Tech N9ne- Strangeulation Deluxe Edition

In a April 2014, interview with StupidDope, Tech N9ne spoke about the inspiration behind the title of the album, saying: "Something’s always happening in Tech N9ne’s life whether it be happy, whether it be sad, whether it be madness. I’m always living it so I’m always writing. The influence behind Strangeulation is off of the word strangulation, you know. Having the industry in a choke-hold after they hear this music. Nobody will be able to say nothing. Just all the way choked up. MURS to MayDay! to Stevie Stone to Ces Cru to Tech N9ne to Krizz Kaliko to Kutt Calhoun to Jay Rock." On April 29, 2014, the music video was released for "Over It" featuring Ryan Bradley. Strangeulation is the fourteenth studio album by American rapper Tech N9ne, the fifth in his "Collabos" series. The album was released on May 6, 2014, by Strange Music.  The album features guest appearances from the entire Strange Music roster, including its newest signing Murs, as well as some outside collaborators such as Tyler Lyon, Ryan Bradley, Mackenzie O'Guin, Kendall Morgan, John 5 and Serj Tankian. Track listing

1. Strangeulation I
2. Hard (A Monster Made It) Ft Murs
3. Over It Ft Ryan Bradley
4. Make Waves Ft Krizz Kaliko, Rittz & Tyler Lyon
5. Nobody Cares (The Remix) Ft Krizz Kaliko, Stevie Stone, Wrekonize, Bernz & Ces Cru
6. Great Night Ft Ces Cru
7. Red Rags Ft Big Scoob, Jay Rock & Kutt Calhoun
8. Strangeulation II Ft Stevie Stone, Murs, Brotha Lynch Hung & Godemis
9. Which One Ft Murs & Godemis
10. American Horror Story Ft Ces Cru
11. Fear Ft Mackenzie O’guin
12. Strangeulation III Ft Bernz, Kutt Calhoun, Ubiquitous & Wrekonize
13. Na Na Ft Stevie Stone & Rittz
14. Stink Ft Krizz Kaliko, Stevie Stone & Kendall Morgan
15. The Calling Ft Tyler Lyon
16. Strangeulation IV Ft Prozak, Big Scoob, Krizz Kaliko & Rittz
17. We Are Free Ft Bernz & Wrekonize
18. Sut Mig Ft Wrekonize (Bonus Track)
19. SOTG Remix Intro (Bonus Track)
20. Straight Out The Gate (The Scott Stevens Remix) Ft John 5, Krizz Kaliko & Serj Tankian
21. Withdrawal Ft Krizz Kaliko

Track by track review and rating Strangeulation I- The only Strangeulation track on the album with only one artist.  Tech holds it down and leads this album off with a solid track.  A good beat backs solid lyrics in this one.  4/5 Hard (A Monster Made It) Ft Murs- A very stripped down beat that gives a slow but impressive flow.  While the hook is a little too simplistic and hokie with the “My shit is hard, constipated” line it works here.  Murs delivers a solid verse that shows why Tech wanted to sign him.  4/5 Over It Ft Ryan Bradley- The addition of Ryan Bradley on this track gives this track the feeling it should have been on the “Something Else” album.  It is a nice change from the normal sound we get from Tech.  The verses are signature Tech over a simple beat.  3.5/5 Make Waves Ft Krizz Kaliko, Rittz & Tyler Lyon- Another track that would have fit on “Something Else” this track will appeal to Technicians as well as rock oriented fans.  Krizz and Rittz add very solid verses to this track.  Tech continues to push the limits of rap and hip hop with his own special rap/rock hybrids.  4.5/5 Nobody Cares (The Remix) Ft Krizz Kaliko, Stevie Stone, Wrekonize, Bernz & Ces Cru- A hard beat drives the verses here while giving way to a melodic hook.  The combination of all of the featured artists works well here despite their varied styles.  3.5/5 Great Night Ft Ces Cru- This would be the club banger on this album.  The hook is slightly too repetitive and that detracts from the overall enjoyability.  The verses are dope but the beat drowns the lyrics out at times.  Ces Cru adds their flavor to the last two verses and make this a decent track.  3.5/5 Red Rags Ft Big Scoob, Jay Rock & Kutt Calhoun- The beat here is much slower and deliberate.  Tech slows his flow to match the beat and it works nicely.  Big Scoob, Jay Rock, and Kutt all add equally hard verses to make this track flow.  4/5 Strangeulation II Ft Stevie Stone, Murs, Brotha Lynch Hung & Godemis- The beat is the same as every Strangeulation tracks on this album.  This is good because it allows us to see how each artist flows around the same beat.  All four artists here do the beat justice and give the listener a solid collab track.  4/5 Which One Ft Murs & Godemis- A backpack beat in this one.  The verses are solid and fit the backpack theme.  Murs and Godemis show their verbal skills.  The one thing that brings down the rating here is the hook, way too simple.  3.5/5 American Horror Story Ft Ces Cru- This track immediately lets the listener know this is nothing like any other track on the album.  The hook is nasty and wicked.  The verses continue this theme but are let down a little by the electronic sounds on the ends of each line.  4.5/5 Fear Ft Mackenzie O’guin- An angelic sound leads this track.  The lyrics give us a look into Tech’s personal life.  It is nice to see an artist open up and let his fans in.  4.5/5 Strangeulation III Ft Bernz, Kutt Calhoun, Ubiquitous & Wrekonize- Each artist here goes hard!  This is the best collab track to this point on the album.  Their ability to take the same beat and go at it harder than the previous ones shows the skills of the Strange Music crew.  4/5 Na Na Ft Stevie Stone & Rittz- This would be the sexual track on this album.  A simple beat, simple lyrics, and a simple hook make this a chill track.  It is easy to see this as a track to play while getting down in the bedroom.  3.5/5 Stink Ft Krizz Kaliko, Stevie Stone & Kendall Morgan- The beat in this track is alright but a little to choppy for some listeners.  The hook is stripped way down but it works.  Krizz and Stevie add their own flavor to the verses.  3.5/5 The Calling Ft Tyler Lyon- Another rock/rap hybrid with Tyler Lyon.  The verses are well done.  The hook is stripped way back and is alright.  This type of track needs to be peppered into any album as too much of it tends to make the album drag slightly.  3/5 Strangeulation IV Ft Prozak, Big Scoob, Krizz Kaliko & Rittz- These artists do not flow nearly as well as the last collab track.  The verses are well done but they don’t flow together.  It seems disjointed and rushed.  3.5/5 We Are Free Ft Bernz & Wrekonize- A slightly long intro gives way to tribal beats here.  Tech’s verse has a lot of effects added to it which take away from his lyrics.  The hook is reminiscent of a slave anthem.  A decent track.  3.5/5 Sut Mig Ft Wrekonize (Bonus Track)- A smooth simple beat allows the verses to shine here.  The hook is simple but has its desired effect.  A really solid track.  4/5 SOTG Remix Intro (Bonus Track)- Short intro about the next track.  N/A Straight Out The Gate (The Scott Stevens Remix) Ft John 5, Krizz Kaliko & Serj Tankian- A remix the “Something Else” track Tech did with Serj.  John 5 adds a solid guitar performance.  This is a really enjoyable remix of a favorite track on that album.  4/5 Withdrawal Ft Krizz Kaliko- This track is a Krizz Kaliko track in composition and performance.  It is a really solid track overall but seems out of place on this album.  With Tech only adding a little here and there it would have been better presented on another album.  3/5 Conclusion:  While this album has a ton of featured artists the listener never feels overwhelmed.  Giving the listener the same beat with various artists over it allows Tech to show the diversity of his label.  Each guest on the album does a nice job of bringing their style and delivery without overshadowing one another.  This is another in a long line of solid releases from Strange Music.  Is it worth the investment?  Yes.  Overall Rating: 3.75/5