Most of the members of rap's Roman Empire,
the Wu-Tang Clan, experienced sophomore slumps with their second solo releases, whether artistically or commercially (usually both). The second offerings from
Method Man,
Ol' Dirty Bastard,
GZA, and
Raekwon featured some of the old
Wu magic, but not enough to warrant a claim to their once total mastery of the rap game. Just as the
Wu empire appeared to be crumbling, along came the second installment from
the Clan's spitfire element,
Ghostface Killah (aka
Tony Starks, aka
Ironman). Every bit as good as his first release,
Supreme Clientele proves
Ghost's worthiness of the
Ironman moniker by deftly overcoming trendiness to produce an authentic sound in hip-hop's age of bland parity. Some of
the Wu's slump could be contributed to
Wu-Abbott's (aka
RZA) relative sabbatical. This album has
RZA's stamp all over it, but the guru himself only provides three tracks. On this effort, the Wu-Pupil producers at times seem to outdo their teacher.
RZA's best composition is the piano-driven, double-entendre-laced childhood retrospective "Child's Play." But of the many standout cuts, it's the slew of disciple producers paying homage to the
Wu legacy that truly makes this album fresh-sounding: "Apollo Kids" (Hassan), "Malcolm" (Choo the Specialist), "Saturday Nite" (Carlos "Six July" Broady), "One" (JuJu of
the Beatnuts), "Cherchez la Ghost" (
Carlos Bess), "Wu Banga 101" (Allah Mathematics). While the album is complete and characteristically
Wu-sounding, each track is distinctive lyrically, thematically, and sonically.
Ghostface's
Supreme Clientele is a step toward
the Wu-Tang Clan's ascent from the ashes of their fallen kingdom. The once slumbering
Wu-Tang strikes again. ~ M.F. DiBella