MMLP2 >> Recovery, Relapse, Encore (and it ain't close)

[Mathers]

MMLP > The Eminem Show = MMLP2 > Relapse > Encore > SSLP > Recovery

thats how it is

Is this picture real?

[VINTAGƎ]

Recovery > SSLP and MMLP2?

I'm sorry but how could you even kinda think this... Recovery is his worst album by far. There isn't one thing good about it in comparison to his other albums. Completely disagree.

It's his most balanced album since TES and possibly his most balanced album period. Relapse was serial killer/shock rap heavy, this album is "rappity rap" heavy. Marshall Mathers 1, although no doubt a classic, was heavy on aggressive shock rap. Encore was heavy on joke content. Unfunny joke content at that. Eminem Show had balance, and Recovery had just as much, if not more.

Funny songs: WTP, So Bad (kind of)

Introspective/personal songs: Talkin 2 Myself, Going Through Changes, You're Never Over

Motivational Songs: Cinderella Man, Not Afraid

Songs about relationships: Spacebound, LTWYL, 25 To Life (it's about hip hop but still relatable as a relationship song)

Songs where he's going off: Cold Wind Blows, On Fire, Almost Famous, Seduction, No Love, Untitled

Now you can argue over the quality of those individual songs, but the content was balanced, and a lot of it was fresh. No Kim stuff, no mom stuff, etc.

Relapse is predominantly the same horrorcore songs with different beats.

This album (MMLP 2) is predominantly the same rappity rap songs with different beats, and when the songs actually have content, it's mostly about shit he's spent most of his career rapping about.

Outside of this forum, Recovery was his most highly acclaimed album since TES, time will tell if MMLP 2 passes it, but there's a reason he went from Relapse 2 to going into the complete opposite direction. Relapse was not a very good album and a second one would have buried his career. Regardless of how you feel about Recovery, he needed that album to bring him back to relevancy. That album felt more like his comeback party than Relapse did.

I'm not some tween who just started listening to Eminem three years ago -- I bought SSLP when I was 11 and the rest is history. I've been a stan since the start of his career. Recovery is one of his better albums. If I'm trying to sell a person on Eminem, and can only pick 3 albums out of his discography to give them, I'm giving them MMLP, TES, and Recovery. Recovery is more balanced than SSLP and shows a level of growth and maturity you won't find on SSLP, Encore, or Relapse.

[4Corners]

I agree with Vintage.....outside of this forum, I know it's hard for the stans who jack off to Relapse daily, but Recovery was more highly rated, and most people thought Em was back on his shit, and proved he was still the man. Hell the Sequel even more so, reestablished that Eminem was probably the best rapper alive.

Relapse is good for what it is, but there's too many meh filler tracks, and the accents.....again it's hard for Relapse fans on here to imagine, but it turned a lot of people off. I knew loads of people who were huge Eminem fans, casual Em fans, big hip hop heads, casual people and music listeners in general who couldn't stand the accents. I was one of them. It was cool on 3am, Same Song & Dance, Stay Wide Awake, and I've been a fan of Hello for whatever reason since I heard it. But he really really really over did it, and got stuck in one mode for the entire album.

The good thing about his first three albums is there's strong songs that have varied subject matter and/or sounds, which is something I think he accomplished with MMLP2. There's literally every single kind of sound or song that we could imagine from him, and his diversity in his flows really shines on the album. He really showcases all his talents on this last album. The album never gets boring really, where as Relapse or even Recovery around 25 to Life and Cinderella Man, gets a little like "Okay....now what?"

Recovery was still better than Relapse IMO. I don't think even the low points on that album are quite as bad as We Made You. Really I think Recovery just had 4 mediocre tracks that held the album down a bit. Won't Back Down, You're Never Over, 25 to Life, and Love the Way You Lie. Say what you will about those, but they weren't as bad as We Made You IMO.

The problem I did have with Recovery is a lot of the songs lost that unique Eminem sound, which I think he captured perfectly with MMLP2. You wouldn't hear other emcees like Nas or Jay touch stuff like So Far, Love Game, Baby, Rhyme or Reason, etc. They couldn't do those type of tracks. Em showcases his ability on MMLP2 to rap over ANYTHING and at a high level 95% of the time.

The only thing Em missed with this album was 2 weak songs, and 1 iffy song. The Monster should have never happened, fuck that song. Survival and Berzerk were both mediocre. Berzerk should have been a first single, sure, but it could have been released on the bonus disc and I would have been happy as fuck with that. And Survival should have stayed a COD track and had NOTHING to do with the album.

But that's 18 out of 21 tracks, including Don't Front, that are either great, really good, good, or solid. That's pretty damn good. Those weak songs keep it from touching his first three, but it didn't have as many mediocre or crappy tracks as his last three prior to this. In my opinion, he keeps getting better since his Encore.

SSLP: 9/10 (9.25 on a real good day though, only My Fault drags it down a bit, it's still a 6 though)
MMLP: 10/10 (PERFECTION)
TES: 10/10 (PERFECTION)
ENC: 6.5/10 (would have been in the 7 range if not for those 4 TERRIBLE songs)
REL: 7/10 (too many filler and meh songs, low points not as bad as Encore though)
REC: 7.5/10 (a few mediocre tracks, could have been an 8 range if the production didn't drag it down a bit)
HTS: 7.75 (8 on a good day, Em went HAM on this, still had a couple weak tracks)
MMLP2: 8/10 (could see it going to 8.25-8.5, a couple tracks have gotten even better, still a couple weak tracks prevent it from reaching a 9 of course)

To me Em has 3 classics (SSLP, MMLP, TES), 1 very good album (MMLP2), 2 solid albums (Relapse/Recovery), and 1 decent/alright album (Encore).

Infinite is too underground for me to rate. I would LOVE an album called Vintage next, with Infinite style, pure hip hop like Groundhog Day and Don't Front.

[Kill You]

Recovery was just so forgettable at the end of the day. While Relapse aged so well.

[Kill You]

I think Relapse was good for Em fans but anyone I've talked to who casually likes Em all were like, "What the fuck is this..." How has the album aged well when it's almost never discussed by the artist himself? Lol.

Again, I really liked it and always have but c'mon.

It was like this for my friends who liked Em but now they love Relapse for what it is. It took people time to appreciate it, that's why it aged well. While Recovery has slowly became more hated.

[VINTAGƎ]

I think Relapse was good for Em fans but anyone I've talked to who casually likes Em all were like, "What the fuck is this..." How has the album aged well when it's almost never discussed by the artist himself? Lol.

Again, I really liked it and always have but c'mon.

It aged well on here and nowhere else. The initial reaction to Relapse overall in the hip hop community has been the same since it came out. "Yeah he's spitting hard but what the fuck?"

It's never changed and never will change.

I'm glad he got that out of his system though. Relapse and Refill are more than enough to satisfy fans of that era. That shit is done.

[JHart15]

I think Relapse was good for Em fans but anyone I've talked to who casually likes Em all were like, "What the fuck is this..." How has the album aged well when it's almost never discussed by the artist himself? Lol.

Again, I really liked it and always have but c'mon.

It aged well on here and nowhere else. The initial reaction to Relapse overall in the hip hop community has been the same since it came out. "Yeah he's spitting hard but what the fuck?"

It's never changed and never will change.

I'm glad he got that out of his system though. Relapse and Refill are more than enough to satisfy fans of that era. That shit is done.

Exactly. Say what you want about Recovery, but did some of you really want Em to say:

Pull out my knife while I'm in front of your house

Pull out my knife while I'm in the back of your house

Pull out my knife when I see you laying down on the beach

Pull out my knife while I'm skydiving and I landed on your roof and now I'm climbing down your chimney to cut you

for Relapse 2?

I love Same Song and Dance & Stay Wide Awake, but it gets old after awhile.

[VINTAGƎ]

I think Relapse was good for Em fans but anyone I've talked to who casually likes Em all were like, "What the fuck is this..." How has the album aged well when it's almost never discussed by the artist himself? Lol.

Again, I really liked it and always have but c'mon.

It aged well on here and nowhere else. The initial reaction to Relapse overall in the hip hop community has been the same since it came out. "Yeah he's spitting hard but what the fuck?"

It's never changed and never will change.

I'm glad he got that out of his system though. Relapse and Refill are more than enough to satisfy fans of that era. That shit is done.

Exactly. Say what you want about Recovery, but did some of you really want Em to say:

Pull out my knife while I'm in front of your house

Pull out my knife while I'm in the back of your house

Pull out my knife when I see you laying down on the beach

Pull out my knife while I'm skydiving and I landed on your roof and now I'm climbing down your chimney to cut you

for Relapse 2?

I love Same Song and Dance & Stay Wide Awake, but it gets old after awhile.

Yeah I'm not into that. I've said many, many times on here -- once I heard TES/8 Mile, that was it for me. That's when he went from being the best rapper to being one of the best songwriters. Lose Yourself, Till I Collapse, Sing For The Moment are not songs that are going up against fellow rappers, they're going up against Michael Jackson, John Lennon, Bob Dylan, etc. Other people considered some of the best artists in history. That's when he's at his best.

Songs about shoving flashlights up Kim Kardashian's ass are not gonna put him in that conversation.

What annoys me is he seems content being just a competitive rapper. He has focused more on being extremely technical and trying to make as many clever punchlines as possible as a means to rival other rappers. But John Lennon didn't need to rhyme every word in a sentence, or try to come up with punchlines to drive his point home. I know they're two different genres, but TES Eminem was able to get his point across without rhyming 80 words a second crammed with punchlines that may be hit or miss.

"Music is like magic, there's a certain feeling you get when you're real and you spit..."

If he wrote that today it would be like this:

"Manic, erratically pulling rabbits out of a cd jacket -- other words MUSIC IS MAGIC!"

This is not a shot at Em, it's just once I heard those TES songs, it put him in a different stratosphere.

But him and a good portion of his fans are perfectly content with him wasting his gifts on songs about raping women and cutting them up and creating shock, or any technical stuff that shows he's the best rapper, but not the best artist.

Recovery may not be as good as TES but at least it was an honest attempt to go back to songwriting as opposed to being the best technically skilled emcee in rap.

[Trilla]

OK so you guys are basing MMLP 2 being better than Relapse based on his "emotionalz" songs?

The fuck? Take into fact the writing on Relapse, the production, the atmosphere. All better than on MMLP 2.

"You done called everyone a slut but you're forgetting Sarah, Marshall!"

Exactly. Say what you want about Recovery, but did some of you really want Em to say:

Pull out my knife while I'm in front of your house

Pull out my knife while I'm in the back of your house

Pull out my knife when I see you laying down on the beach

Pull out my knife while I'm skydiving and I landed on your roof and now I'm climbing down your chimney to cut you

for Relapse 2?

I love Same Song and Dance & Stay Wide Awake, but it gets old after awhile.

I would rather have him say those lines than "I'm on my monopoly board, that means I'm on top of my game"

Relapse > MMLP 2 > Recovery

LOL @ people constantly listing FORGETTABLE tracks. That has absolutely nothing to do with how good an album is because that's your own. fucking. OPINION.

I could say every song in-between Bad Guy and Evil Twin are forgettable, therefore making Relapse > MMLP 2.

Niiiitwiiiits.

[JHart15]

OK so you guys are basing MMLP 2 being better than Relapse based on his "emotionalz" songs?

The fuck? Take into fact the writing on Relapse, the production, the atmosphere. All better than on MMLP 2.

"You done called everyone a slut but you're forgetting Sarah, Marshall!"

Exactly. Say what you want about Recovery, but did some of you really want Em to say:

Pull out my knife while I'm in front of your house

Pull out my knife while I'm in the back of your house

Pull out my knife when I see you laying down on the beach

Pull out my knife while I'm skydiving and I landed on your roof and now I'm climbing down your chimney to cut you

for Relapse 2?

I love Same Song and Dance & Stay Wide Awake, but it gets old after awhile.

I would rather have him say those lines than "I'm on my monopoly board, that means I'm on top of my game"

Relapse > MMLP 2 > Recovery

LOL @ people constantly listing FORGETTABLE tracks. That has absolutely nothing to do with how good an album is because that's your own. fucking. OPINION.

I could say every song in-between Bad Guy and Evil Twin are forgettable, therefore making Relapse > MMLP 2.

Niiiitwiiiits.

I only like 3 songs off Recovery so don't put me in that group. Relapse would have been good if it was a real concept album and he told a definitive narrative about a serial killer. He didn't do that. He didn't do what DOOM did on MM Food in which he was using food metaphors throughout the entire album. Instead it was just incoherent technical babble with some references to serial killers. He had his moments (SS&D, 2nd verse of SWA), but for the most part the project wasn't impressive.

[VINTAGƎ]

OK so you guys are basing MMLP 2 being better than Relapse based on his "emotionalz" songs?

I think most of us are basing it being better because it doesn't have weird accents or lines like "nice rectum.../you can't get pregnant if I bisexually wreck ya"

The fuck? Take into fact the writing on Relapse, the production, the atmosphere. All better than on MMLP 2.

The "atmosphere" is very one note. Serial killer stuff with two or three extremely out of place tracks that break up said atmosphere.

"You done called everyone a slut but you're forgetting Sarah, Marshall!"

[Weird accent] What the fuck are you doing you're running over the snow blower with the lawn mower[/Weird accent]

I would rather have him say those lines than "I'm on my monopoly board, that means I'm on top of my game"

[Weird accent] Smoke signal in the sky like verizon wireless[/Weird accent]

[4Corners]

Difference is Trilla.....most anyone will agree Bagpipes, Medicine Ball, Old Times Sake, We Made You, Crack A Bottle, Hello and others depending on the person are forgettable tracks.

No one is saying that about Bad Guy and Evil Twin

[4Corners]

Like I said.....with MMLP2 Em delivered 18/21 dope tracks that were either great, really good, good, or solid. You can't say the same about Relapse, Recovery, or Encore.

The Recovery hate on this forum is a bit unjust. I get not liking Not Afraid or Love the Way You LIe, but Ems rapping wasn't terrible. I'll take those any fucking day over We Made You for christ sake. We Made You was Just Lose It/My Band bad.

[Satan]

Stay Wide Awake = Best song of the century because he does imagery which no other artist on the planet has done. Whoa! I love the little details about how he can indeed smell pregnant women, parking his car which he somehow but only could've bought in Saudi Arabia and the woman, who is possibly the most greatly described fictional person in the history of fiction, indeed scratching, but not only scratching, she's scratching like some dumb freak. And he remarks that Osama Bin Laden does not know the side of him that wants to shove vending machines up asses, which is perhaps the most shocking revelation of all time. And him dancing in his red panties is so creepy, yet so funny, Eminem is the world's best comedian. It's quite ingenius. And his insulting the president by leaving out words for no reason in the 3rd verse is possibly the greatest thing in the Milky Way, because Bush left out important details. It's political commentary at it's best, fuck White America, "Here I come with ax" is where it's at. And the Jabba the Hutt line is perfect social commentary, because we baby our kids with entertainment, such as Star Wars, and he's baby-talking this random woman with Star Wars nonsense. And the fact that his stomach growling is so fucking loud you can hear it from the basement must be social commentary for the lower class or something. See, everything has a purpose, you see. Imagery is amazing. I love imagery and rhyming. He rhymes "I'm dancing" with "silently" you see.

[Raul]

Stay Wide Awake = Best song of the century because he does imagery which no other artist on the planet has done. Whoa! I love the little details about how he can indeed smell pregnant women, parking his car which he somehow but only could've bought in Saudi Arabia and the woman, who is possibly the most greatly described fictional person in the history of fiction, indeed scratching, but not only scratching, she's scratching like some dumb freak. And he remarks that Osama Bin Laden does not know the side of him that wants to shove vending machines up asses, which is perhaps the most shocking revelation of all time. And him dancing in his red panties is so creepy, yet so funny, Eminem is the world's best comedian. It's quite ingenius. And his insulting the president by leaving out words for no reason in the 3rd verse is possibly the greatest thing in the Milky Way, because Bush left out important details. It's political commentary at it's best, fuck White America, "Here I come with ax" is where it's at. And the Jabba the Hutt line is perfect social commentary, because we baby our kids with entertainment, such as Star Wars, and he's baby-talking this random woman with Star Wars nonsense. And the fact that his stomach growling is so fucking loud you can hear it from the basement must be social commentary for the lower class or something. See, everything has a purpose, you see. Imagery is amazing. I love imagery and rhyming. He rhymes "I'm dancing" with "silently" you see.