Ghostface puts out killah new release
Published Dec. 8, 2006
For whatever it's worth, Ghostface Killah puts out the funniest skits in rap.
He's long been notorious for introducing never-before-heard words and phrases into rap's lexicon, and his skits are usually in-joke ramblings this suburban white boy never really understands. But there is something about being let into the in-joke that you'll never get that makes Ghost one of the most down-to-earth dudes in rap; a guy that, Rap Hall of Famer or not, would be legitimately awesome to hang out with.
His sixth and newest release, More Fish, opens with one of those hilarious skits. Ghost and his crew are counting down the New Year when an argument breaks out as to why one of Ghost's dudes has "peanut butter on his toes."
Why would Ghost bring this up? Well, naturally, because his man's "shit was looking mad crooked." Does this make any sense? No. Why is it relevant? Because, save (naturally) for Lil' Wayne, no one in hip-hop entertains with the inane like Ghost, which is why he doesn't even sound remotely drained on his second release of the year.
His rhymes on More Fish are predictably razor-sharp, but Ghost sounds hungrier here than he does on March's Fishscale, a feeling that's embodied by the opening track "Ghost is Back." Even though he left for but nine months, the title suggests that Ghost feels like he has something to prove.
He comes out literally spitting fire and burning everyone within distance: "I was sittin' at the table thinking/ How the hell do I murder these MCs, sting 'em like bees/ My attitude's that of Hannibal, not compatible.../ Y'all chose to war/ So called rich niggas wanna rush the poor/ I'll rob you first/ And go to your earth, it's not gonna hurt/ If you try calling the cops, it's not gonna work."
He goes on to say that his guns weigh more than Gerald Levert and his enemy's girl's vagina smells like fish in what ends up being one of the most scathing tracks in Ghost's catalog. If you're looking for a thesis: "Fucking up rappers is what I'm about."
Even though Ghost sounds like he's on the verge of leaving the beat's racing guitar line in his dust on "Ghost Is Back," the rest of the album finds Ghost nestling comfortably into his typical soul-powered beats.
The first single "Good" is vintage ego-tripping Ghost (his car looks "good," his jewels look "good," he looks "good," etc.) and he sounds like he's on a victory lap as horns swirl and punch the air around him. It might seem kind of textbook, especially with the R&B hook, but Ghost is too good and too witty to falter at this kind of thing. The quotables ("[I'm] David Blaine with a million chains") seem to come as easy to him as two plus two for the rest of us, making this track — and his spots on the album — seemingly effortless.
Where this album doesn't falter, but understandably drops off, is the second half, which is dominated by Ghost's Theodore Unit Crew. They are all relatively competent rappers, most of whom any Ghostface fan will be familiar with, but following a first-half barrage from Ghost is like following High School Musical at a seventh-grade sleepover and, quite simply, these dudes have no chance.
More Fish is just that: a batch of great (if not mechanically so) tracks that could replace any song on Fishscale without skipping a beat. More Fish probably won't make any noise on the charts, but make no mistake, Ghost is as fresh as ever.
