Wu-Tang Clan - The 8 Diagrams

It's been 14 years since the Wu-Tang Clan took hip hop by the scruff of the neck and kicked new life into a stagnating genre. They arrived just as the first flush of gangsta superstars had helped shift rap's centre of gravity from its New York birthplace to the barbecues, swap-meets and low rider cars of sun-kissed Los Angeles, a whole continent distant, and temperamentally half a world away.
Recruiting from their army of friends and relatives, they assembled a rap supergroup: Clifford "Method Man" Smith, Russell "Ol' Dirty Bastard" Jones, Corey "Raekwon" Woods, Dennis "Ghostface Killah" Coles, Jason "Inspectah Deck" Hunter, Lamont "U-God" Hawkins Elgin "Masta Killa" Turner. They were nine emcees, each with a distinctive style and flow. They would record, first, as a group, which would announce each as an individual the personalities established, each would release their own records, play their own shows, carve their own niche in the pop culture edifice.
Cut to 2007, freshly signed to Bodog Music in Europe the eight emcees have got a rumble in their collective belly once again. RZA is back in charge "I'm in year three of my new five-year plan," he grins and the Clan are back in the studio.
And the line-up is as stellar and eclectic as one might have hoped for: as well as long-time collaborator Mathematics, RZA has been working with Q-Tip, Easy Mo Be,  hip hop pioneer Marley Marl, EPMD's DJ Scratch, and, in a real departure, the legendary Chic mastermind Nile Rogers.  The reliance on samples will be alleviated, too, by RZA's preference of working with two bands - Stone Mecca and Sound Guild, who are providing a mixture of improvised sounds to RZA's beat skeletons, and playing music the WU leader has written and scored for them. Other guests include Red Hot Chili Peppers guitar legend John Frusciante, System of a Down's bassist Shavo Odadjian, Erykah Badu (vocal on The Heart Gently Weeps) and Dhani Harrison, the son of the late Beatle, George.
The Ol Dirty Bastard tribute ‘16th Chamber’ is one of two special edition bonus tracks featuring new lyrics from the late O.D.B.
How Can Hip Hop be dead if WU TANG is …FOREVER!!

1.    Campfire
2.    Take It Back
3.    Get Them Out Ya Way Pa
4.    Face The Problems
5.    The Heart Gently Weeps
6.    Wolves
7.    Gun Will Go
8.    Sunlight
9.    Stick Me For My Riches
10.    Windmill
11.    Starter
12.    Weak Spot
13.    Life Changes
14.    Tar Pit feat George Clinton
15.    16th Chamber (ODB Special)

So, what do you think? Best reviewer each month gets £10 off their next order!