Liquid Swords was a ridiculous fvckin album

[daze23]

right after I moved to Miami Beach, in July 1995, somebody put those GZA 'G' stickers up everywhere. I remember thinking it was dope how they just rotated the Wu 'W' to make a 'G'. I jacked one and put it on this coffee table I had. wish I still had that shyt. I think it was around How Can I Be Down, it october, that I got the Labels promo tape. then a month after that, the album dropped

the best times yo

ODB was wilin at How Can I Be Down. saw him knock the turntables down at two different events

 

[Sound (∀√a) Maths]

lowkey 'Unexplained/Swordsmen'' is the jewel of the record.

Yes!!!

 

[TheDarceKnight]

I forgot about this video.

Me too. Am I remembering it wrong or wasn't this joint created (or at least released) out a little bit before the rest of the album? It was on the Fresh soundtrack right?

because to my ears Swordsman is really the final song, and I Gotcha Back and B.I.B.L.E. are kind of bonus joints. Yeah yeah, i know interlude on the end of I Gotcha Back is technically the end of the album, but I've always felt like those last 2 tracks let you breathe a little bit after Swordsman, which feels like the climax.

 

[TheDarceKnight]

This was my fav wu album from solo stand point. Over OB4CL

No doubt. To me it changes any given month.

I will say this, and I shouldn't post it now because I won't be able to argue this take or flesh it out until later tomorrow, but to me Liquid Swords is the most 'Wu-Tang sounding' album to come out of the entire Wu-Tang catalogue...and that includes their group albums.

 

[Ruby'sRevolver]

Me too. Am I remembering it wrong or wasn't this joint created (or at least released) out a little bit before the rest of the album? It was on the Fresh soundtrack right?

because to my ears Swordsman is really the final song, and I Gotcha Back and B.I.B.L.E. are kind of bonus joints. Yeah yeah, i know interlude on the end of I Gotcha Back is technically the end of the album, but I've always felt like those last 2 tracks let you breathe a little bit after Swordsman, which feels like the climax.

Yeah, it was on the 'Fresh' soundtrack ( I think Heaven & Hell was on there too) which came in out in '94 and the video was out at the same time, If I'm remembering things right.

I see what you mean about it being of a bonus track I feel that way about Cuttin' Headz on Dirty's album Both were older tracks thrown on at the end of the album.

 

[Interloper]

 

[Mr. Negative]

It's funny cause I thought he was wack at first cause I was more into the other members. Then the Liquor Swords video I loved and hated it at the same time. Then grabbed my brother's copy and let that shyt rock and was blown away and now is probably my favorite Wu CD. Everytime I throw it on just get lost in. Definitely in my top 10 hip hop albums ever.

I was saying the same thing about a week or 2 ago.

The video from Fresh and the Liquid Swords videos dropped and dude seemed too.... basic.

Then like my third time seeing the Swords video, shyt just clicked. How perfect dude was rhyming, for lack of better description.

Don't know how many folks in here are up on the Hajime no Ippo boxing anime, but it's like how all the other boxers were talking up Ricardo Martinez' jab, going on about how perfectly flawless it was and how he had practiced just that jab so much that even though it was the most basic boxing punch, he made it into a deadly weapon.

You don't really get how deadly just his jab is.... until he obliterates Ippo using just the jab.... including smacking him out of the dempsey roll with it.



And that's GZA's style in a nutshell. He doesn't need to do all of the ultra fancy rhyme patterns or double timing or crazy slang or any of that. All he does is jab. And his jab is fukking perfect.

That on top of RZA's production.... flawless album

 

[UserNameless]

Such a cohesive, air tight album . Epitome of professional.

 

[TheDarceKnight]

Listening to the albums now.

GZA is also an incredibly underrated punch line rapper. Just heard Gold and it struck me that not many people talk about his punch lines. That skill set seems to get buried underneath the picture painting, storytelling, and wordplay.

 

[Alvin]

Crazy how method man, deck, raekwon and GFK had stronger verses than him on his own project and with him being the better rapper than the entire Wu.

 

[TheDarceKnight]

@TEKBEATZ @SoulController

Can one of y’all help explain the 7th Chamber flip to me at 10:50? I’m still not sure that I hear that sample in the beat. Did RZA fukk with the pitch?



EDIT: and Cream and I Gotcha Back share the same sample?

 

[Pazzy]

Me too. Am I remembering it wrong or wasn't this joint created (or at least released) out a little bit before the rest of the album? It was on the Fresh soundtrack right?

because to my ears Swordsman is really the final song, and I Gotcha Back and B.I.B.L.E. are kind of bonus joints. Yeah yeah, i know interlude on the end of I Gotcha Back is technically the end of the album, but I've always felt like those last 2 tracks let you breathe a little bit after Swordsman, which feels like the climax.

I gotcha back is originally the last song on the album because theres no bible on the tape version. That would make sense given the outro is some heres what happens when you dont protect ya neck shyt. Got the cassette version back in 2003 from beat street (rip) too. Bible is only on the CD version.

 

[Pazzy]

@TEKBEATZ @SoulController

Can one of y’all help explain the 7th Chamber flip to me at 10:50? I’m still not sure that I hear that sample in the beat. Did RZA fukk with the pitch?



EDIT: and Cream and I Gotcha Back share the same sample?

Yeah, they took the singing loop from the beginning of cream before Rae drops his verse and sped it up for I gotcha back.


What I wanna know is what is the real sample for the jazz horns used on I gotcha back. I doubt that whosampled is correct.

 

[Pazzy]

Crazy how method man, deck, raekwon and GFK had stronger verses8 than him on his own project and with him being the better rapper than the entire Wu.

I disagree especially considering how ghost WASHED Rae on ob4cl and then Rae washed him on ironman. Nobody washed gza on his record not even meth with those two verses on shadowboxin. Gza did him a favor by not dropping a second verse.

 

[Mr. Negative]

@TEKBEATZ @SoulController

Can one of y’all help explain the 7th Chamber flip to me at 10:50? I’m still not sure that I hear that sample in the beat. Did RZA fukk with the pitch?



EDIT: and Cream and I Gotcha Back share the same sample?

yeah, RZA was flipping samples like two and three times on those early albums.

Like the intro to Tical and Meth vs Chef and Guillotine off OB4CL. It made the entire string of albums seem connected