There are certainly two sides to be looked at on this CD, the music and the lyrics. Necro bills his music as "Death Rap", and as such comparisons, lyrically to death metal mean that these raps are definitely extreme, and certainly not for those easily (or perhaps not so easily) offended. Since the music is easier to address, though, I will touch on that first. I know that as a progressive rock journalist and fan there are those who would like to say that there are types of music I shouldn't like (metal and rap are two that come to mind). Frankly, while prog rock is my first love when it comes to music, I really enjoy heavy metal and a lot of rap. Like all musical forms there is good and bad to be had in them, and I don't think any type of music should be thrown out in one blanket statement as good or bad. The music created here is actually very solid and potent rap. I don't like every song a lot, but there are some that I do like very much. There are others that are weaker, but I wouldn't say that any are musically "bad" - granted a few are not really music, so exempt from that statement. The truth is, musically this one will hold up with the best of them, and stands heads above a lot of others. It mixes metal and rap at times (not something that has never been done before, but it hasn't been done a lot). This works pretty well here. In fact there are guest appearance by such metal notables as Jamey Jasta and Sean Martin from Hatebreed, DJ Sid Wilson of Slipknot, Trevor Peres and John Tardy (both from Obituary), Away (Voivod) and Dan Lilker (Brutal Truth, Stormtroopers of Death and Nuclear Assault). The result is a rap album with large doses of metal that is quite entertaining and varied enough to keep it from getting old.

Now for the lyrical content - this one is probably going to be the biggest bone of contention facing this disc. Frankly the vast majority of the raps here glorify such horrifying topics as serial killings and cannibalism. That won't sit well with many. If I thought that this was meant to cause people to take up these activities as some new way of life, or even that Necro himself practiced these acts, I would not be reviewing the disc here. I see these lyrics in the same way that I see death metal - entertainment. I don't believe that people listening to this music are any more likely to go out and commit gruesome crimes than people who watch horror films. It is simply another form of dark entertainment. The situation goes deeper than, that, though. Even if it does have that effect, the truth is that the first amendment allows such speech, and it has to do so. In order to protect your own rights to speak about your religion or political views, you have to protect the speech of others, even when you find that speech offensive. It is when the speech is turned to action that the law has been broken.

Well, now that I get to step down from the soapbox, I have to say that I enjoy the CD. The lyrics don't always sit well with me, but at points they really make you think about some hypocritical situations in our society. At other points they just get you to ask why is that? For instance one fact brought up is that the United States with 5% of the world's population produces 76% of all serial killers. Why is that? Some of this is very thought provoking. This disc is certainly not for everyone, but it is quite good. As with most rap, children are strongly advised away from this music.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2005 Year Book Volume 3 at https://garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2005.