Scarface is pushing 40, and Emeritus is supposed to be his final record (we'll see), and if that does turn out to be the case, he should be thrilled that he finished with a record this good. Raw and dark (near existential) as usual but also breezy and almost valedictory. The production is a lot less stark and heavy (not that there's anything wrong with that) than I've heard from his last few. I've been revisiting the Geto Boys with some regularity these days (and getting into to a lot of other H-town rap too) but it's just unreal how certain rappers are capable of putting out solid shit for such an incredibly long time (Ghostface comes to mind). "Can't Get Right" has a soulful hook, organ punches, hyped up break and a nice melody in the chorus from Bilal. In different hands (ahem...uh, Common, your electropop album can't hide your lameness) this song would be a tearjerkoffing bigup yourself jizz parade. Instead it's got bite, realism, and honest hardwon optimism. "High Powered" makes me nervous, something about that hollering in the back of the mix, and who out there thinks Scarface is boasting when he says "I copped a Chrome 45 under pressure/And then address ya, now ya froze on tha stretcher"? Who?

Can't Get Right Feat. Bilal
High Powered Feat. Papa Rue