Top Notch QB Hardcore
Screwball perhaps eclipses their previous release, Y2K. Like a Gangsta, Where You At?, Live and Let Die, Torture, When the Sun Goes Down, I Spit, Loyalty, Gorillas, Too High Too Low, Streetlife, and Screwed Up are the top tracks. The only song I didn't like was Gotta Believe, an out of place R&B song. That thing that makes this album great are the beats, lyrics, MCing, and guest spots. Production is mostly done by Ayatollah and Godfather Don, but they get help from The Beatnuts, F Bee 4, Goodie Goodman, Mike Heron, Stone, and SPK. Good guest spots are put in by Matrix Bars, MOP, Black Attack, Noreaga, Kool G Rap, Tragedy, and The Beatnuts. Overall, an excellent album.
LOYALTY is a dope indie hardcore hiphop lp from QB gangstaz!
LOYALTY is not as upbeat or as catchy as Y2K... I like Y2K better and most other people do too.. but still, LOYALTY is dope.. There is NO Premier production though and there's a song with an R&B hook that is terrible!!!!!!
Production is handled mainly by Godather Don, Ayatollah, Lee Stone, and others.. Beatnuts produced "Screwed Up"... GUESTS include: Nature, Cormega, Noreaga, Kool G Rap, M.O.P., Matrix Bars, Complexions (the horrible RnB group that did "Queens" from Capone N Noreaga's Reunion lp)..
POET dominates the LP... I wish HOSTYLE was on more tracks.. Every member does have a solo track though... "STREET LIFE" by Hostyle is one of the best...
The best tracks are "Loyalty" f/Cormega, "Where You At" f/nature, "Torture" f/ MOP, "Street Life", "Gorillaz" f/Kool G Rap and Noreaga, "When The Sun Goes Down", "Live and let die" and more..
The only LAME song is "Gotta Believe" f/Complexions... there's some filler tracks like "Turn It Up" and "Too high, too low"..but the filler tracks are even dope..
There seems to be a mix of vibes here.. One side, they are grimey QUEENS BRIDGE QB thugged out dirty project emcees while they do spit out things like "Walk like a gangsta! Talk like a gangsta!". It's like they want to be gangsta-ed out at times...
Still... it's a dope album that I find myself listening too often and getting into. Although they are loud and rowdy, the songs do not have a QUICK tempo like "F.A.Y.B.A.N." or "Take It There".
"Gorillaz" f/Kool G Rap and Noreaga is incredible... Real dope.. perfect!!!
"Torture" f/MOP is amazing.. It's real rough, loud and raw.. It will get anyone amped! It's a perfect combo collabo...
"Loyalty" f/Cormega is more like a CORMEGA song f/Screwball.. Corey handles the hook and a dope verse...
I'm glad SCREWBALL is indie now.. They give a nick "FUKK YOO" to Tommy Boy..
Where I would give Y2K a 8.8 out of 10.. I would give LOYALTY an 8.4 out of 10...
both are very dope albums!!!!
~NjP~
screwball is f***in ill
i don't know what to say. i've been waiting for this album for maaad long and the 41st side disciples didn't dissapoint. i loved the y2k album and this blows that ish out the water.
One of the tightest albums this year!
I copped this album without listening to it first, and when I put it in my CD player it really caught my attention from the first till the last track. Screwball proves once again why they should be named QB's finest, because they bring the real uncut grimy street hiphop that many of the others have forgotten about. It's also a good thing to see a group continue on the same quality level as their debut, which is a considerable point these days...The production is way above average throughout the whole album and personally, I couldn't find a wack track amongst them. With bulletproof production from Ayatollah, Godfather Don and others, and even a Beatnuts track, this is a prime example of what REAL thug-music should sound like (and even with DJ. Premier being absent this time). Add a few top-notch guest appearances like the mighty Kool G. Rap, M.O.P., Noreaga, Cormega, Nature and others, and you'll end up being more than satisfied with this album. I can safely say that, if you liked their first album; you'll surely like this one! QB TO THE FULLEST!
It's adequate.
It's good to hear some authentic QB street sh--. Screwball has definitely made a name for themselves amongst the slew of notable Q-borough thug compatriates. Loyalty is collection of effective cuts (produced primarily by Ayatollah and Godfather Don) but doesn't really provide anything brand new. It's not to say that this is a bad thing. Screwball spits verbal fire as always but if you're looking for nothing more than loud QB street-chatter, you won't complain. Lyrics are traded fast and furious with M.O.P. on "Torture", the hottest track on the album thanks to Lee Stone's dynamic production. The rest of the material is standard, straight ahead beats and rhymes. The title track doesn't disappoint because Godfather Don pieces together something soulful for your ear. Meanwhile, Cormega (or is it Nature? Or is there a difference?) seems to be dwelling a whole lot on the past (i.e. The Firm debaucle). Anyway, Loyalty is grimy, gritty and in your grill-piece. It's very adequate at it.
For the past 10 years, Queensbridge has proven itself the unofficial home of criminal-minded hip-hop. Some of it's been good, some bad, but the QB sound is consistently grimy. And Screwball, a crew that's been around for considerably more than a hot minute, represent their 'hood in fine style. Having bounced from Tommy Boy Records, the group, which includes KL, Hostyle, Poet, and Kyron, decided to release their sophomore album on a smaller label, and the move seems to have liberated them. Loyalty is 100-percent unadulterated, down-and-dirty street music. It features live beats, tight rhymes, and guest stars Kool G. Rap, M.O.P, and Cormega, each adding depth to the final product. More importantly, it has what so many so-called street albums have being missing for a while--a genuine love for the music. As Cormega says on the title track, "Loyalty's worth more than wealth." The purity of Screwball's Loyalty is a welcome confirmation. --Rebecca Levine
