Immortalized

by John BushOne of the grimmest, most fatalistic rappers ever since his debut ten years before, Spice 1 only continued what he's known for on Immortalized. Track titles like "F*** the World," "Ride Fo' Mine," "Killerfornia," and "What the F***" tell most of the story, though Spice's rhymes are tight and inventive throughout. The production, by Rick Rock on most tracks, is classic California G-funk with a more high-tech edge, excellent on the first few tracks though the quality bottoms out midway through. The highlight, "Suckas Do What They Can (Real Playaz)," includes not only Yukmouth from the Luniz and Spice's mentor 132295?Too $hort, but also features one of the last appearances by Zapp's Roger Troutman before his death. For listeners able to handle so much negativity on one full-length, Immortalized offers a few quality tracks but becomes a cohesive album.