One of the most persistent myths in the Eminem fandom is the lost Holy Grail of 'Relapse 2', and despite its existence being heavily implied by the management, the project has never materialised. Everybody knows that he had plenty of songs recorded, and even after the 'Relapse: Refill' deluxe issue and numerous leaks, there must be something left, and Eminem doesn't deny it, but it's just that he considers the songs to be below his usual standard. The revelation was made all the more shocking given that he had all but promised two albums in the 'Relapse' project, and given that the horrorcore-themed project quickly amassed a loyal fanbase, the news of its sequel's cancellation was particularly frustrating, yet given the circumstances — namely Eminem's sobriety and self-reinvention as an emcee — the decision to go another direction was ultimately understandable. Though 'Relapse 2' was no more, 'Recovery' served as an important chapter of the Slim Shady story — one that found him rediscovering his humanity, and building on the foundation laid by 'Beautiful' and 'Deja Vu'. At the time, 'Relapse' had revealed itself to be something of a niche album, as although the Eminem name ensured commercial success, the macabre subject matter proved divisive, which was to be expected, as not everybody is eager to engage in murderous and rape-laden fantasies, inspired in part by the minds of serial killers like Ed Gein, Ted Bundy, and John Waye Gacy. Yet those who were found much to enjoy on 'Relapse' and its subsequent expansion, from Dr. Dre's haunting production to Eminem engaging in the most technically proficient rapping of his career.
Much has been made of the infamous accents, with even Eminem decrying them as recently as 2018, but they’re ultimately part of the concept. It’s no secret that the initial response was divided, with some critics coming down on the negative side, and it got so bad that Eminem ultimately cancelled his plans to deliver a sequel, despite having allegedly plotted music with Dr. Dre, D12, Lloyd Banks, and 50 Cent. It was 50 Cent who was actually the reason he decided to do two albums in the first place, as apparently they'd recorded so much material during the 'Relapse' sessions that he recommended splitting it up, describing the project as thematically linked to its predecessor. It's therefore understandable to believe that one version of 'Relapse 2' existed before the first was even released, being the product of leftover songs from his highly productive sessions with Dr. Dre. The gameplan changed when Eminem, Dr. Dre, and Denaun Porter went to Hawaii in the summer of 2009, after 'Relapse' had dropped and the reception had begun settling in. Holing up in the Honolulu Studio, they started work on a new batch of music, and it didn’t take long for the songs created during the Hawaii sessions to spark his creativity, to the point where he felt that the new tracks were far superior to what he had originally lined up. These could have included 'On Fire', 'So Bad', 'Ridaz', and possibly even 'The Warning', and although some of those songs ultimately ended up on 'Recovery', if he was still intending to drop 'Relapse 2' as planned, then it's likely those recordings would form the basis of a new version of the anticipated sequel.
After Dre left Hawaii to commence work on his own lost album 'Detox', Eminem was at a crossroads, as he clearly had no interest in revisiting his older material, especially after a promising batch of new songs, and this proved correct when he delayed 'Relapse 2' to 2010, and instead concluded the year with 'Relapse: Refill', which added an additional seven songs, including the Dr. Dre assisted 'Hell Breaks Loose', 'Buffalo Bill', 'Elevator', 'Taking My Ball', 'Drop The Bomb On Em', and 'Music Box'. This could imply that he had already moved on from the original 'Relapse 2', shifting focus to a completely new project, and instead had repackaged the highlights from it on 'Refill', bearing in mind the subject matter of tracks like 'Buffalo Bill' and 'Music Box'. This was confirmed mere months later, when he announced "there is no 'Relapse 2'.", and before long he'd delivered 'Recovery', the album which grew into being from another, decidedly more deranged version of 'Relapse 2'. Although he might throw fans a bone once in a while, donning the bloody apron for old time's sake on a track like 'Framed', for all intents and purposes, 'Relapse 2' has become another chapter of hip-hop’s ever-growing tome of lost lore and mythology. There have been a number of re-imaginings of this album, which mostly use the six best tracks from 'Relapse: Refill' as a basis, and then add in various out-takes, but I couldn't find a definitive version and so I've taken the best from each of them to come up with an album which I feel flows well, and includes all the best tracks, while omitting ones that didn't work in the context of the album.
Track listing
01 Breaking News (Skit)
02 Things Get Worse (feat. Bob)
03 I'm Having A Relapse
04 Oh No
05 Hell Breaks Loose (feat. Dr. Dre)
06 The Warning
07 Cocaine (feat. Jazmine Sullivan)
08 Drop The Bomb On 'Em
09 Music Box
10 Psycho (feat. 50 Cent)
11 Buffalo Bill
12 Hit Me With Your Best Shot (feat. D12)
13 Taking My Ball
14 Ridaz
15 On Fire (feat. D12)
16 So Bad
17 Elevator
18 Forever (feat. Drake, Kanye West & Lil Wayne)
No comments:
Post a Comment