"Streets Raised Me" featuring Big Noyd and Chinky is an unlikely opener for suck a hardcore album. Though the sentiments are good, they use an R&B singer. Now, you know I do not like R&B singers on hardcore hip-hop songs but I can tolerate this. It's not amazing but Prodigy's lyrics are good. "..Vision the canvas I paint a picture - Similar to Ernies Barnes nigga- But mines is more ghetto more guns- More drugs, mostly thugs- All my duns, their baby moms daughter and sons- Dark blocks, with streets lamps shot the fuck out- Park benches broke, a nigga stretched out- Jumped off the roof to his death its real- Hand Ball walls displayed with R-I-P murials- Those who sling, play the shadows by the building- Devils spring, keep em going while the snows blowing..", Prodigy raps. The piano loop is cool and the beat sounds like an east coast version of a "I miss my homies/pour out a little liquer" song. It's a different way to start an album which may fool people or catch them off gaurd. The hook is sung by Chinky, the female singer: "...Why you have to raise me this way, You showed me how to survive the  concrete,  If I survive only time can say, You where a part of me..(Street Life) - Why you have to raise me this way, You showed me how to survive the  concrete,  If I survive only time can say, You where a part of me..(Street Life).." It's a decent song but it should not represent the album. It's somewhat unneeded. They should have put on "The Professional" from DJ Clue's tape or something hard.

"What's Ya Poison" featuring Cormega is the true begining of the album. It's amped and raw. Cormega does an excellent job of keeping it hard. Havoc handles the chorus over a rough and rugged beat: "...How you want it, bent scheme or straight blunted- How you want it, bent scheme or straight blunted...." Cormega kicks some realistic rough lyrics. Though his voice is not as rough or as menacing as Prodigy's or even Havoc's, his lyrics are dope: "..Yo, my pen is sick like a heroin add-dict, Whenever Mega spits - Exhale preciseness, Drug Dealer Ghetto shit- Sweat in my hand, plus the finger numb from mesasuring grams- Gun on my waist, In case I see son - who wetted my man..." The album should have just began with this dope ass cut.

"Spread Love" is an interesting song but don't let the title fool you.  They are not on some hippy tip. They sentiments of the song is you better spread love because I would rather not see you mother crying at your funeral. Though the beat is not amazing, the rhyme flow is dope because Prodogy and Havoc go back and forth. They sound great when they do that. The chorus has Prodigy saying "Spread love, not war..." It's typical Mobb Deep, a rugged beat by Havoc with both of them kicking raw raps.

"Let A Ho Be A Ho" is a better track than it seems to be. The beat is dope. It's kind of mellow and the drums remind me of Wu-Tang's "Bells Of War". A main problem with this track is that there is no Prodigy. Only Havoc is on this joint and it is too long. He raps the hook: ".. A Ho gonna be ho, a n*gga gonna be a n*gga..." It's not their best but it does have a cool beat and that rough and rugged hardcore feel.

"I'm Going Out" featuring Lil' Cease is an average song. I don't think Lil' Cease should be on this joint. The sentiments are cool because they are about facing death.. Prodigy handles the chorus which is dope: "..I'm going out -With big guns and sharp knifes- Revolvers 'cause automatics jam at the wrong time (I'm going out)- Like fights with the brass knuckles- Swinging belts catching n*ggas with the buckle now f*ck it (I'm going out) - Like I ain't got nothing to live- Like aass if you had guns at my kids f*ck it (going all out)- For the big checks and large faces mantions - And my duns would do the same for me..." Lil Cease is not terrible but he just does not fit in as well.. In "Hell On Earth", all the guests were rough and hardcore like Raekwon, Nas, and Method Man. While Raekwon and Nas are on this album, it's guests like this that just make the album different from the others. Though the Mobb is hard as hell, softer guests like Lil Cease kind of weaken the track even though they try to rhyme hardcore.. They just sound as soft as bunny rabbits compared to P and Hav. Still, "I'm Going Out" is a good song and Lil Cease is not bad in it..

"Allustrious" is where the album begin to kick. The heavy church organ and the thick beat works very well. They use a lyric they spitted on Funkmaster Flex's freestyle for the chorus: "..Cause we Allustrious, ashes to ashes and dust to dust, if you fuck with us - It's a must we bust, and if you stand wit us -Nine times out of ten son you might get bucked. Cause we Allustrious, ashes to ashes and dust to dust, if you fuck with us - It's a must we bust, and if you stand wit us -Nine times out of ten son you might get bucked...." It's a cool song.

"Adrenaline" is an even cooler song. This song is dope. Hard and wild with a loose and raw feel. Prodigy does the chorus which helps the song out quite a bit: "..It be the Guns ,money, pussy, cars, drugs, jewels, clothes, Brawls, killings, boroughs, buildings, disease,stress, The D's, N.Y.C - It be the Guns ,money, pussy, cars, drugs, jewels, clothes, Brawls, killings, boroughs, buildings, disease,stress, The D's, N.Y.C..." Prodigy does a good job of all the things that gets his adrenaline pumping. Prodigy just knows how to amp a song up with his rough, menacing voice and his raw flow: "....It makes you sick to hear the mobb bang like this - Infamous for the world to hate or play this- Don't give a fuck if you can't rock to this- My duns' heads bop to this- We stand out like a tourist- And make more noise than them other rap n*ggas -No gimmicks- Just pure adrenaline- Raw lyrics incredible beats- Don't mean to rub it in- But your small time beneath our feet..." This is a dope song, one of the best on the album.. catchy is some ways but completely hardcore in everyway.

"Where Ya From" featuring 8-Ball is surprisingly not a bad song.. It's not amazing but it's not bad. The production is not done by Havoc, instead it's done by Sauva House but it's not too out of place.Still, it does not blend in perfectly. They give props to Suave house and Queens. 8-ball still sounds like he has a porkchop in his mouth. It's a low point on the album but it does not bring the album down.

"Quiet Storm" is this album's classic joint like "Shook Ones Pt. II" was for "The Infamous..." This is a dope ass song with an amazing beat. It's also dope because Havoc only handles the hook and Prodigy does all the verses. He kicks the joint off: "I put my lifetime in between the paper's lines -I'm that quiet storm nigga who fight rhyme- P, yea u heard of him but I ain't concerned with them- nigga I pop more guns than u holdin them- make my rotweiller sons out and scold your men- unload ten in broad day light get right- f*ck your life hop on my '98 dirt bike- you try to stop mines from growin- I make your blood stop flowin...." The samples from "White Lines" is not too obvious. The bassline is hypnotic.. Prodigy shoots the beat into little pieces and rides it all the way through never sounding tired or lame.. It's a perfect joint.. The chorus is dope too. Prodigy is in the background saying "The real.... hip-hop, hip-hop..." as Havoc rhymes the hook: "...It's the real sh*t nigga make you feel sh*t [the real......] -bump it in the clubs sh*t- have you wildiinn out when bump this [hip-hop, hip-hop.....]- drugs to your ear drum the raw uncut- have a n*gga OD but it's never enough..." This is a modern hip-hop Mobb Deep classic. If Prodigy's solo joint is anything like this, it should be dope!

"Where Ya Heart At" is another dark and somber song about death of the people they care about in their crew of family.The beat's mellow and has an etherial feel to it with a harp. There are two hooks on it which makes it more complicated. The major hook is: "..Have you ever lost a loved one? Or never understood love 'til you lost one? Where your heart at? I left mines behind with my dearly departed - Where your heart at? Strength missing To take losses is the hardest - The ones that overcome be the calmest- Strive regardless. Where your heart at? - brave-hearted.- Now lets find out where n*ggaz hearts' at..." Don't think that this is one of those "I miss my homies" songs... It's really not... The song shows their pain and the strength of their delivery and lyrics displays the Mobb as important voices in hip-hop. They have set themselves apart from the rest. The

"Noyd Interlude" has just Big Noyd talking.. You can't hear him that well.. This is a wasted track.. it's not like P's interlude on "The Infamous.." Thankfully, it's just an interlude and is short.

"Can't F*ck Wit" features Raekwon and unfortunately is not as good as I expected it to be.. It's still a cool joint but it is nothing like "Nighttime Vultures" or "An Eye For An Eye".  The beat is not as good as the other Havoc-produced beats. It does not sound as thick and full or menacing. Havoc does the chorus which starts out dope but the last line is kind of weak and out of place: "..Y'all n*ggaz can't f*ck wit the n*ggaz I f*ck wit (uh-uh) - Really don't wanna f*ck wit n*ggaz I f*cckk wit (uh-uh)- Y'all n*ggaz minor league in my eyes for real- Y'all n*ggaz wanna pop sh*t? See me when ya get a record deal..."  Raekwon sounds better over thick beats like typical Rza or typical Havoc.. This is a little different... He would have sounded better if he was on "Allustrious" or something like that. Still, it's not a bad song. "Thug Muzik"  is the first part of the two-song "muzik" feature. (The second one being the title song, "Murda Muzik"). This is not as good as the next song but it's still cool. Mobb Deep never did a bad song to my ears..  Though it does sound somewhat typical of the genre, they shine.. The hook goes like this: "..The infamous all around and you know we get down - So everybody hit the ground before you hear the loud sound-  Thug muzik, thug muzik.." If you are a street thug or a suburban white boy, you can still get into this joint.. It's kind of like the album's filler but it's acceptable.

"Murda Muzik" is a cool title track.. Though it is blatent... the sentiments are hardcore and go to the root of Mobb Deep's core. "Murder music... homocide music.." As they claim this to be a metaphor for murdering the music industry and people's eardrums... Mobb Deep just do a good job about making music about killing people... it's true.. they do..

"The Realest" featuring Kool G Rap has a slow but cool feel. The guitar (or string instrument) in it is more ambient and not in your face. This is one of the better songs on the album. Kool G. Rap does not steal the song but does an excellent job. What's dope about the chorus is that Prodigy and Kool G Rap trade lines for the hook: "...[Kool G. Rap] For street n*ggas livin with they lives on the line- [Prodigy] For young guns comin' up during these times -[Kool G. Rap] For police that find drugs leet n*ggas slide- [Prodigy] For n*ggas out slinging like 4 in the night- [Kool G. Rap] For your mans not snitchin' when the pressure is tight- [Prodigy] For pistols that don't jam when it's time to strike- [Kool G. Rap] For bootleg liquor on a Sunday night- [Prodigy] This be the realest sh*t you heard in your life...." The dope thing about this joint is that it's true.. It is the realist ish you've heard in your life... The realism seeps out the pours of the tracks via lyrics. It's dope... slow.. without getting boring.

"U.S.A. (Aiight Then)" is much more upbeat. For a second, you may think it's a dance record but then you realize that this is a Mobb Deep joint and the hardcore aspects come in. Prodigy handles the chorus on this dope joint which can get both a party and a cypher amped into a hardcore state of mind. Prodigy uses the hook to say wassup to the people all over the the USA... and then he raps up the hook by saying "...aiight then.." It's a dope track that is very upbeat and somewhat dance-friendly without ever losing it's hardcore theme or appeal.

"It's Mine" featuring Nas is a thugged out version of "The Boy Is Mine".. Don't worry it's not the same exact beat. The extremely quick cymbal glides through the beat as the bass thumps. It's a cool track which is perfect for Nas... The only problem... it's not anything near "An Eye For An Eye".. The hook chops the crap out of the original melody and makes it all thugged out in a way Noreaga would be proud of.."...You need to give it up- We don't give a f*ck- Whatcha n*ggas want- THUG LIFE IS MINE - You need to give it up- We don't give a f*ck- Whatcha n*ggas want- THUG LIFE IS MINE.." Actually, I think Noreaga should rep Queens on this joint.. Nas has a cool delivery but his lyrics are blatently softer and glamorous which contrasts Mobb's kill everybody feel. Nas raps. ".Silk shirts on my chest show what a flirt- Halle Berry blew a kiss at the Barbara Streisand concert.." I just think the image of a Barbara Steisand concert should not be anywhere near a Mobb Deep record... The fact that Nas puts that image there makes it worse. Still, he matches the beat very well.

The album ends with "Quiet Storm (Remix)" featuring Lil' Kim. I thought this would be horrible but it's actually not bad... it's quite good... not as good as the original but good. Havoc does a verse on here along with Kim who does the hook instead of Prodigy. It would have been better if Prodigy did the hook.. I like Lil' Kim better than Foxy Brown but in actuality, she has no business being on a Mobb Deep album... Imagine Rah Digga from Flipmode on a Mobb Deep record? That would be violent. Kim actually rocks a decent verse: "..I'm a leader, y'all on some followin sh*t  - Comin in this game on some modelin sh*t - B*tches suck c*ck just to get to the top - I put a hundred percent, in every line I drop -It's the Q to the B, with the M-O, B-B -Queensbridge Brooklyn and we're D-double-E-P.." It's a cool way to end the album but it's somewhat anti-climatic. Prodigy's last verse is decent and raw: "..Attracted to our style, this is how we get down - wit big jewelry and big guns - We get busy, it get grizzly, beat n*ggaz bloody -Twist niggaz frontin, get to runnin - 'fore the mens get to dumpin, the fans get to thumpin - M-O-B-B, got the whole spot jumpin - When my niggaz step in the place -Damn, you gotta luv it..." What is excellent about Mobb Deep is that hardcore hip-hop heads can depend on them to bring hardcore gun-blazing, smoked out, jams. In this case, they are blatently obvious that their style and themes are about murder... "The Infamous..." was an amazing album but the songs were drawn out a little too long while "Hell On Earth", the songs were short and more predictable. For example, the rough beat would kick in along with a cello, violin or piano..Prodigy would rap then the spoken hardcore chorus would be rocked.. Then, Havoc would do his thing, the hook gets rocked again and it's over. "Murda Muzik" finds a balance. Though some songs are a little drawn out with intros and outros, they are pretty tight. "Quiet Storm" is a perfect example since it has a long intro with storm sound effects and talking. The beats are good but not Havoc's best. The beats were perfect on "The Infamous..." and they were more lavish on "Hell On Earth". On this joint, some of the beats are not as full and thick. "Can't F*ck Wit" with Raekwon is a perfect example since the beat since more scattered and there is no rhythem between the snares. A congo drum or a shaker would be perfect but it's not there. On the other hand, "Quiet Storm" has a classic Mobb beat that rocks. It's gothic, it's menacing, it's original, and almost hypnotic and deadly. The thick beats are on "Allustrious", "Adrenaline", "What's Ya Poison" featuring Cormega, "Where Ya Heart At", "U.S.A. (Aiight Then)". The song "The Realest" featuring Kool G Rap is a good example of being in between the slamming complete beats and the weaker scatter beats. Still, "The Realest" works well as a song. Havoc's production is not as typical as it was on "Hell On Earth".. On "Hell", you could practically predict the beat as it went along. Songs like "Streets Raised Me" show how Havoc is changing as he still uses pianos and orchestral sounds but he uses them in a different way. Though he never did, I wish he used a little scratching here and there.. It would make some of the songs so much more doper..It would have been perfect in songs like "The Realest" and "Let A Ho Be A Ho".. One thing about the production, it's not expected to be danced to, maybe smoked to but definitely a soundtrack to kill people to. Prodigy steals the show with the lyrics and delivery. His voice, flow and words simple sound more believable and powerful than Havoc's. Don't get me wrong, Havoc rocks the album too but Prodigy steals it. As where Havoc sounds like he's in a studio making a record, Prodigy sounds like he's in an ally somewhere killing people and smoking blunts and just happens to be rapping a verse while doing this. He makes Mobb Deep incredibly realistic. It's true when he says, "I put my lifetime in between the papers' lines." Mobb Deep are original. They are not biting the thug style like Ja Rule is doing from Dmx nor are they biting the money making style like Memphis Bleek is doing from Jay-Z. Mobb Deep took the violence and drug/street life of gangster rap and took it to another level with a little Public Enemy mixed in. You can't f*ck with them on the mic nor in the street. Mobb Deep innovated the east coast Hardcore hip-hop thug scene from Queens. Noreaga owes them quite a bit. It's great to hear original beats and lyrics. As "Murda Muzik" is original, it's not as creative as "The Infamous..." was. The production is creative because it's a new side to Havoc. Unfortunately, "It's Mine" does play on the commercial thugged out vibe which is getting overdone now. It was creative what they did to "The Boy Is Mine" but it was not incredibly creative. The album flows nice, not as quick as "Hell On Earth" but quicker than "The Infamous...".  19 tracks with one intro and one interlude makes for an album filled with content. Mobb's tracks are spread out nice. Though the opening song ("Streets Raised Me" ) kicks the album off on a luke warm start, the song "What's Ya Poison" kicks things into hugher gear. They should have used that track to start the album. Not one track is bad. They range from decent to amazing. There are a few classics on this joint too. Mobb Deep did it again.. they made a dope hardcore hip-hop album. Mobb Deep are part of the essence of hardcore hip-hop. They can maintain that hardcore without every changing or even selling out.. Sure, they are getting mad loot but they are staying true to their roots. They are a hip-hop group you can depend on... Mobb Deep is still killing people... oh. cool, at least they don't jump into shiny suits and dance around in front of fireworks. Guns, drugs, money, sex and murder are the main themes. Lyrically, the Mobb go further into the detail of these aspects of life. They grew up and are no longer in Juvenile Hell.. There is not one song which is the dance song or the commercial radio friendly song. All of them are hard to the bone. Even the more commercial-like tracks like "It's Mine" or the ones with R&B hooks have a strong hardcore theme with even harder lyrics. This is why they get a perfect hardcore rating. The only thing which may weaken the hardcore rating is the choice of guests. Lil Cease, Lil Kim  and the R&B singer on 2 tracks may appear to weaken the hardcore feel but Prodigy and Havoc does not let them weaken anything. Mobb Deep are an important force in hip-hop. This may not be their best album but it's damn good. I would have changed some of the guest appearences and made some of the beats a little thicker and it would have been perfect. Damn, this storm is not that quiet. Mobb Deep, it's the realist sh*t you've heard in your life.

Beats: 8.75/10.
Lyrics: 8.75/10.
Production: 8.75/10.
Originality/Creativity: 8.75/10
Album Flow: 8.75/10.
Hardcore Rating: 10/10.
[ Overall Rating: 9.0/10 ]