The Optical Files #142: GZA - Beneath the Surface (1999)

As Wu-Tang expanded in the latter half of the '90s from the (relatively) tight-knit group of 9 to the many-tendriled collective of affiliates, side projects, global cosigns & other assorted killa beez that it became, RZA began to step away from production duties out of both inclination & necessity. Never before had RZA had so little production input on a solo Wu member's album; even on Tical 2000 the previous year, he produced 4 beats, but on Beneath the Surface he only produces 1. That's not to say that RZA's fingerprints are not on this album, though. His proteges Mathematics & Arabian Knight, who between them produce 10 out of the album's 13 proper songs, have drunk deeply of the water from the Abbot's well. I don't say that like it's necessarily a good thing. Arabian Knight's sinister staccato strings are engrossing the 1st time you hear them on "Breaker, Breaker" (maybe the album's finest beat), but feel old by the time you get to "Stringplay." Ditto for Mathematics's short MPC chops on "Amplified Sample" compared to "Mic Trippin." The producers are best when they bring something a little different to the table, like Math's echoing piano chords on "High Price, Small Reward" or Knight's eerie picked guitar loop on "Victim." Knight also scores with the delay-drenched atonal string ensemble stabs of the "Intro" beat that return in the outro, & Math's best achievement here is the dusty orchestral movie score flip on "Publicity." Of course, RZA sounds more like himself than ever on the coldhearted "1112," & Wu-brother Inspectah Deck flips an epic triumphant orchestra on the title track. The most unexpected beat, though, comes courtesy of John the Baptist, whose drunken militant horns on "Crash Your Crew" perfectly complement ODB's unhinged chorus.

Long story short, the Wu production formula was starting to wear a little thin, & you can tell RZA knew it. This album also suffers from another common malady of late '90s rap records: too many guests. GZA only appears solo on 4 of the 13 proper songs, as compared to a more balanced ratio on Liquid Swords (which is still for my money the best Wu solo record). Wu-Tang is a collective, so you always expect more features than on an average solo rapper's LP. I think 50/50 is a sweet spot. Beneath the Surface just feels too crowded, & there are more affiliates & hangers-on than Wu-Tang heavy hitters. I have nothing against Hell Razah, Dreddy Krueger or Prodigal Sunn, but there are tantalizingly few appearances by emcees of the caliber of Killah Priest or Njeri (whose 2 features are the album's best).

Speaking of Njeri, she takes an already-brilliant song like "Victim" & elevates it to a stone-cold classic with her compassionate, delicately observed verse. After a chilling Angela Yee-penned intro about gun violence, GZA & Njeri use their novelistic eyes for detail to paint a vivid picture of the struggle of desperate "victims of the ghetto." Another highlight is "Publicity," one in GZA's series of thematic double-entendre focused lyrical workouts in the tradition of "Labels," "Animal Planet," "0% Finance" & "Queen's Gambit." GZA inserts as many names of rap journalism outlets as he can while ostensibly just spitting a standard ego trip song. I'm a junkie for shit like this, & the fact that he does it over the album's grimiest beat makes it even more of a winner.

Sadly, after Liquid Swords it was diminishing returns for GZA. But we can't really fault him for having trouble following up a masterpiece like his debut record. At the end of the day, this one is a short & sweet (46 minutes!) entertaining front-to-back listen with 4 undisputed classics. It's a shame the GZA (& overall Wu) grading curve is so tough, rendering albums like this marginal when they would be jewels in another artist's catalogue. Victims of their own success, I guess.