Atmosphere Album: “God Loves Ugly [1/20]”

Do you like atmosphere?

are you into hip hop?

I have all of his albums. Even the seasonal stuff. This is the best.

There are almost 20 tracks on this album. I will not skip through a single one. From front to back this is my absolute favorite album.

Buy it here. Steal it. Burn it. Just get it.

The latest Atmosphere release has sparked something of a debate among the bands fans; some love it and some can't stand it. What's the deal, is it really a subpar Atmosphere release? Not really, it's just a slight departure in sound from some of the band's previous releases which used to consist of a few more upbeat, funky old-school tracks. "God Loves Ugly," as the title implys, further explores the dark side of frontman Slug hinted at on the excellent "Lucy Ford LP." Certainly that will throw off some people because, on the surface level, it makes for a decidedly less 'fun' listen. Yet "God Loves Ugly" is not without it's merits. These tracks may be downbeat, but they still really thump. Meanwhile, Slug has never sounded better; his flow is confident and articulate, and the subject matter is as biting and personal as ever. I'd imagine that "F*$# You Lucy" is a song that ever dumped boyfriend longs to put on that final mix-tape for his ex-girlfriend; it's blunt and expresses emotions that other songs can only dance around. Imagine the confessional, angry-tone of Eminem only less manufactured. And while on past Atmospere releases it's sounded like Slug was rhyming over an incredibly clever beat this one sounds like it's the beat that's always changing in order to keep up with Slug, an indication that this important duo has just about perfected their distinct sound. Yeah, it's dark, but it's not the music thats scary, it's the fact that the listener might be able to relate to it.

This is one of the best cds I have ever heard. From beats to lyrics atmosphere comes through with God Loves Ugly. The best artists no matter what the genre of music it is, are the ones that can out do there previous cd, well atmosphere has done just this. Not to take anything away from Lucy Ford which is also an excellent disc, but there's not one bad song on this cd. Oh yea and slug is an absolute lyrical genius and its about time that rappers start singin about stuff that actually makes sense instead of just throwin words together that rhyme. If your a fan of underground hip hop get this album you won't be dissapointed.

Atmosphere is one of those artists that always puts me in a good mood when I hear their music. Their style of wordplay and lack of gang violence and hood experiences makes this an enjoyable listen for many reasons. Hip-Hop/Rap was never intended to become what it was today, but a friend of mine from L.A. explained to me what happened to this genre in the early to mid 90's. So it's refreshing to be able to have options like Atmosphere to listen to amidst the over saturated market of noise and negativity. "God loves ugly" is a great album and after buying this and one of the Sad Clown joints I pretty much got carried away and bought almost all of Atmospheres music. It's that good in my opinion.

...then he must REALLY hate this album because it is...for a lack of a better word....beautiful. excellent. pretty. i had a promo copy of this cd a year ago before i was into the underground hip hop thing...guess what i did? i tossed aside to let it collect dust...well fast forward one year and i, surely enough, kicked my own ass. this album is BEAUTIFUL!!! BEAUTIFUL!!! it made me go insane, the album title track...God Loves Ugly...is AWESOME!!! and i think my man slug still got something goin' on against lucy. ant gives you beats nothing short of genius...BEAUTIFUL. so yeah...god hates this album. it is practically perfect. i love it. and don't knock it off with ignorant ass labels like "nerd rap" or "stupid concious rap." how can it be stupid if it's concious...you ugly....but hey at least god loves you.