Westside Connection Albums (2)
What The Critics Say
A long seven years after the gangsta rap supergroup Westside Connection released Bow Down, one of the definitive West Coast gangsta rap albums of the '90s, they reunited in 2003 for a second go-round, Terrorist Threats. The state of the rap union had changed a lot since 1996, which was the height of the original gangsta era, back when 2Pac and Biggie were still alive and in their prime. So it's a little unsettling to hear the trio of veteran gangstas in Westside Connection -- Ice Cube, WC, and Mack 10 -- still trying to rally the "Gangsta Nation" circa 2003, the year of young gunners like 50 Cent and pretty-boy skirt-chasers like Chingy. Yet the old-fashioned gangsta growl of Westside Connection seems all the more poignant as a result -- as if they were ghosts of gangsta past, back to haunt listeners -- especially on songs like "So Many Rappers in Love," where these O.G.s call out their much younger, "21 Questions"-asking contemporaries. Not everything on Terrorist Threats is gruff and bitter, though. Standout songs like "Gangsta Nation" and "Lights Out" have plenty of feel-good swerve, especially when the likes of Nate Dogg and Knoc-Turn'al grace the hooks. ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Following Lethal Injection, Ice Cube's career began to sag slightly, both in terms of sales and critical respect. As a response, he formed Westside Connection with fellow West Coast gangsta rappers Mack 10 and WC -- the first hip-hop supergroup ever formed. Bow Down, the trio's debut, is everything you would expect from this pedigree, for better and for worse. Musically, the record is fantastic, with tight, slamming production that alternates between driving hardcore rhythms and elastic booty-funk. Similarly, all three rappers give brilliant performances, rhyming with fierce venom and grace. The problem is, the trio -- who have all demonstrated exceptional observational skills and social commentary in the past -- have decided to abandon their conscious for a spirited defense and celebration of gangsta rap. If anyone has represented the best gangsta has had to offer, it would be Ice Cube, Mack 10, and WC, but none of their lyrics here illustrate this; instead, they simply make half-hearted excuses for the violence and no political attacks at authority, which renders it nearly devoid of content. Nevertheless, Bow Down is filled with so much exceptional music that it ranks as one of the finest latter-day gangsta rap records. Listening to it, however, it's hard not to believe that it is an epitaph for the genre. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
