77. Eminem-The Marshall Mathers LP (2000)
Favorite Song: “Stan”
I’ve always had mixed opinions on Eminem. What he offers in high quality music he seems to ruin with an obviously high level of misogyny and homophobia. Yet, even though I find some of his music uncomfortable to listen to, I still hold respect for him as an artist.
I’ve always found Eminem’s work as a portal into the mind of an incredibly troubled man. It amazes me just how much hatred one person can hold and express in their music. The Marshall Mathers shows some restraint compared to his first album, yet it still manages to be incredibly dark. And, to be honest, I honestly think Eminem has made some of the scariest work I’ve heard. After hearing some of his songs, I’m honestly surprised he didn’t kill himself back in the late 90s or early 2000s.
After a standard rap album skit opening, the album opens with an apparent satire of his own alleged misogyny. Eminem goes on a tirade about how much he hates women before ending the song stating that he’s just screwing around. This leads into “Stan,” a song that seems to directly attack these accusations. In “Stan,” an obsessed fan goes increasingly insane as Eminem doesn’t respond to him, eventually ending up killing himself and his pregnant girlfriend over his obsession. Of course, it turns out that Eminem didn’t even get them until after it had all happened. In “Stan,” Eminem attacks how people perceive him, writing about how most of his stuff is actually him joking and people just don’t understand him. “Stan” is a powerful and disturbing song, helped out immensely by one of the most memorable samplings in rap.
“Who Knew” continues his attack against his detractors, pointing out the logical flaws in their singling out of him. “The Way I Am” has him attacking those who stress him out, while “The Real Slim Shady” attacks the people who try to act like him, the people who miss what he actually stands for and represents. One of the more underappreciated tracks on the album is “Remember Me,” which features a really stressful beat.
Unfortunately, this is another front-leaning album, this one largely caused by a change in producers halfway through. The songs become less interesting, with the highlight being “Kim,” an incredibly disturbing story about Eminem wanting to kill his ex-wife.
The Marshall Mathers LP is a great, honest look at how fame can affect someone. The amount of stress Eminem was going through at the time is evident in almost every track, and it creates an experience like no other. Where most major, depressed artists seem to concentrate their energy into sadness, Eminem uses it to lash out in anger. While there were plenty of angry white men in the music industry in the early 2000s, Eminem was the one who stood out as real, and The Marshall Mathers LP was him at his angriest.
--
Black Turtle, you're my hero.