Grant JonesTermanology is a rapper that I feel I should like more than I do. He has a rich history in underground Hip-Hop; twenty years of albums and mixtapes with noteworthy names like Statik Selektah, Lil’ Fame, Paul Wall and Tek (of Smif-n-Wessun) don’t just happen overnight, this has been the result of a reliable workhorse that’s built up a lot of respect in the scene, the culture, and the industry. “Things I Seen”, the Boston emcee’s latest album, is fully produced by Bronze Nazareth, and sees the cocky swagger dialled down a notch to welcome listeners into something more personal, and ultimately, more interesting. Well, partially.
If you’re into the self-celebratory boom-bap stylings that Termanology has often used as his soundtrack, Bronze Nazareth comes correct with a variety of soulful beats that slam you in the head with drums (“Sometimes You Go”) one moment, and caress your ears with some finger-clicking bass the next (“Henny Cancer”). It’s no real surprise that Term’ has chosen good beats, because it’s something that has followed him his whole career. He’s an ardent fan, ready to remind the listener on every song, and it’s recycled, well-worn themes like this that detract from the more introspective moments on the album.
The song “Things I Seen” mentions childhood trauma and how music helped him steer clear of a shortened life, slinging drugs, and it succeeds at painting a more open book than I associate with Termanology. This concept goes straight out the window, though, with “Make It Flood” a boastful set of verses about pulling strippers (although this is a catchy effort). By the time “Beast Mode” and “Fargo” start caving in your head with their tough beats and braggadocio, it’s reduced to being another album with an incomplete identity.
Jon Connor impresses with his precise flow on “History Lesson”, but it sums up the album’s primary flaw. The one song that does impress alongside the title track is “Do You Remember”, an incredible head-nodder seeing Termanology and ST Da Squad colleague Superstah Snuk (sounding much like early Ransom) document their memories of the late 1980s and early 1990s, growing up on food stamps and washing clothes in the sink. It’s these details that paint a picture, but at just two minutes, it’s over before it gets going, making it an unfortunate missed opportunity to be one of Termanology’s most potent songs in years. I appreciated the DJ Eyeball cuts in the prelude to the song “Do You Remember”, which is a standout track, and hints at the self-awareness that this has the makings of a great song.
As a fan, a seed of doubt over Termanology was planted back in 2006 when he came out of the gate with the DJ Premier-laced “Watch How It Go Down”, reeling off lines like “I see myself as the holy resurrection of Pun” that raised a few eyebrows amongst my friends. Most obviously, this reoccurs on “A Lotta Prose” with the line “I’m the greatest Rican since Big Pun” reminding us that the confidence/delusion never left, in a world where Joell Ortiz and Chino XL have operated in, he’s not doing himself any favours.
If you’re not interested in the story behind the Good Dad Gang initiative, or the backstory that made Term’ the artist and person he is today, and just want some dope beats with certifiably reliable rhyming from numerous guests, “Things I Seen” has enough to satisfy many underground heads, but it fails to deliver on the thematic depth that was advertised to those of us that still have doubts over Termanology’s claims to be one of the greats of the past two decades. The moments where Term opens up, he becomes an interesting artist rather than a spurious spitter, and “Things I Seen” succeeds when it sticks to the concept of a man revealing to the listeners things he’s seen. When it descends into the usual brag rap, the album threatens to become forgettable.