By Daniel Paiz
A Week’s Worth Review takes on the gladiator battle that is CZARFACE Meets Frankie Pulitzer. Pulitzer has collaborated with CZARFACE on a few tracks prior to this album, and that chemistry had to inspire this piece of work. CZARFACE for this go-around consists of the treacherous trio of Inspectah Deck and Esoteric on the mics, with 7L yet again on production.
Also, for those unaware or uninitiated, Frankie Pulitzer aka Face Puller is Tom Hardy. Yes, the actor who has played Bane, and a pair of gangster brothers, and many other roles. It might not have been common knowledge before, but Hardy has been rapping for quite a long time.
Guests for this album included Busta Rhymes, El-P, Kendra Moss, and Method Man. This project might be about 47 minutes and some change, but it zips by pretty quickly. There are some fun joints on here, but a few kept repeating for this listener.
Top Tier Tunes
Gnawing At My Rhyme Like A Poisonous Rat
A reoccurring theme on this album is who spits the third verse. It’s not every song, but on several songs including this one, whoever raps third seems to have the best verse. Inspectah Deck is an emcee who delivers time and time again, and this project is no different. The below lines are not intricate, but they are clever and thought-provoking just the same:
Dazzling display burns your cataracts, that’s a fact, they don’t want me to score they pullin’ hack-a-Shaq
and:
you was busy as a bee but you was never the buzz
The imagery in the first quote kind of hurts my eyes, which is likely an unintended effect despite the graphic effectiveness of it. To deliver rap lines to the point of pain for onlookers is just vicious. There’s also the classic “Hack-a-Shaq” reference as well, where one might want to create a strategy for Deck (just like Shaq; I can’t help you if you don’t know who Shaquille O’Neal is), but it isn’t going to work for long.
Then there’s the bee reference, which is fun for two reasons. Deck obviously is still a member of Wu-Tang Clan and there’s a fair amount of bee references for that group, but also: one attempting to be both like a bee and a Wu-Tang member in terms of production and skill is a fun double entendre. The double meaning is so good, in part because simplicity is hard. That kind of accessible cleverness isn’t something one hears every day.
Omega Beam
“Omega Beam” is a track that highlights all three emcees and somehow feels like an under the radar track. There are plenty of references throughout the song. Yet Frankie Pulitzer has the best section and it contains no pop culture references:
What blew up is a litany,
the epitome of lyrical wizardry,
literally pulled from the pit of me,
have you stand in the dark with the fam and have an epiphany
The order of these words is astounding, primarily because of how they sound. There’s a sense of depth, but also braggadocio, but also fear slash threat as well. The sounds made by these words hits so well: litany, epitome, wizardry, pit of me, epiphany–slanted rhymes for sure but the sounds made, come on! It’s not alliteration and yet it delivers similar appreciation. There are times where you just have to step back and appreciate the gems an emcee gives the listener.
All It Takes Is One Bad Day
“All It Takes Is One Bad Day” is the second track on this project, and it’s a great example of mixing references and wordplay. Esoteric has solid bars throughout his verse, but here’s the standout lines that grabbed my attention:
my fortitude’s that of Florence Pugh with thunderbolts,
something dope with a gorgeous view like Portugal
Fortitude and Florence Pugh go well together, but also because of both how popular Pugh is right now, and her noted focus on not changing who she is due to roles and Hollywood expecting outlandish things of women and their bodies. Connect that together with Pugh’s character Yelena in the Thunderbolts*, who is processing grief, depression and more; that’s layered nuance.
Eso essentially declares his strength despite adversity with character and looking good just like Yelena in the film and a place many wish to visit as well. There are also the three slanted rhymes in rapid succession: fortitude/Florence Pugh, thunderbolts/something dope, and gorgeous view/Portugal. Working out that visual is impressive, but it’s one of those “blink and miss it” moments due to everything else going on.
Sleeper Track
It is very unlikely that you guess which track goes here. A one in fifteen chance presents for far better odds than any lottery, but it would still be surprising if you guess the track. The sleeper track is none other than “Intruder…Seems Curious”. For those not fully versed in every song title on this album (which includes most of us, including myself), this is track fifteen. The very last song.
One of a few songs that presents no rapping whatsoever.
An odd choice, no doubt, but one that makes sense after taking in the previous 14 songs. The epic rap lines delivered throughout the project. The highlighting of each emcee: Inspectah Deck, Esoteric, Frankie Pulitzer, and the guest artists as well. Each song depicting a showcase underway. Similar to wrestling, it is meant to put over one artist while also showing the talents of those performing on the same song. It makes one question how one of the few songs without rapping could be the sleeper track.
The answer, of course, is atmosphere. Setting. This final track has you sit with the previous work a la end credits of a movie.
The cinematic feeling in this three-minute song inspires reflection. As you sit with your thoughts, you notice how there’s been back-and-forth lyrical fisticuffs. Frankie Pulitzer has revealed to listeners both Frankie and the villainous Face Puller. Neither side has “won” the album, but have survived each other instead. CZARFACE has survived this lyrical brawling of characters. Frankie Pulitzer has proven he belongs in such battles.
Cherish the impressive conflict and be assured CZARFACE and Frankie Pulitzer will rap another day.
Final Thoughts
CZARFACE continues to make comic book characters, sports figures, and pop culture references comfortable collaborators.
The visuals of the music videos give this project a team-up feel between CZAR and Frankie. However, when I listen to the bars and songs throughout, it feels more like a showcase bordering on competition. There isn’t really an overarching concept for this album outside of these two characters interacting. Each verse from each rapper on this project sounds like their best delivery for each respective song.
Each song highlights someone different, and that’s intentional to give balance. If there was an overabundance of any emcee on the tape, it would take something away from the overall feel. That’s difficult to do, because there are times when someone just takes over. Pulitzer could be accused of doing this potentially, but it isn’t the case due to these two sides competing.
This album is similar to previous chapters from this group, only this time more listeners have caught wind of it. One could credit that to Frankie again, or it might just be time that fans of wordplay and keen visual lyrics are growing. CZARFACE is finally getting more flowers and support, and it’s well deserved.
