Before continuing any further, it is imperative that everyone reading this come to some sort of agreement. Since everybody and their grandmother’s best friend’s butler wants to rap nowadays, it is important to note that in order to truly stand out, one must be impeccable (or impeccably bad- whichever comes first). Now that this point has been made painfully clear, it is safe to say that Rise and The Avid Record Collector’s Risen does not exactly solidify their status as breakthrough artists. What exactly does this mean? Well, unfortunately, anyone wishing to argue against the so-called superiority ‘underground’ hip-hop has when compared to its other (better known) subgenres could use this album as evidence. Rise is a very gifted lyricist: there is no arguing against that. Creatively touching on such issues as broken homes, rappers who passed away too young and even the opposite sex, there are often quote-worthy lines to be found. ‘Sleep,’ a prime example, is the keeper of such gems as, ‘I give champagne for real friends, real pain for sham friends….’ Here’s the buzz kill: not only does Rise stray from being on time through out Risen, but swear to God, his flow and nonchalant delivery (amplified by a semi-permeable lisp) are almost completely uniform throughout the entire project. And when he talks about being the best thing since sliced bread, one can only help but feel bad because whether or not even he believes that way questionable. To make matters worse, nearly every guest he hops on a track with’ whether it is Substantial or Masta Ace’ noticeably surpasses him. As far as production, there are times when The Avid Record Collector sparkles but for the most part, it’s a bit expected and therefore hard to credit with being individual enough. While underground heads might eat this up right away, chances are there isn’t enough cadence, strength in delivery or one-of-a-kind beats here for many to fully enjoy.

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