Hype is one thing, but deep down we all knew that the long-awaited Wu-Tang Clan album was never going to be classic. Now that A Better Tomorrow is finally here, its even more of a disappointment than we feared.
It’s not terrible, and still better than 8 Diagrams, but hardly vintage Wu. We didn’t expect them to make the same kind of album they did 20 years ago; hip-hop has moved on since then, and with the average age of a clansman now around 45, so have they. We did expect it to be a better tomorrow than this though, especially having had to wait so long, and after so much in-fighting to get it done.
The biggest problem is a lack of enthusiasm, with none of the group member’s hearts seemingly in it. Even verses from the four best rappers in the group – Ghostface Killer, Raekwon, GZA and Inspectah Deck – sound phoned in, with lyrics that do nothing more than go through the motions.
It would be naive to think that all of the members were in the same room at the same time when they recorded, but its this lack of coherence, both emotionally and geographically, that stops A Better Tomorrow from sounding like a genuine group album. The only rapper that still sounds fresh and energized is Method Man, but its hard for one man to keep the excitement levels up when everyone else around him is flat.
Ironically, considering how passionate he seemed to be about making the album happen, the best beats are those not produced by RZA, with standouts including 40th Street Black/We Will Fight and Keep Watch (both produced by Mathematics), and the Adrian Younge produced Crushed Egos. RZA does put in some good beat work, especially on Hold the Heater, but there’s a sense of laziness and self-indulgence in sampling/riffing on Dusty Springfield’s Son of a Preacher Man on Preacher’s Daughter.
Not the return to glory we’d hoped for then, but not quite a complete trainwreck. There’s some life left in the Wu, and the likes of Ghostface will no doubt keep on making good music forever, but its difficult to predict just how much further these legends of the game can make it as a team.
A Better Tomorrow is out December 2 on Warner Bros.