here, don’t yell at me! Yell at them!
19) F.T.I.
Also known as ***** the industry. Tech and 5 other MCs spit over a horn-laced beat, about how the industry sucks. The verses are tight; not on Tech’s level, but are up there. (Good)
20) Going Bad
Tech on an emotional, whistly beat about..uh..going bad, losing his soul in the madness. He’s good as usual…I like the woman on the chorus. (Great)
21) Heaven
Tech speaks on heaven, says he’s blessed.
22) Twisted
An oddly light track, I guess Tech wanted to end the album on a hopeful note, cuz that’s what the cut sounds like. Nina spits on how strange he is, and the lady in the chorus gives him reassurances. (Good)
My Rating: 4/5
Probably Tech’s best album to date. It’s surprisingly personal, and it definitely shows his skill and his eccentricities. At some points it almost seems like he’s trying too hard to do the creepy thing, as everyone expects, when it’s really not necessary (This Ring), but other times it’s definitely authentic (Suicide Letters). However it does see him rolling rapidly toward a classic album, polishing himself off.
My Recommendation: Get this if you’re a hardcore Tech N9ne fan, or you’ve heard him before and really like his style.