7l amp Esoteric - Dangerous Connection (14 tracks) +Album Reviews

Easily a 5-star album... one of the best of 2002 no question

T. Walsh | New Jeru | 10/19/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"'The Soul Purpose' was an exceptionally good release from 7L & Eso that was really unfairly hated upon. It was a 20 track CD filled with a lot of good songs ("Speaking Real Words" "Jealous Over Nothing", accompanied by some average tracks ("You Know The Concept" "Mic Mastery"), and a few that didn't come all that well ("Guestlist")... It probably was hated upon because of Eso's previous cyborg-android scientific type of material switched over to a cocky arrogant battler with simpler rhyming schemes.Where ever there were mistakes on 'The Soul Purpose', 'Dangerous Connection' not only corrects them, but PERFECTS everything on the album! Every single track is banging on this album!! 7L's mediocre production has improved exponentially and Esoteric's flow just compliments the beats even more. Plus if you felt that there was too much battle type of material on the last album, 'Dangerous Connection' comes with a bunch of good conceptual songs..."Terrorist's Cell" - first off ANYTHING produced by Stoupe (jedi mind tricks) will have an off the wall type of beat. Esoteric's lyrics explain the mind of a 9/11 terrorist going through with his crusade... but after finally seeing his wrongdoing it's too late... This is not only a controversial song, but it is executed INCREDIBLY well (the re-play button will be on this for a few times)..."Word Association" - another creative track where Esoteric raps about being a psychotic patient rapping 'word association' with a doctor. A very humorous track..."Stalker" - a hilarious tale about a guy who stalks teenage girls that he has fantasies of... this runs along the same type of humor "Jealous over Nothing" had..."Herb" - along with teenyboppers and Nelly fans, herbs are something else I detest. Esoteric arrogantly defines the term herb all throughout the track ..."Rest In Peace" - a clever concept song where Eso rhymes about himself passing on and how his music ALL OF A SUDDEN is known, and how there are album profit problems among his family and friends...And the rest of the tracks are the usual Esoteric battle/android type of material... NOTHING on this material is WEAK by any means (there are no blunders like Guestlist)... The ONLY thing that annoyed me about this CD is that it was kinda short in comparison with Soul Purpose. But the REALLY hot beats and rhymes make up for the length... remember its QUALITY folks not QUANTITYsupport underground hiphopI'm out... Mind power!!!"

Dangerous Connect

charkoll | New Rochelle, NY USA | 07/01/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album is amazing both lyrically and musically. 7L is amazing; every beat is dope. Stoupe, Beyonder, and KutMasta Kurt also produce, but only one track-a-piece (not counting Beyonder's skit), which are just as good.The Album has good lyrical variety, including songs about 9/11 from the terrorists' point of view (Terrorist's Cell), a psycho-analysis of Es (Word Association), and stalking (Stalker).Hands-down the best line of the album is on The Way Out:
F*** battlin' cats / I'm Jim Abbottin' cats
Which means I'm single handedly embarassin' catsJust in case you're like me and don't follow baseball to much, Jim Abbott was a one handed pitcher who pitched a perfect game, thus 'single handedly embarassin'' them. It's crazy punch-lines like that, that just make me wonder why Es hasn't blown up yet. I guess folks just aren't ready for this kind of thing.The bottom line is this album is definitely worth picking up."

One of Beantowns finest returns....

Big S | Willowick, Ohio United States | 10/16/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Esoteric is back with another classic that easily holds up nice next to the Soul Purpose.Only 13 songs though as opposed to like 17-18 on S.P. , but its more like they focused on cutting off some of the filler (guest list,etc.) to make for a lyrically perfected album. The production is held down single-handedly by 7L (who also laced most of the best tracks on S.P.(Operatin' Correctly w/ Lif ,etc.) besides exceptions like Stoupe(jedi mind..),Beyonder, & Kutmasta Kurt. This whole c.d.'s tight but my favorites would have to be 'Terrorist Cell'(some serious stuff),Precision (some serious skills) and really slick tracks w/ both J-Live(one of the illest) and Apathy (who's about to blow up). Don't sleep on 7L & E.S."

Best of 7L and Esoteric

John | Philadelphia/Boston | 05/07/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Soul Purpose was good, as was DC2:Bars of Death, but Dangerous Connection is better than both.any find Esoteric's flow awkward,monotonous, and one-dimensional, and sometimes, they are right. But just listen to the first 8 tracks on Dangerous Connection, and you'll find the Esoteric is a clever MC who just happens to sound like Kermit the Frog. The intro, "One Six" is just that, an intro. Esoteric drops about 16 bars to get you ready for what's to come. "Watch Me", which samples Ghostface Killah's "Apollo Kids", opens up and Esoteric lays down 3 excellent verses. "Warning" is a great track, dark and ferocious. It shows Esoteric's abilty to really get into his tracks. "Terrorist's Cell", which is essentially Esoteric breaking down a terrorist's motives. Produced by Stoupe (Jedi Mind Tricks), it gets better the more you listen to it. "Precision" is a track that I didn't like when I first heard it, but after a few more listens, I began to appreciate it. The beat is alright, but Esoteric's writing skills really shine here. "Word Association" is a great overall track, and Esoteric once again shows off his lyrical skills. "Stalker", my favorite track, is a clever track where Esoteric eloquently tells of his obsession with a girl. The beat on this track is my favorite on any 7L ES cd, and 7L really does a great job with the horn samples. "Speak Now" is an overall good track as well, with guest spots from Jedi Mind Trick's Vinnie Paz and Apathy from the Demigodz. A good track, but to me it seems like it would be better on a different cd. "Rules of Engagement", my least favorite track, has a mediocre beat, but the vocals aren't bad. "Riccardi Man" is a pointless skit, but it is kinda funny. "Herb" a quick track dissing losers (herbs). Esoteric does a great job with a great beat. "Know What I Mean" which features Beyonder is a great song, and Beyonder's production is stellar. Both MC's do a great job on the track. "Rest in Peace" is good, but some of the lyrics fall a little bit flat. "No Way Out" is a good way to end the cd, and Esoteric drops some great punch lines (nice Jim Abbot reference here).

Overall, Dangerous Connection is a very nice cd with only one or two bad tracks. Esoteric's constant references to sports sometimes get annoying, but that's just a minor thing.

Beats:9/10

Lyrics:9/10"

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