A 30-year tenure in any profession molds an undoubted master of a craft. Now on his eleventh studio album The Falling Season, Masta Ace, the punchline standard bearer, dramatizes a prequel of the time period when he began his path to the adopted persona that made him a Hip Hop legend. Ace shelves his braggadocio lyrics to supplant his social commentary and self-reflection a lá his 1990 debut Take a Look Around. Given the lengthy 24-track effort on Falling Season, much of the album’s production has an uneven sequence of beats that deters potential head-nodding, and the vocal deliveries sounds lethargic. Plus, the skits minimally resonate and could pass for a male version of Siri reciting scenes for the album’s cinematic efforts.
The record sets off with an introduction skit “Summer’s End” about how his fate was sealed when he and his mother reluctantly had to remain in the concrete jungle war zone within the Brownsville section of Brooklyn. He displays his innocence as Duval Clear experiencing his struggling single mother on the mend with little time and financial wiggle room to find him a safe high school to enroll him for the upcoming academic year. On the album’s first song “3000 Avenue X” featuring Young Old Droog, both MCs bring their bars to the table about growing up as good kids in Brooklyn’s desolate, crime-riddled streets where only the strong survive on their way home.
The lead single and album’s fourth track is “Me & AG” which features D.I.T.C. veteran A.G. and Ace giving stellar deliveries over a somber boom-bap beat, reciting as a chorus that pays homage to Ace’s prescient lyric “Once you hear the capital A/rap it’ll stay with you for awhile, it won’t go away” from the 1988 Juice Crew classic “The Symphony.” The details of his teenage psyche is wrought by relics of early 80s NYC including the inner-city busing of minority youth to suburban high schools throughout Brooklyn (“Welcome To The Bay” skit and “Mr. Bus Driver”), the formative years of the city’s bustling Hip Hop culture with the honorable yet somewhat cheesy old school sound (“Total Recall” featuring rap radio pioneers World Famous Supreme Team), as well as social milieu he explains going through his freshman year at Sheepshead Bay High School on the formidable “Young Black Intelligent” with a hefty spoken word from Chuck D, a calmly crooned hook from Pav Bundy, accompanied by the horn-tinged vibes from the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble.
Ace rhymes in a tone that empathizes his boyhood innocence to experience as the new kid on campus who holds this social acceptance as a precedent. Joining his high school football team, a pubescent shy kid crushing on a pretty classmate (“Juanita Estefan”) and a MILF (“Mothers Regret” featuring Queen Herawin), and his discovery of battle-rap ability (“High School Shit” featuring Torae), all play into his autobiography mission for the record. But he plays into his middle-age sounding like an elderly man packing a rusty old gun with his lyric “In my right coat pocket got a starter pistol/And I’ma pull it on anybody who’s got an issue” over the cheesy instrumental for “Bang Bang” with Cormega and Beej Gordy Brooks, which fails its attempt at a requisite posse cut for its pedestrian with its resounding multi-layered keyboards, making it too busy to digest the hardcore lyrics.
Having 24 songs on an album today would be considered as a double album, and it seems like an overkill momentarily on cut like “Mathematics,” “Story of Me” and the pointless “Outtakes” from the mistakes of the skits recorded, plus the majority basks in the melancholy. Yet this is still worth the time spent to hear Ace’s life story that he is luckily living to tell.
Bangers galore. Old school boom bap that has Masta Ace sounding his best. Even with multiple sclerosis he’s still heavy lyrically. Beats are booming on this album. I can think back on the mid-90’s when he released his first album with so much bass.
Worst review ive ever read. Too many tracks and pointless outakes?? People these days are too thick to listen to concept albums, if its not a quick catchy hit then they turn it off. Incredible album that actually has a meaning and dope lyrics, defo whats needed in a genre thats turned into a money making pop culture.
Exactly. This is exactly what we should expect from Ace and he delivers.
Great album, great beats, great lyrics.
i havent even heard it but im listening to disposable arts and typed in masta ace on google this the first thing that came up im sure its a much better album then this review says
You have never heard of Masta Ace??! You must be a child. And you can’t comment until you’ve heard the album. And stop acting like a baby by complaining about the reviewer.
ofcourse i have heard of masta ace as i was listening to disposable arts when i googled his name if i hadn’t heard him before why would i google him in fact if you read my comment i said he was my favorite rapper…….. and why can’t i disagree with how this was reviewed and why cant i comment before i heard the album are you the comment police….
Kyries a chichimon name
all your reviews are 3s with 3.7 being your highest for asher roth an ep with four five tracks, you must not have the attention span for a 24 track masterpiece. played five tracks and its a definate 4.7 best thing ive heard all year this is my favorite rapper tho. yall beyonce stans tho
are 3s with 3.7 being your highest for asher roth an ep = That’s obviously not true but make sure you cop The Falling Season. That’s the biggest co-sign you can give an album you personally deem as”a masterpiece.”
I already have purchased it on i tunes will also be purchasing the vinyl if i can find it. I wasn’t saying that it was highest rating has ever given that would be a ridiculous statement i was only referencing Dana Scotts archive of reviews and it wasn’t true your right Dana Scott gave evidence a 3.8 still in the 3’s so my statement is partially true. the track high school is hilarious by the way great punchlines
Wow , murderdog,The source(95-00) vibe (94-04) $mfh
fuck does Dana Scott know bout hip hop? fuck does DX bitch ass writers know bout Masta Ace? go bump your Thugger Thugger turn up trash and stay away from real music.
And what do you know about anything in hip-hop. Your comments are terrible and childish. You need a hug. Just go away. Why do you come to this site with your name? Stupid.
Actually, I know a lot about Ace since he replaced Shan at the 11th hour for “Symphony,” “Me and The Biz,” his influence on 90s lyricism, and so on. He probably was influential on your favorite purist emcee. This has nothing to do with “Thugger.” Like I said to end the review, it’s still worth the listen.
bra every one of your reviews are 3s you shouldnt be allowed to review anymore
If it’s childish the don’t respond you fuckin butthurt dickrider.
Everybody in this thread needs to simmer down..I been a Masta Ace fans since the days of Cold Chillin and I’m here to tell you that this is album is cool but Slaughterhouse it ain’t it. I still copped off the strength though. Glad to see a real legend puttin’ in work.
Slaugherhouse was cool but Sittin On Chrome, Disposible Arts and Falling Season are all better in my opinion.
4.6 out of 5 . hip hop dx i am disapointed in your reviewers. you obviously do not know what REAL hip hop is.
p.s. feel free to email is want me to tell you about real hip hop LOL .
Exacty-must not have the words swag and work in it enough, or is simply too artistic.
I already have purchased it on i tunes will also be purchasing the vinyl if i can find it. I wasn’t saying that it was highest rating has ever given that would be a ridiculous statement i was only referencing Dana Scotts archive of reviews and it wasn’t true your right Dana Scott gave evidence a 3.8 still in the 3’s so my statement is partially true.
Really 3.4…. By far is not revolutionary, as Ace taps on what he knows best, a concept album. It’s not a new sound or anything out of this world but by far from the production, delivery, lyrics this album is miles away from what we are used to today. It plays cohesively and each tracks builds the one to come, but it does lack on the ‘it factor’. This might be the last good concept album we get as the future does not seem bright and many have tries and the list of epic fails is long. Lets appreciate the art and hard work that went into this album,
Ace is a legend without a doubt. This album though is by far his worst project or at least as bad as his collabo with Doom. The production on the whole project is just so bad and his decision to use all these beats is not understandable for me. Maybe he got paid by the producer? I don’t know. Very disappointing but Disposible Arts and A Long Hot Summer will live forever.
Youre crazy
I don’t think the beats are that bad, but the reason why he didn’t have other producer could be the budget…
too dope
this is a masterpiece
Poop
Masta ace is legend and hes still stupid nice on the mic but this KIC beats guy producing the album is really not very good. I understand the music business has made sample heavy rap difficult legally eating publishing points and so on but ace is such an unbelievably warm rapper and the beats are cold and lifeless. The production really let him down here because ace was in his typical visualizing story rap mode and the music wasnt keeping up. Its actually a shame. I love ace nd all his solos. This is not a great album. Its a great effort by ace. Kic beats needs more soul. I will continue playing this record in hopes it grows on me. Ace is still so nice. Hope he gives us at least 1 more lp with more flavorful production that matches his talent.
3 out of 5
Great concept album. If you don’t get it then you just don’t get it. Maybe you’re just a Lil Young.
Not his best but still dope. 4.5.
Ace is classic…Album is dope as fuck but obviously not his best
I’m surprised to see how many people don’t absolutely love this album. The sequencing reminds me so much of A Long Hot Summer (which is one of my favorite albums of all time) so maybe I’m listening with a biased ear. Threw it on last night at about 9pm, and didn’t turn it off until midnight. I gave it a full two spins and didn’t even realize it.
I love the production, Ace is always spitting. The story is so tight and cohesive. And the little easter egg tie in to ALHS gave me nostalgia chills.
Great album. I can’t say Classic until about 10 years from now, but man, this album is great. Has to be one of the most consistent artists ever. Damn near three decades since The Symphony, and he’s still doing it.
A lot of soul on this album. You can tell he put his heart into this. I don’t like some of the beats, especially bang bang such as Dana Scott mentioned as theres too much stuff going on. But most of the production is soulful and any mediocrity is completely counter-balanced by Ace’s lyricism. I can easily paint pictures in my head of what ace is talking about on tracks like Mr Bus Driver and Labrynith. I like the addition of live instrumentation on Young Black Intelligent and the vocal features, it gives it a nice layered sound. Overall, this is a BANGER and i’m glad i bought this.
A Long Hot Summer was a better album, but this album was not far off! hip hop dx has under rated his new album!!
A Long Hot Summer was a better album, but this album was not far off! hip hop dx has under rated his new album!!
Really bad review because this album is dope
5 Mic’s Dope Album Real Hip Hop , If you love Hip Hop Cop This Album!
Dope and fun album. Makes Hip Hop exciting again
I literally ‘joined the hip hop dx community’ just to say Masta Ace looks exactly like Lil Reese from Chicago
HJip Hop at its best Masta Ace delivers
Your review is absolutely inaccurate.
Man I miss this type of hip hop.
4.75/5
4.5/5
I love this album, along with Snoop, Cube, Slick Rick and Mobb Deep on the Infamous, Masta Ace always tells a great story, and transports you to the place and time he is talking a out, the features are on point and not too many of them, and pretty much restricted to his extended Family anyway, production is amazing.
In a time where albums struggle to be appreciated as albums because peoples attention spans are so small, this album goes against the grain, and has been on repeat for the last few weeks, something I haven’t done since the early 2000s for that I will give it 4.5