Masters Of The Universe

Album Review

Any lucky owner of Binary Star's limited-distribution pressing of the 1999 LP Waterworld would already be familiar with most of the material on Masters of the Universe. It has everything a great hip-hop album requires, with varied beats, differing rhyme deliveries, and content you'll find yourself thinking about long after it's been said. Unfortunately, without a huge marketing budget from a major label, this album will probably fail to reach the level of success it deserves, but then again, Binary Star isn't necessarily after the typical ideal of success. With quotes like this — "Rap's got 'em brainwashed with cash that don't last/And five minutes of fame, that's when it's a shame/Seein' real MCs try to imitate rappers/If you ask me, they goin' out ass-backwards/Tradin' in respect just to push a phat Lex/And Puffy rhymin' on the remix, what's next?!" — it's easy to see why this is a refreshing alternative from the mainstream of rap.