The Bat Cave

Genre: Rap

Release Date: September 18th, 2020

Song Rating Scale

1. Get Money Man (feat. B-Real) – 3.5
2. That’s Perfect (feat. Tha Chill) – 4
3. Honcho (feat. Conway the Machine) – 4
4. Bluue Wave – 3.5
5. Can’t Nobody (feat. Kokane) – 4
6. U Kno – 4
7. Ambition – 3.5
8. Lessons – 4.5
9. U Not Me – 4
10. That 83 (feat. That Chill & Diamond Rich) – 3.5
11. Courted In (feat. Dave East & Tha Chill) – 3.5
12. Things We Go Through (feat. Cherell Terri) – 4
13. Past Mistakes (feat. Talib Kweli) – 4
14. I Got U – 3.5
15. Whut U Really On – 3.5
16. On the Real Tho (feat. Yukmouth & Tha Chill) – 3.5
17. Stand Up (feat. Mitchy Slick & Tha Chill) – 3.5
18. Neighborhood Looks (feat. Havoc & Kurupt) – 4.5
19. Magic (feat. Young Noble & Tha Chill) – 4.5
20. We Got – 4

Spin Rate: 9
Average Song Rating: 3.85/5
3.5+ Percentage: 100%
Pure Skips: 0
Bangers: 11

Thoughts: No album in 2020 took me by surprise more than this gem from Compon’s MC Eiht. When I saw it in the new releases section the weekend it came out, I didn’t even give it a skim. I just don’t expect much from an old school gangsta rap artist in 2020 and it’s not like I’ve ever been much of a fan anyway. But then I saw a thread about it on a hip-hop message board I’ve been posting on since 1999 (LOL) and people I have similar taste as were saying it was nice.

Well, Lessons is insanely good. I actually had to re-think what a 3.5 and a 4 song is to me because so many tracks on this album blur the line between what I think is a good song and what I think is an absolute banger. MC Eiht isn’t an amazing rapper, lyrically or vocally, but the production and song-writing on Lessons are so good that the whole project is elevated to a pretty elite level. I enjoy the beat, hook, and vibe of every track on here. It’s not like MC Eiht is weak on the mic either. He has a very smooth delivery and while his lyrics and rhymes schemes are relatively simple, he is adept at painting a picture of the stories he is telling. It’s a pretty remarkable feat to put out an album with 20 songs and zero skips – and honestly, nothing is even close to a skip – plus I think over half the album is pure fire.

Lessons is one of two albums from 2020 (the other being Che Noir & Apollo Brown’s As God Intended) that feel like immediate hip-hop classics. This album is straight heat from top to bottom. An absolute must listen and one of the best rap albums from last year. Don’t sleep.

Verdict: 9/10 (Amazing)