Ah yes, there's plenty of blunted references on Dare Iz A Darkside, although strangely the track that has been getting massive air-play stateside, 'Smoke A Blunt Too', has been omitted from the LP - it was previously the star turn of Def Jam's pre-release winter sampler. But to moan about such an exclusion does massive injustice to 'Dare...', an album that confirms the huge promise of 1993's 'Whut? Thee Album' and more. The hot and earthy funk flows like lava -- remember that young Reggie comes from the same city as the Godfather of Funk, George Clinton. Redman never sleeps on a track. Many of the cuts (like 'A Million And 1 Boodah Spots', 'Wuditlooklike' and 'Slide & Rock On') aren't much more than four minutes long. He's realized that too many other rappers spend their time babbling on when the business of producing a whole set of different flavas is ignored. Anyway, the fluidness and cadence of Redman's delivery makes his rhymes sound like he's packing a lifetime into a single set of lyrics. And if imitation is the greatest form of flattery, then Redman must be bored of the sycophants -- over the last two years he's been imitated more times than Tommy Cooper. This album will assure that Redman will now be mentioned in the same breath as Rakim and Paris as the dopest emcees in hip-hop. 'Chocolate City' is what Redman calls his home town of Newark -- and this is one Willy Wonka of an album. Damn near perfection. -- HHC, 1/95. Revisit it...
