The Wait is Over

I want to thank Matzah for hooking me up with the assignment to review Devin the Dude's latest offering, Waitin' to Inhale. I had a lovely Devin-centric weekend and the effects on my personality have been pronounced. My speech patterns have slowed down and I've discovered new syllables in words that I didn't know were there before. My eyes are bloodshot and half-closed and I have a huge erection that just will not go away. That's what happens when you hang out with the Dude for too long.



Before I get to my gripes about Waitin' let me just go on record as saying the album is dope. It has what every good rap record needs which is 5 or 6 undeniably ill tracks. When I get around to copping the vinyl there will be a side or two of straight bangers where I can just drop the needle and forget about it. That's key, because usually when I listen to Devin my short-term memory is slightly impaired.

Songs like "She Want That Money" and "I Hope I Don't Get Sick-A-This" find Devin in prime pimp-clown mode. On "Broccoli and Cheese" Devin tries just a little too hard to convince you that he's STD-free by listing all the side dishes you could serve next to his impeccably groomed penis. "Girl, this dick is so clean, this dick is so clean/that you could boil it in some collard greens". Stroke of genius.

Aside from Devin's dopey antics, there are two tracks with dream team guest lists. On "What A Job" Devin, Snoop Dogg, and Andre3K rap (yes, apparently Andre's rapping again!) complain about work. Devin has a way of complaining about his lifestyle with a weed-weary grin that lets you know he's really loving every minute of it. Andre on the other hand comes a little too close to sounding like the RIAA when he bitches about people downloading his records. Hate to be the one to break it to you Mr. 3000, but file-sharing had nothing to do with the weak sales of the Idlewild soundtrack. Andre gets back on my good side though when he waxes nostalgic about meeting fans who used to get busy to old Outkast albums. To resolve my conflicting emotions about Andre's verse, I downloaded an MP3 of Spottieoddiedopalicious and made love to my woman to it. Afterwards I felt much better about the song.

The other dream team comes on the operatic gem, "Lil Girl Gone" on which Devin hooks up with Lil Wayne and Bun B. Songs like this are the stuff that great rap records are made of. Weezy's passion pulls you into the tale of a young girl's tragic decent into street life. Bun B's disciplined flow contrasts nicely while Devin hangs back like the omniscient narrator, singing the hook. The beat is all tense piano loops, soaring strings and drum machines with just the right little flute accents. It probably won't make it to the clubs but it was the highlight of the album for me. Weezy is just unfuckwithable right now.



The rest of the record was, for me, disappointingly skippable. The "Boom" skits are pretty dumb and distracting. The noodling beat to "No Longer Needed Here" sounds kind of like "Space" by the Greatful Dead if you replaced Mickey Hart with an 808. "Just Because" sounds like Kenny G sat in on the session. The vocodered space-funk that made me fall in love with 2004's To Tha X-Treme is hard to come by.

The second half of Waitin' drags a bit with a few highlights like "Cutcha Up". When I first heard Devin sing the hook I thought it was a brave-yet-disturbing song about Devin struggling with his own violent pedophile urges. On the second listen I realized it was actually an ode to immature female weed plants! Ha, good one Devin.

All in all, Waitin' is a fine piece of product. It just doesn't take it that next next level like I was hoping it would. Still, if you're quick with the skip button, there's a dope record worth of hits to be found amongst the misses. I should also point out that, like Devin's redneck alter ego, I was missing the Boom for most of this album. I was moving into my new house over the weekend so I only had my little MacBook and some iPod buds. A little more low end and I probably wouldn't be as grouchy about this record as I am. That said, To Tha X-Treme still bangs non-stop no matter what you play it on. Sadly, the same can not be said for Waitin' To Inhale.