John definitely is not your "take myself so serious that I lose focus" type of emcee. John Ru brought innovation to a different level on his first CD. Some people couldn't get into it or dig it, because it stretched their listening ear too far. I personally dug it; it was fresh and something different. People are creatures of habit, and no matter how many variations of Coke they get; they always find their way back to Coke Classic. That seems to be what is happening on this release. John has lyrically stepped up to the J.R. I knew at freestyle battles and early demos. What I mean about Coke Classic is that the beats are more formulaic, and more representative of "pure hip hop." I really like this, and it's nice to hear John flow on some tracks that I would find in my neighborhood. Did the comments from the heads of the industry force John subconsciously to release music that will put the heads in their place, a la De La Soul? Or is this the true John, and the first album was more of a label direction order, a la Pink? Who knows, but it is a more quality release and something I will bump in my Jeep with pleasure. The fun innovative elements like sing-song choruses and funny quotes are still intact. But the raw energy of hip hop is infused all over this piece. A must purchase. Hey! I think I understand now why he named it Hindsight! Do you?
Other coverage for this album
The Rebel Base 2002Reviewed by David MartinEvery now and then, the music industry encounters one of those artists who takes pride in doing it wrong, in purposefully breaking the rules. John Reuben is one of those artists. How fortunate it is, then, that John Reuben's genre of choice is rap. I don't know about you, but I'm not a big fan of rap artists that follow "the rules". Which is not to say that there's an absolute set of rules. It…The Phantom Tollbooth 2002Reviewed by Bert GanglThe familiar saying that everything old is new again is perhaps nowhere more evident than in the world of popular music where, almost from the beginning, purveyors of genres from jazz to heavy metal have used the collective sum of their musical influences as jumping-off points for fashioning their own particular sounds. Like Are We There Yet? before it, Hindsight, the sophomore release from…Similar sounding releases
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