THE GOOD NEWS:
Some of the beats were tight, and CNN do have fairly decent deliveries.

THE BAD NEWS:
These cats sound too much like Mobb Deep. The album suffers from a lack of originality, and it gets fairly boring at times, as well.

Spring Break is here! Well, since I'm not going on vacation anywhere, I'll probably write one or two of these during the time that I should be doing my homework. Hey, there really isn't much to do in Valparaiso, IN when most of your friends are on vacation and it's too icky outside to really do anything. By the way, have any of you seen our college team in the NCAA Tournament? Not too shabby, eh? It's pretty much the biggest thing that's ever happened in this little town, and it's nice to see that we've become the national media's darlings. Well, anyway, on to the review. . .

This time, I'm reporting on an album titled The War Report by a duo that call themselves Capone-N-Noreaga. Capone-N-Noreaga, or CNN, as they like to be called, are made up, of course, by a couple of guys named Capone and Noreaga (hey, you never know, Smiff-N-Wessun were made up by a couple of guys named Tek and Steele). Hailing from Queensbridge, the legendary home of such emcees as LL Cool J, MC Shan, Nas, and Mobb Deep, CNN certainly reflect their roots and are big on that hometown (home borrough?) pride, as you might expect.

This album first came to my attention in a review by The Source. Giving it Four Mics out of Five (which would be akin to me giving an album a score of 8 out of 10) and calling it one of the best debut albums to come out in some time, they gave these guys major props. Of course, that didn't exactly make me want to run out and buy the album, as The Source has given 4 Mics to pretty much anyone that buys enough pages of advertisement in their magazine (I still can't believe seeing Master P, Mack 10, and Bone Thugs get 4 Mics, while One Day It'll All Make Sense by Common received 3 1/2 Mics), but I at least had their name stuck in my head. I remembered hearing about them a while earlier, recording some song called "L.A., L.A." with Mobb Deep, which resulted in a huge feud between 2Pac and the Mobb. Well, I finally decided to pick up the album after hearing a few more nice things about it from some people (including being named the "Undergound Album of the Year" by Vibe, as well as plenty of heads that like groups such as Co-Flow saying that CNN is really good). I guess I'm too gullible, as these kids are cool, but just not as bangin as everyone says they are. I should state right now that CNN aren't exactly very original or creative, as they sound almost exactly like Mobb Deep.

Now, I had never really been a huge fan of Mobb Deep, but I did like both of their albums. I always thought more highly of the Queens-style Gangsta Rap than its West Coast counterpart, in that it seemed to "keep it real" better, i.e. not actually glorifying criminal activity as much as simply describing it matter of factly, making it look ugly. CNN does this as well as Mobb Deep or Nas (Nasty Nas, not Nas Escobar) did. But. . . if something has been done a million times before, I appreciate it when an artist somehow puts a new twist on it, bringing something new to the table. CNN fail to do this.

None of this is to say that this album is BAD. As far as thug-rap records go, this one has more class than any of the albums released on Master P's No Limit Records, most West Coast gangsta albums released in the last few years, as well as a lot of releases from fellow New Yorkers, such as The Firm's album. However, while this may come close to reigning supreme among other Gangsta Rap albums of the past few years, it is only average compared to the whole of Hip-Hop.

The War Report starts off with an intro track titled "Intro" (what else are these things ever called?). There's really nothing here. The beat isn't bad, but it's really not worth listening to more than once or twice.

Track #2 is "Bloody Money." I actually liked this one, despite the fact that it sounds like something that I'd think was a Mobb Deep B-side if no one told me who it was.

	"I'm fouler than gats that dont bust when they supposed to"

"We waitin, conversatin, evil as Satan"

"Driver's Seat," featuring Iman T.H.U.G., on the other hand, is the first of many extremely dull tracks on The War Report. There's nothing here that you haven't heard too many times already.

		   "Everything revolves around me, I couldn't see that
		    25 To Life in Hip-Hop, you got to flee, black"

    "Too hot, like Coolio"

Someone that sounds uncannily like Busta Rhymes (if it is Busta, it doesn't say anything about it in the album's insert) comes in at the end of this song. Unfortunately, it doesn't help much.

Next up is "Stick You," another yawner.

	  "A 41 trial, to the USA building in Iraq	
	   My crew bust back with cap peeling
	   Your crew dealing, in a box with no feeling
	   Informer type, thats what you get for squealing"

"A Kassi, three and a quarter, Arab Nazi"

For some reason, CNN are on a sorta Iraq/Arab type-tip. . . I'm not sure why, but they constantly make references to the Middle East (maybe due to the real CNN's coverage of the Gulf War? I don't know. . .).

"Parole Violators," featuring quite a few guest artists, is more music to play when you're having trouble falling asleep. Not to say it's terrible. . . but just not my thing.

			     "Capone, you stay on street, and keep the cipher complete"

*Yawn*

Anyway, "Iraq (See The World)" (yep, still on the Iraq tip) is actually a little more listenable. Still not exactly to my tastes, but it adds a little more excitement to what is becoming a very dull album at this point. It features a whole crew of guest rappers, none of which are very impressive, but it's not bad.

  "We on a mission, not a small-time thing
   I'm addicted to this cash, like crack-addicted fiend to the crack
   But I ain't in to doing no drugs	
   I'm just pushing hits, and stacking chips 
   Like I'm stacking bricks for a building	
   Cuz we be building this empire fortress
   Secure tight like barb wire"

CNN continue their roll with "Live On Live Long."

		 "Yo, I know you left, we're goin up-creek soon
		  You know my address, God, right me letters, keep me in-tune
		  I still remember when we first met, yo, it was up north
		  I had the Iraq flag, your comrade, with doo-rag"

The beat here is just plain nice, too. Not quite fonke, mind you. . . but still nice.

Unfortunately, "Neva Die Alone" sounds very uninspired and is reminiscent of a hundred other mediocre Gangsta songs that I've heard. . . the beat is typical, as are the lyrics.

Luckily, "T.O.N.Y. (Top Of New York)" comes to save the day. The first release off of The War Report, this one is produced by Carlos Broady and Puffy-pal Nashiem Myrick (who I believe is a member of Puffy's "Hitmen," but I'm not really sure), and has a smooth sound to it. It's nothing too great, but did it for me.

     "Yo niggas tried to sh*t on me and make history 
      Supposedly I was the man who was supposed to be
      The head of the click
      Lip sealed, no nigga snitch
      Do or die, I smoke bogey
      Sword like Shinobi"

Not the best song in the world, but better than the too-slow "Channel 10." I swear, these guys can't go more than a couple tracks without a lame song. . . hit fast-forward fast when this one comes on.

Speaking of fast-forward, up next is a practically useless interlude called "Capone Phone Home." Here's the story: Capone is actually in jail right now. I'm not sure why, but he ended up going to jail about midway through the production of this album. . . here, he's calling Noreaga, seeing what's up. . . skip it.

"Stay Tuned," which was previously known as "Thug Paradise" and showed up on a few underground mix-tapes, is up next. The beat is sorta wack. . . but the flows here are definitely better than most of The War Report.

	   "Yo, TV's in the headrest, Sega entertainment
	    Pushed the Lex land on the way to my arrangnment
	    D.A. got a witness, lawyer can't explain it
	    Face the judge, on some money maintain sh*t
 	    Black Caesar, hundred grand on the Visa
	    Took the stand, suddenly, caught amnesia
	    Found him in the warehouse, tied in the freezer
	    That's the life of a thug when he hold heaters
	    Willies, up North, turn to dick beaters
	    Sendin flicks to any bitch that'll feed us
	    360 ways with the shell-top Adidas
	    The Black Jesus, Lebanon, remain calm
	    Rock and stay green, sippin on Don"

Next is the first of Marley Marl's two offerings on the album, "Capone Bone." The production isn't bad, but I wasn't really feeling it. Anyway, here, Capone, as the title implies, is bragging about how promiscuous he is. . . really, you'd think rappers would get tired of stuff like this after a while. . .

"We can sip wine, bump and grind on the slow-mo
 But on the D. low, I heard your man was a homo"

Well, luckily, track #14 is "Halway Thugs." This is Capone-N-Noreaga at their best. There's nothing even close to originality here, but the beat is dope (nevermind that it's a Mobb Deep wannabe track) and the flows match it well, even if they are just talking the same ol', same ol'.

		     		    "I used to peddle crack
				     You never sold yours so stop frontin
				     I push the raw button, you cold panic
				     Use tools to fix your f*ckin face like a mechanic
				     Dramatic, dillemic, and under-handed
				     You say the sh*t that I say for so long, I can't stand it"

 
           "Erupt like volcano
            Send lava right up on they armor"

This brings us to "L.A., L.A. (Kuwait Mix by Marley Marl)." Here's the story. . . on their album Dogg Food, Tha Dogg Pound recorded a cut called "New York, New York" that used the chorus to the Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five song of the same title. Well, the song was seen by many as a dis on the Big Apple, and CNN were one of many to reply with "L.A., L.A." Apparently, the song, recorded with Mobb Deep and Tragedy Khadafi, has been out for some time, as it actually resulted in quite a feud between 2Pac and Mobb Deep. I'm not sure what started that feud, though (of course, I guess it didn't take much for 'Pac to have a beef with someone), as there really isn't much of any type of West Coast dissing here. . . not that I noticed, at least.

 "Ah-yo the rap shit is ill
  Kid, you make mad dough but still
  Hit your crew off it aint slink-real
  Show some love kid aint no selfish sh*t here"

		 "Been on this planet for 25 years and still strong
		  The world's rotten like the veins in my fathers arm
	 	  I remain calm, study Isalm, read the Torah
		  World goin in flames like Sodom and Gommohra
		  Niggas dried up, layin in the box from the virus
		  Commercial thugs tried to bust gats at the livest
		  It's like in crime, only will shine real survivors
		  Y'all half-way niggas, I'd advise you not to try this
		  So brace yourself before you get yourself laced
		  F*ckin wit the sick Arabic Scarface"

"Capone-N-Noreaga Live" sounds like a camp-fire sing-along. I don't have a clue what they were trying to pull off here, and it's quite wack. . . lyrically, there's next to nothing on this cut, so I'll just skip it and move on to "Illegal Life." This one is actually one of the best cuts on the album. . . there's actually a couple impressive lines on here.

     "Yo, I was in Vermada, laid up with gold saga	
      Jungle room, cowboy hat around June
      Monaga, had the 45th draga, Capone-N-Noreaga
      The saga, Sega, mega, network and Bodega"

"Desert Storm, and cold form on your norm
 Run through, Hard Boil you like John Woo"

"Black Gangstas" is sorta cool, with a dope spy movie-sounding beat in the background. The lyrics aren't too bad, either.

"I never sweat these, I let trees blow	
 Get bent on benches, hopping the fences
 Here they come in long trenches"

The DJ Clark Kent produced "Closer" shows promise, until an extremely wack R&B (rap and bullsh*t) chorus comes in and completely ruins it. It's sorta funny, though. . . Capone-N-Noreaga's verses somehow seem more dope after coming off such a wack chorus. Oh, well.

The War Report ends with "Capone Phone Home Outro." Here, Capone calls from prison again, and this time he talks to a few other rappers besides Noreaga, including Nas. Well. . . there's really no point in playing this more than once, as you might guess.

There you have it. As a whole, The War Report is by no means a great album. Is it worth your money? I guess that depends on your own personal tastes. . . about a third of the tracks here actually are really good. When CNN are on, they're on, as is displayed on killer cuts such as "Bloody Money," "T.O.N.Y.," "Halway Thugs," and "L.A., L.A.," not to mention a couple of others. Unfortunately, a lot of the tracks didn't fair quite as well, making this album not very fun to listen to all the way through. Especially since so many of the tracks sound similar to other tracks on the album, monotony starts to show in a big way after listening to the whole of The War Report.

These flaws could be forgiven, however, if Capone-N-Noreaga had come with something original. They just didn't. As I said, they're carbon copies of Mobb Deep. Everything about them, aside from maybe that whole Iraq thing, is reminiscent of Mobb, from the production to the flows. Add the fact that CNN really aren't saying anything that hasn't been dropped on wax a million times since N.W.A's Straight Outta Compton, and you have a very uninspired duo here.

I have to say though, I actually did like this album. For what it is, an at-best generic Gangsta rap album, that's saying a lot. I'll put it this way: if you really get into all this "gangsta sh*t," you could do a whole lot worse than CNN. I'll admit some of these tracks had my head bobbin, and I'll certainly say that this is an all-around superb debut for a G-Rap album. But (and there's always a "but"), I find it very doubtful that this will please many Hip-Hop purists. The fact that CNN really aren't saying anything worthwhile is a definite turn-off, as is their inability to be creative. If someone tries to tell you that CNN are "droppin knowledge," don't believe the hype.

If Capone-N-Noreaga really are trying to be "Black America's CNN" (a famous quote by Chuck D. describing Rap music's ability to report things that mainstream media is unable/unwilling to comment on), perhaps it's time they found a new station programmer, as they are undoubtably airing too many re-runs.

---Steve Clark

Did I get it wrong? E-mail me at stevec@netnitco.net with all comments or questions you may have.

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