G-Unit - T.O.S. (Terminate On Sight) Review

There's a five-year gap between the unleashing of G-Unit's debut album -- 2003's Beg for Mercy -- and the more casual dropping of the follow-up, T.O.S., as in Terminate on Sight. Even so, 50 Cent's crew remains the thing that anchors his hip-hop career, connecting him to the streets through mixtapes, guest appearances, and venomous beefs with other rappers, including two of its own. The war with former member the Game is ongoing, but what's new here is the dismissal of Young Buck, a complicated matter that had Buck playing the thoughtful thug in turmoil while 50 acted as the unforgiving hard boss, G-Unit's supreme capo. As the album dropped, Buck was out and his five T.O.S. tracks are relics from the mixtape world, albeit worthy ones that deserve their aboveground status. Throwing its guns in the air and making the club rumble, the addictive "Rider, Pt. 2" is quintessential G-Unit, and when Buck declares "Even if 50 drop me/I still wouldn't sign" on the cut, it's a drama-filled bonus for fanboys....full text One of the best attributes of 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks and Tony Yayo's 2003 album "Beg for Mercy" was its balance of radio-friendly and comical tracks, but "T.O.S. (Terminate on Sight)" sounds like 16 cuts of the same murderous lyrics atop heavy bass. There are a few entertaining joints, like the infectious Rick Rock-produced "Rider Part 2" featuring a chorus ("whoa whoa") that's perfectly hard-edged for East Coast radio. "Party Ain't Over" features former G-Unit member Young Buck, who switches up his cadence alongside a fun guitar lick and hand claps. "You So Tough" is a thinly veiled attack on Atlanta MC T.I., where 50 essentially calls the rapper a snitch for emerging from stiff gun charges with a light jail sentence....full text The road from "Beg for Mercy" to "Terminate on Sight" has been a long journey with many unexpected twists and turns - and not many of them pleasant. There were bound to be some growing pains for the group over the last five years as each member of the crew carved out their own niche with solo projects, and none were more painful than those of Young Buck. Brought into the Unit to help fill a role made absent by Tony Yayo's prison bid, his Southern drawl added a unique and flavorful sound to the New York crew. In retrospect the group's album was far more of a success because of it particularly when Yayo's only solo album "Thoughts of a Predicate Felon" is put under the microscope. While Yayo's album was solid enough musically, his vocal tone lacks a certain charisma and his lyrics tend towards the more simplistic side of rhyming. In a head-up comparison between the two Buck completely owns Yayo in personality, style, delivery and ability....full text