Eminem punches relentlessly downwards, joylessly and without inspiration – review

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In recent years, some critics have said that Eminem has been overshadowed by newer, younger rap artists. But really, Eminem has only been competing with himself from the past. The alter-ego he created for his 1999 album The Slim Shady LP, and continued in songs like "I'm Back", allowed him to express his most outrageous thoughts without holding back. This persona, Slim Shady, was like Eminem's wild side, saying things that were controversial and provocative. Some say he wouldn't be able to get away with those lyrics today, but he still tries to push boundaries in his music.

Over a series of serious albums released in recent years with titles like Recovery (2009) and Revival (2017), Mathers has changed and tried to come to terms with a difficult childhood filled with abuse and neglect. In a way, his alter ego, Shady, has also evolved – Mathers’ manager, Paul Rosenberg, told XXL magazine a few years ago that “Shady is now more thoughtful as a character”. However, the storyline of his 12th album completely ignores this personal growth by bringing back Shady from 1999 as a super-villain. In the music video for the first single, “Houdini”, a nervous Mathers – dressed as a superhero and looking like Del-Boy from that episode of Only Fools and Horses with inflatable sex dolls – says to producer Dr. Dre: “He's trying to get us in trouble!”

It starts off the album with a feeling of constantly trying to include as many jabs at Caitlyn Jenner as possible in just 65 minutes. The clip for "Houdini" finishes with a big event that brings together a mix of the young, rebellious Shady and the older, more mature Mathers (who is now 51). While the album was meant to give Mathers the chance to continue his previous offensive wordplay while also battling against his Shady persona, it ends up being a mix of the worst aspects of both.

The content in The Death Of Slim Shady is akin to an opinion piece in the Telegraph: it tries too hard to provoke a reaction by discussing topics like "the PC police" and "Gen Z". Eminem seems to do anything to stir things up, claiming that critics can't control him on the track "Habits", but it all comes off as tired and unoriginal. Like many others who criticize "woke culture", Eminem himself sounds out of touch and repetitive, constantly complaining about pronouns and even sharing unnecessary information about his own struggles on the song "Road Rage". It all just seems unnecessary.

His unusual interests in song lyrics are strange: he mocks Christopher Reeve, the actor known for playing Superman who was paralyzed in a horse-riding accident and passed away in 2004, a long time ago. During these instances, The Death Of Slim Shady seems like an album-length parody of Eminem by Weird Al, but even Weird Al wouldn't use such a boring beat like the one on "Houdini", which repeatedly loops the riff from the Steve Miller Band's "Abracadabra", sounding like the ringtone of a phone that's not being answered.

"Houdini" is definitely the low point of the album, but most of the other tracks are not much better. "Tobey" stands out as a single, with its tense production and strong verses from Babytron and Big Sean before Eminem finally takes the mic over three minutes in. Eminem's rapping is still sharp and clear, but the content lacks depth and originality, focusing too much on negative themes without any joy or inspiration.

As we reach the three-quarter mark, the internal battle within Mathers results in a tragic murder/suicide scenario. Suddenly, he awakens and speaks the cliché words that are loved by unimaginative screenwriters: "It was all just a dream." The final few songs take on a different tone, with "Temporary" dedicated to his daughter Hailie and featuring vocals from Skylar Grey, a frequent collaborator. This somber track sets the stage for the closing song, "Somebody Save Me", where Mathers envisions a life where he never overcame his struggles with addiction and tragically passed away before witnessing Hailie's major life milestones. Such thoughts reflect every parent's worst fears.

This intense ending focuses on a theme that was mentioned earlier in "Habits". In this part, Mathers compares his return to his Shady identity to a relapse of a drug addiction. The link between his dependency, his celebrity status, and his Shady alter ego is also highlighted in the skit "All You Got": Shady says to Mathers, "You were nothing until you found me. You can't surpass me, you can't outsmart me." The Freudian concept is interesting; a stronger album would have explored it more thoroughly. However, that would have meant sacrificing a few jokes about Caitlin Jenner, which he couldn't do, right?