Words by Bill "Low-Key" Heinzelman Rating: 3.5 out of 5.0
Patience has to be one of Truth Enola's virtues. Even though he stormed onto the scene in 1996 when he was featured on De La Soul's "Pony Ride," Truth Enola's time to shine was cut short by industry politics and bad luck. Now eight long years later, Truth is finally getting the chance to release his debut album 6 O'clock Straight. Saying Truth's debut has been long overdue is an understatement. Most emcees would have packed up their bags and gave up after being through eight years of hip-hop limbo, but not Truth Enola. He survived and persevered, and 6 O'Clock Straight is a tribute to that.
If you have never heard Truth Enola's music, you should be ready to hop into that hip-hop time machine, because Truth is going to take you back to the second golden age of hip-hop. His early '90s boom bap style is transparent on every one of his songs, making for an album that older heads are certain to love. However, his true strength lies within his trademark sing song hooks. Long before 50 Cent popularized the style, Truth Enola was making similar hooks on classic De La Soul cuts.
Prime examples of Truth's insanely catchy hooks can be seen throughout 6 O'clock Straight. The energetic sounds of "Lighters Up" will have your head nodding until it falls off, thanks to Truth's strong hook and slick wordplay. But not to be forgotten is the god Celph Titled, who never ceases to amaze behind the boards. "Honey Love" is another banger, as Truth's harmonic singsong hook is about as catchy as can be. Besides his strong hooks, Truth also provides some nice variety in song making as well. "All Alone", complete with a fitting vocal sample, examines a life full of wealth but no one around to share it with. On "I'm Sorry" Truth delves into the troubles of a rocky relationship, providing a nice change of pace from the album's usual assortment of songs.
While the album's twenty tracks could have been trimmed down to a modest number, overall 6 O'Clock Straight remains consistent to the end. There are a few average attempts, such as "Everything Gonna Be Alright," "How Its Gonna Be" featuring Phife Dawg and "Ain't Change," but they fail to take away from the album's all around success. If you are one of those hip-hop heads who longs for a return to hip-hop's glory days of strong rhymes, fun concepts and playful hooks, than look no further than Truth Enola's debut album, 6 O'Clock Straight. Let's just hope it does not take Truth another eight years for him to drop his sophomore release.
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