By Odeisel

Life for Young Buck ain’t been no crystal stair. He’s been in recording limbo since his 2008 ouster from G-Unit, had tax issues with the IRS, culminating in an August 5^th search and seizure at his home, and has been relegated to general oblivion. And then there was light. After 50 let him out of his contract a few weeks ago the stage was set for Buck to release his long-awaited album The Rehab, initially intended as the last album of his G-Unit obligation. Gone are 50’s ear and G-Unit’s overall executive production. The result is an album of limited scope and onerous feel.

“The Streets” opens the album with Buck talking and shouting out every hood he can think of. “This Is Mine” finds Buck claiming kingship of Cashville, taking collect calls from Lil Boosie and Turk taking your chick. The subtle electric guitar undercurrent and the keyboards bring out the flavor.

“Smoke Our Life Away” has him shouting out Max B on the locked up rapper list. The song is a solid if unspectacular track chronicling the depressed state of the hood and what people do to escape their reality. The plodding, pedestrian “Keep It Moving” blends into every other trap tale you’ve ever heard. “Leave It Alone” is another low light, adding weak R&B singing to the boring production and weak storyline.

There are some good points.“The Hood Documentary” brings the level up as Buck chronicles a day in the life of a hustler with a thumping beat as his theme music. The use of other voices, to flesh out the story, gives the song a cinematic feel.“When The Rain Stops” is a nice change of pace song with a smooth bassline that breaks the monotony of dated southern production. “Not Killing Me” keeps Young Buck on the road getting money in every city and dealing with being stressed out. He’s “on his grind” and counting his blessings as “God’s best friend.”

Many of the songs begin with unnecessarily long intros that get tiring as the album plays. You just wish he would jump into the song with that energy that made him G-Unit’s most talented artist next to 50 Cent. 30-40 second long intros designed to artificially ramp up anticipation with Young Buck yelling out “It’s Young Buck, n***a”  every other song really bring down the album. On a 14 track album, two interludes and an intro and a close that aren’ t songs renders over a quarter of the album waste. When you factor in how much of the content is Young Buck ad libs, that number goes higher.

So much of an album called The Rehab concerns itself with Buck being in the streets and selling dope. Where exactly is the rehab? Perhaps if this album dropped in 2008/9 when it was intended, it wouldn’t sound so dated. The rhymes aren’t bad, but the production is retread, the subject matter is limited, and Buck’s boasts ring hollow. It’s time for Young Buck to prove if he has legs without the G-Unit backup. This album is not proof of that.

Young Buck-Hood Documentary

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out of 5

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