Second and final EP released by Eric Wright for Ruthless Records. Initially intended as an LP, it's a strong response to Dr. Dre's "The Chronic", released the year before. Eazy-E here is close to being at his best, he has one of his best flows, energetic, albeit still going out of time and with a style not far from amateurism, he has one of the best productions, albeit he's making fun of Dr. Dre by imitating the g-funk sound, and has one of his best lyrical content. To be a gangsta record: lyrically, he's aggressive to the core and to the ridiculous, he's ultra-violent, ultra-misogynist, without neglecting the typical topics of the genre such as drugs, sex, shootings and murders.
This Eazy-E.P. consists of eight tracks for a total of just under 40 minutes of listening. Rhythms are crafted by Cold 187um (Above the Law), Yella, Dr. Jam, Madness 4 Real and Rhythm D, providing a simple, funky soundscape, lean, slow drums with lots of g-funk synths scattered throughout the track. The rapper's lyrics do the rest, so the three songs of the central part come out, before the remix of the classic "Boyz n tha Hood". The remaining choices are the initial cheerful intro and two posse: "Any Last Werdz" is an Above the Law cut, which features Kokane and his cousin Cold 187um, on a simple g-funk rhythm produced by the latter, with synths tense on the hook and shootings, and a good smooth delivery of the trio, while "Down 2 the Last Roach" is the final cut, featuring BG Knocc Out, Ash Trey (Kokane), Mr Roach Clip (Eazy-E) and Shaki (Dirty Red), on a meager beat with other synths.
It's the biggest commercial hit for the Compton rapper, certified double platinum by the RIAA in 1994, and one of his best works, behind his classic LP of five years ago, and is an essential record for West Coast gangsta fans: a good part of these forty minutes, are lyrical shootings aimed at Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and Death Row, and the peak of this triple fire is represented by the first cut that Eazy decides to place after the intro, "Real Muthaphuckkin G's". It's one of the best West Coast singles and one of the best dissing ever, blessed with excellent trio performance and production (by Eazy himself and Rhythm D) and raw lyrics, it overshadows other cuts, which aren't at this level.
Wright responds to Dre's dissing "Fuck Wit Dre Day" and his music video by reintroducing the character of Sleazy-E. Intro with the single "Compton" line looped, skinny slow syncopated and tight drum machine, then synth g-funk dope and whispered title line, Eazy-E starts with his first dissing verse against his rivals, which are disassembled piece after piece. Hook, with samples from The DOC's "It's Funky Enough" and two samples from "Eazy-Duz-It", follows the very cold and calculated verse of Gangsta Dresta, which kills the cut with a crisp and smooth delivery, B.G. Knocc Out attacks hook-free and delivery lethally, crisp, smooth again. It closes a fourth and final verse, delivered with aggressive clarity, detachment, calm and style, by a devastating Eazy-E. The final, infinite hook, certifies this classic banger.
Rating: 8/10.
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