She has evolved into what exactly?
I'll give Eve props for being a little bit classy and for making a song of substance like Love Is Blind but that's where it stops. Im sorry but homegirl has been giving you the same album each year. She was always pop and that song with Gwen Stefani solidifies that point. Anytime your singles are the best songs on your album its not a good sign. Satisfaction was cool and Alicia Keys made Gangsta Lovin appealing. Eve's rhymes on that track was hohum. What is okay because Eve put some effort into her rhymes and Double R What is saved by Jadakiss and Styles P. There are plenty of songs that make this album avoidable. Hey Ya'll is a weak collabo with Snoop and Nate Dogg. Figure You Out is bland like wheat bread. Irresistable Chick and Neckbones are corny to a hilarious degree. Party In The Rain sounds like the premature baby of Who's That Girl. The hatin skit is the dumbest skit I've ever heard. It consists of some ignorant punk dissin a chick because she does not feel Eve(and she's considered a hater because she doesnt like Eve's music? How repugnant and ignorant!) on Ryde Away, Eve tries to get deep but since she is about a deep as a puddle of pee, the song fails to make sense. As I Grow is absolutely terrible and the kids made the song even more dispicable with their offbeat singing. Eve-O-lution closes off the album. Its a boring joint but who cares. the album's over and so is this review. Bottom Line: Eve's Eve-olution is her worst album and definetly is one of the worst albums of 2002. Im glad she is pursuing other endeavors because I dont think the world can handle any more of her poppy albums. .
3.5 stars
Many jump to call this album a sell out, but I disagree. Eve goes for a little more mainstream, pop/R&B hip hop style here. Sure, it is a little different of a sound, but it fits her nicely and she sounds comfortable. The main problem with this album is the production. Several of the tracks have very lame, poppish production from newcomers that just doesn't cut it. Eve's skill is still here, maybe not as present as on Scorpion. This is a pretty good album. It's a nice listen. Not as good as her sophomore album, but still better than her debut.
Eve is one smart and stylish urban female.
Eve just simply commands respect on this album. When this album first came out it was constantly on rotation on my CD player. Tracks like "Let This Go," "Satisfaction" and "Neck Bones" let you know she is not to be messed with. Attention all other female rappers: Don't pick up the pen or the microphone unless you are 100% sure you can spit comparable to Eve. The "Ruff Ryder's' First Lady" has always displayed a certain sense of class and grace not found in work by certain other female rappers.
Eve had broadening her talent in music and she hasn't been restricting herself to the same old Hip-Hop beats and hi hats. "Eve-olution" clearly proves that. She rhymes on beats different from the usual rap beats and she does it well. Her collaborations with Swizzbeatz, Dr. Dre, The Lox, Truth Hurts, Alicia Keys, and others help this album come on top.
The first collaboration with Dr. Dre on the album is 'What' and the beat sounds like one taken off the chronic and is a typical Dr. Dre beat good all the same and it matches perfectly with Eve's rhyming skill. "Party in the rain" produced by Swizz beatz is something new completely. It will probably take a few listens in order for you to get used to it. It's good though because it portrays Swizz beatz broadening imagination via music creation and also shows Eve to have an ability to rhyme on even the weirdest beats. "Gangsta Loving" no doubt is one of the best but probably the best tune on this album is "Double R What" where Eve raps alongside Fellow Ruff Ryder's Jadakiss and Styles, but my personal favorite would be "Figure You Out" because of the smooth rhythms she throws with Teflon is really nice.
Eve can seriously hold it down on her own if she choose to. The issues she speaks of varied topics---love, jealousy, and hope, but the album is not preachy and does not take itself too seriously. From the intro to the end the songs from this album are strong and ear catching. It's perfect for a partying, starting out your weekend or evening off right.
This "Pit bull in a skirt" shows she's one hell of a force to be reckoned with on "Eve-olution. " It's good to see that Eve knows how to stay true to her street roots and has taken her mainstream success in stride. Certainly worth having.
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Irresistable Chick
Here are my opinions:
1)Intro - Not much to say about this one
2)What - Pretty Good 8/10
3)Gangsta Lovin' feat. Overall, this CD is pretty good. Alicia Keys - Pretty Good 9/10
4)Irresistable Chick - BANGIN' BEAT 10/10
5)Party In the Rain feat. Mashonda - ANOTHER BANGIN' BEAT 10/10
6)Argument - Another skit
7)Let This Go - Typical "Can't stand this man no more song" 6/10
8)Hey Y'all feat. Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg - Pretty Good 8/10
9)Figure You Out - Nice beat, nice lyrics 10/10
10)Stop Hatin' - Another skit. Funny though.
11)Satisfaction - VERY GOOD BEAT, nice lyrics 10/10
12)Neckbones - Wierd beat, but tolerable 8/10
13)Double R What feat. Jadakiss, Styles - Didn't like it at first, but grew on me 7/10
14)Ryde Away - Another wierd beat, but better than Neckbones 10/10
15)As I Grow - It's Alright 7/10
16)Evo-Olution - Pretty Good 8/10 .
You can't sneak a filler track by me!
Hip Hop like all genres of music is the expression of emotion. Excuse me if I sound contrived, but I love Hip Hop. Hip Hop is expression of emotion told in a rhythmic form of spoken word over an instrumental with a beat. With this in mind, I have come to the conclusion than Eve is not a Hip Hop artist. Eve stopped being a Hip Hop artist after she released "Love is blind" the street-tale of domestic violence. Do not get me wrong; if she chooses to put together slapdash collection of songs with a minute smattering of good ones and call it an album, then that's her prerogative. Damnit! That IS her prerogative.
Eve hails from Philadelphia, the home of the critically acclaimed and immensely talented Jill Scott and The Roots. Unfortunately for her, I don't think that she got a sip of the same water. Instead of documenting life and discussing social issues that are important to her (a la MC Lyte) or making feminist rhymes (a la Queen Latifah,) she settled for infantile shaggy-dog tales of her superficial life with stories that lack consequence.
Despite suffering from delusions of grandeur, (she has got skills on the microphone but lacks lyrical brevity therefore is no Hip Hop heavyweight) she wastes away overproduced tracks courtesy of Dr. Dre, Swizz Beatz and 7 Aurelius, with tired one-dimensional lyrics that are taxing to listen to.
The standard of the music is very low with a few desperately needed peaks. As you may have heard played to death on the radio, "Gangsta lovin'" an Irv Gotti production and "Satisfaction" straight out of Dre's catalogue of hits are the few songs that do not require usage of the skip button.
Truth Hurts makes an appearance on "What!" when Eve states that "there ain't a b*tch alive that can take mine. " My favourite of low-expectation having "love" songs has got to be "Figure you out," where yours truly meets a guy at the bus stop with an ex-con who has a daughter. I must take this time to identify her overuse of the word "daddy" when referring to men. Why? Does she lack in self-esteem to a point where to she needs a man to play her "daddy" or is she asking for a pimp? This subordinate women tripe infuriates me. She employs the help of children on "As I grow" which is a nauseating "I Can (Nas)" wannabe.
I pause for another question. How on earth can you have an 18-track album with only three good tracks? Simple elementary numerical skills illustrate the gross imbalance. The production on this album is thick. By creating booming beats and noisy disorganised instrumentals the listener is distracted from her. You may find yourself dancing blindly to her song about how 'ghetto' she still is, what she can buy and who she can have sex with, but Eve doesn't differ herself from anyone. She doesn't demand respect in any way.
In short, this album proves to be a waste of time and it's a shame that she couldn't go beyond the expected, the tacky and the generic to make a real record. Oh well, must go and listen to some real music.
You can see a complete list of all Eve discography, or go back to the Eve tabs
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