Rating:
Genre:
Rap
Release Date: 04/01/2002
It's only appropriate that
Xzibit's highly anticipated, and often-delayed,
Restless concluded
hip-hop's millennial melting pot. After all,
Xzibit's association with
Dr. Dre and his
Aftermath regime attached very lofty expectations to
Restless;
X was publicly anointed as the next MC expected to blow up. Surely, with
Dre as executive producer and guest shots from
Eminem,
Snoop Dogg, and
Dre himself,
Xzibit was virtually assured of acquiring the mainstream success that eluded him on previous efforts (
At the Speed of Life and
40 Dayz & 40 Nightz). Thanks largely to
Dre's knob-twisting input,
Restless became aural kin to
Dre's own
2001 comeback vehicle, as the head-nod factor is immediately established on
"Front to Back," the heavenly synth stabs
"X," and
"Get Your Walk On." The main flaw in
Restless' formula lies primarily with
Xzibit's extensive list of guest collaborators. While contributions from
Dre (
"U Know"),
Snoop (
"D.N.A."), and
Eminem (
"Don't Approach Me") are all welcomed, appearances from
DJ Quik and
KRS-One, among many others, take the focus off
Xzibit's formidable lyrical boasting, which precludes
Restless from forming a desired level of cohesiveness. On
"X," Xzibit pledges to "Rearrange the game with my rugged sound," and he periodically delivers on that promise. However, it would have taken nothing short of a masterpiece for
Xzibit to appease
hip-hop's finicky masses. And while
Restless isn't the crowning achievement many predicted, it is X to the Z's most consistent effort to date.
~Matt Conaway, All Music Guide
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