Joe Budden’s name has been popping across the internet this year, regardless if you believe he did it to himself or just got unreasonably meme’d out of social media savagery. So it was only a matter of time before he dropped a full-on retaliation project where he is sneakily flipping everyone the bird on the cover art. Rage & The Machine is quite literally the theme music to Budden’s crusade against a generation that knows him more for chasing kids down the street with fistuls of rocks than for microphone fiending. But instead of Joe spitting raps like a hurt, emotional train wreck he actually fires back at the naysayers by making a tight project that covers a lot of different bases – not just the “Drake is my nemesis” angle.
His last go at an album, 2015’s All Love Lost, was moody, narrowly focused and the Hip Hop equivalent of a somber Hallmark card – a side of Joe that became the internet’s go-to punchline. Rage & The Machine is still a highly emotional affair but just without the mopiness. For the first time in a while, Joe seems moderately happy, or at least level-headed. “I Wanna Know” sounds like Joe took a deep breath, realized that there is more to life than beefing with rappers half his age and spit his verses with a giant smile on his face. Talking to his son, Budden states “So right now I stand in a place I never stood before/Finally filled the void in my life” and “Now it’s better than we pictured it’d be” which is oddly optimistic for Jump Off Joe Bad Mood.
There are still aggressive tracks on this album like “Three” and “Uncle Joe” that both carry a similar cadence to his slew of Drake diss tracks but his crosshairs aren’t pointed at anyone in particular; just those who claim he’s too old to be a rap force. His “back in the day” bars do however, ricochet towards newcomers as Joe draws a comparison between then and now: “Y’all hear Post Malone and think of White Iverson/I think of Karl and how he could’ve got the title won.” Joell Ortiz helps him really put the nail in all the millennial trolls’ coffins with the brilliant back and forth “Serious.” The bar brigade has both Slaughterhouse members racing back and forth between lines about seriously bodying everyone and lines like “I’m on my Luke Skywalker, get your Jedi spun/I’m on my DMC, I hear them things rev, y’all run” is their proof. Joe doesn’t pitch a perfect game here though. “Wrong One,” however, sounds like a synthesized temper tantrum that was caught on wax. Angry Joe can be a lyrical messiah but sometimes the aggressive delivery gets real Cookie Monster-like. Luckily, the record is the only absolute skip on the album but an absolute skip nonetheless.
As Joe refers to himself as the “rage” portion of this album, AraabMUZIK plays the role of “the machine.” All 11 tracks are exclusively produced by the longtime go-to beatsmith for East Coast raw spitters and he confidently makes each one unique. Rappers always run the risk of sounding boring using the “one rapper/one producer” formula but Joe and Araab switch up the tempo, content and feeling almost every song. Araab, who is a drum machine genius, pulls back on the heavy MPC tip and lets some samples do the work. See a record like “I Gotta Ask,” which employs beautifully interjected bits of Jay-Z’s “Hard Knock Life” beat and Joe even grabs a couple lines from Hov and flips them The Garden State way: “Look, standing in the cypher rocking/To driving some of the hottest cars New Jersey’s ever seen/To dropping some of the dopest mixtapes that you ever heard.”
When you aren’t lusting after the model girlfriends in his life or trying to turn him into a meme, it’s clear as day that Joey can still rap his ass off. And with those time-tested skills, he delivers a robust LP that should make all rap fans stop and appreciate the bars for what they’re worth.
0/5
Nigga you can’t be serious
You how those hoes be. I mean trolls be.
Fire, one of the hardest albums out
Nice album. Oh, and that sample on “Forget”! Shit was top-notch.
Forget is my favorite song on the album, wish it was longer.
YESSS!!!! MINE TOO! AMAZING RECORX
Huge Budden fan here but I really wasn’t feeling this record.
Mood Muzik 4 and All Love Lost were better
His best album, still at the top of his game
Overall, it’s a good album. It’s not his best though.
I feel like you broke a promise to me
Amazing project congratulation joe you just went back to back.
Straight listen…i disagree on Wrong One…that track is crazy! Went right to the gym playlist
Same here! Wrong one came on while I was in the gym and I went crazy. I Play it back to back to back when I felt like giving up. Gym playlist fa sho
Crazy flows and lyrics mixed with good production, i’ve heard better beats from Araabmuzik but he still gets the job done here, the album definitely lives up to its title but i hope next time we get some emotional Joe again.
He delivered a good lp. All the gossip that surrounds dude is for the birds.
This was a pivotal album for Joe and he delivered in a big way. The man finally got some production behind him and this is what can happen. He should follow this joint up with “Mood Muzik: The Album”.
We’re probably getting rage pt 2 before anything else
Great month for rap music first Budden with a dope album and then meek dropped some heat with dc4.
Album is fire beats are hard af
Joey
One of Joe’s all around consistent projects from top to bottom. Gets a rating of 4.5 Very few missteps on this album. Joe stuck to the albums theme. That DC4 that came out is straight garbage!
Flame
incredible body of work
The album is fire and I completely disagree about Wrong One. That might be my favorite song on the album
Wrong one was one of my favorites, the only song I skip is “flex”, but I can still respect it for what it is, a club track
bangging album
boom
incredible body of work best in a long time
Solid work, can’t wait till RATM 2 with the Just Blaze Production, it will hard to top this, but if anyone can, it will be him
I’ve been a Joe fan since his debut album. If you look back…..3 out of his last 4 projects have been really solid (A loose quarter, Some Love Lost, and All Love Lost). But this is his best body of work since MM4 and his best album since his debut. Joe has the rare talent of being a top lyricist who can make amazing songs….however, with Araaab helming the entire project and him having his son in his life, being in a great relationship and complete ownership of his career, it put him in the perfect place to make some of his best work yet!!
Looks like I have to get this album. I love real lyrics and crazy flows.
you needed a dx review to get joeys new album
move the fuck on
Like i do with every album, i checked out the previews on spotify. sounded pretty good, but is it worth the full listen. keep in mind i have many 2pac and biggie albums i need 2 listen 2. havent even heard much of ready to die yet lol
Absolute fire.
I can say this is better than STATIK KXNG.
I’m am a budden fan HEAVY….. constantly telling people to F with his music. But Rage isn’t typical of what we expect of Joey… I don’t skip and tracks and I really feel like this is start for even more amazing things to come for Mr. Joe Budden’s
?????
This is a master piece can’t believe people are still sleeping on Joey
I’ve always given Joe’s albums a listen when they drop not because I’m a huge fan but I always respected the talent he posses. This, to me, is by far the best complete project he’s dropped. I’m happy for him and just wish more people would give it a listen and the chance it deserves. This should be at the top of the sales chart for sure and it’s sad it would even be in sight of the top spot.
One of the dopest albums I’ve heard in a while!!!
Pure talent!!! Real hip hop!!!
Budden’s been doing work for years. I’m glad he found a producer to match his talent. Budden is in my top MC’s of all time list for sure, and this album just cements it.
REAL!!
The production was on point to go with joe’s great lyrical ability, makes for a great project
I fuking hate HipHopDX put stupid ass titles on their reviews. Just put the damn artist and the album!!
DC4 over this all day
Boring
Great album, now him, Crooked, Royce, and Joell have all done solo albums and albums that were solo with a single producer, all in the past 2 years. Thinking it’s time to release Glass House. I mean, one of the SH members has a buzz from the Drake beef, when would be a better time for Interscope to at least try to capitalize on that?
Nope
Great album. Beats are hard…Joe’s talking his shit…record is concise and balanced.
drake fans!
worst member of slaughterhouse when it comes to rapping. he should be doing poetry in some snazzy jazz bar.
I’m late to the party, just got the album last week. This joint go hard.