Relapse Vs. Recovery, How Are The Alike And Different

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With the release of Recovery earlier this week, Eminem is back on top after delivering another album within a years time . The projects, Recovery and 2009′s Relapse, bookend the rapper’s return from a five-year, drug-addled hiatus .

The two albums , however, are totally different . Although both chronicle his dependency, each does so in dfferent ways. Relapse was created while he was still getting use to himself being sober . Also, Relapse‘s satirical first single, “We Made You,” was a slap in the face to celebrities he felt like talking about .

” Didn’t think the album was going to do so well ,” Keith Murphy, Vibesenior editor, told MTV News. ” Drugs have been a big part of Rock N Roll music . It’s always been a part of that from Marvin Gaye to Jimi Hendrix to David Bowie. But those guys kind of seemed to always be able to rebound from their excesses and put out incredible work and work that seemed like their head was on their shoulders . Relapse, you got the sense that he had no business recording that album, and not because it was a bad album — there was some good songs on there — but you could just see that struggle of someone trying to figure it out and someone that was actually afraid to rap sincerely about what he went through.”

Dr.Dre produced most of the album , and on standouts like “Beautiful” and “Deja Vu,” Eminem vividly articulates his dark descent . The project, though, was made in the aftermath of Eminem’s divorce, the murder of his close friend Proof and the rapper nearly overdosing.The emotional turmoil Eminem was facing, perhaps, made it difficult for him to focus. In particular, the rapper didn’t appear to pay tribute to Proof on any of the songs.

That’s why he said his last album was “ehh” on Recovery‘s lead single, “Not Afraid.”

Looking for new sounds,Eminem brought in a slew of new collaborators for Recovery, only using Dr. Dre’s production on a handful of tracks.

“He was not as forthcoming with his unhappiness with Relapseat that moment,” Noah Callahan-Bever, Complexeditor in chief, said about Eminem, who graced the magazine’s December/January cover. “I think he was still forming his own opinion and sitting with it and dissecting it in hindsight himself. But it was clear he understood that he had more to say and he hadn’t articulated it all. So, for me, my personal expectation was that he would create this thing that would be to Relapse what ‘The Dark Knight’ was to ‘Batman Begins.’ That was the beginning and a loose thought, and then he’s gonna fully polish it.

“To me, that’s so indicative of where his head was at that he hadn’t sorted out how he felt about all this stuff that transpired during his downtime,” Callahan-Bever added of the differences between the two sets and the lack of a Proof tribute on the former. The Complex editor even suggested that Recoveryrivals the best of Eminem’s work, putting the collection nearly on par with The Eminem Show.

Fans can expect for Eminem to come back stronger,even after this album .

Freelance writer and frequent Village Voicecontributor Chris Weingarten saidthe rapper is simply back to doing what he does best: delivering rhymes on a superior technical level . And despite appearances by Pink and Rihanna, Weingarten said the album feels hushed and minimalist.

” He’s flowing again . “He’s a beast again . It may not be the hottest album . The choruses are still a little corny, but he’s rapping like he was in the ’90s, when he was doing ridiculous punch-line rap on Rawkus Records stuff. He’s back to his lyrical wordplay . He’s being very clear and focused, and it shows.”