After GQ's photoshoot of Kid Cudi, Drake and Wale as the "Gangsta Killers" was posted on DatNewCudi.com, I decided to give Wale's debut album a listen. Attention Deficit dropped on November 10th but already it's generated three singles, "Chillin" (with Lady Gaga), "World Tour", and "Pretty Girls". I'm really happy with the album.
In a word: fresh. The lyrics aren't "clean" but they're not gratutiously dirty either. They convey a more accurate view of the mainstream today (such as the social image commentary in "90210") than the crime-ridden, "f*ck bitches get money" theme of gangsta culture. Good, dirty sex is all fun - but at least it should with real women, not fake gold diggers and Barbie dolls. Wale celebrates a down-to-earth rhetoric that's a damn sound for sore ears to hear. The accompaniment production is fantastic too. Overall the style is reminiscent of little-celebrated, but high-quality groups like Blackalicious and the CunninLynguists.
Best track? Sorry, but definitely not "Chillin" with Lady Gaga. Great duo, but it's kind of out of place with the rest of the album, almost as though it was more of a marketing decision than on actual quality. Releasing a single like that gets popularity from the large group of Lady Gaga friends out there, but as a track it's mediocre... "Mama Told Me" I think has to be my favorite. Unfortunately, I can't find the lyrics to it. Wale's vocals flow with the music in an free-flowing waterfall of chimes, horns and claps. Awesome.
Out of ten? Eight seems appropriate. I feel the creativity dries up towards the end of the album, but it's definitely nothing you'd be compelled to skip. This album is greater than the sum of its parts, even if most of the songs aren't real catchy. The creative, new, fresh-and-clean feeling to this expertly produced album makes it a benchmark to judge post-gangsta MCs against.
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