User Score
Universal acclaim- based on 58 Ratings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 52 out of 58
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Mixed: 2 out of 58
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Negative: 4 out of 58
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- Most helpful
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johnnyb.Jun 12, 2007I would call el-p ahead of his time, but I don't think time will ever catch him.
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JosephMMay 30, 2007I'd rather listen to Aesop Rock. This album is good front start to finish, but it only has one stand out track, and that is not enough for me.
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jordanpMar 20, 2007Incredible album from start to finish, I guess I'm already used to El's brutal approach to making tracks so I personally didn't find this album to be a "difficult" listen at all. To each his own but this CD won't be coming out of my deck anytime soon.
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SysTooLApr 1, 2007Excellent segue to "Fantastic Damage"! We still find these complex layers of sound and the paranoid flow of El-P, which makes this album quite difficult to listen at first!
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WeeWeeJumboApr 28, 2007
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chrisnMar 20, 2007This is the best cd i ever heard. Full of memorable lyrics , soundscapes and taboo subjects
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AlexAMar 23, 2007This is hardcore.
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AlexCMar 26, 2007One of the most powerful hip-hop albums in the past 20 years. It takes time to unravel, soak in, and fully experience as it was meant to be taken. At some times it's bleak and unforgiving. At others, it's beautiful and uplifting. Overall, ISWYD is powerful and unrelenting in innovation and purpose.
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heightsyMar 6, 2007
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gagdMar 8, 2007new hip hop doesn't grab me much, but this shit grabs me more then any other hip hop ever did. fucking brilliant
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JTRJun 28, 2007Dope. Musically melodic, lyrically satisfying, superior in every way to all contemporary rap artists. Builds on the foundations of Fantastic Damage, and adds nuances and fixtures that floorplan lacked. What's wrong with deep production value when holistically the package is so complete?
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JohnDMar 14, 2007
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PaulFMar 19, 2007album of the year by far!!! the best hip hop album in years - scratch that the best album in years full stop - can't stop playing it!!!
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RichardHMar 21, 2007
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DrewPMar 26, 2007Dark, dense, and one of the most exciting albums I've heard in a while. I'm looking forward to unraveling these lyrics for months to come. Find those detonators, indeed!
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music411Mar 26, 2007This record is definitely better than his last one. It has more depth, more thorough writing and production definitely sounded like it was afforded with better mixing and eqing because it really hits! amazing.
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srApr 16, 2007amazing.
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kkonthesideMay 6, 2007El-Producto is still ahead of time. You can't expect an album this intelligent and agressive to get a fair review from music critics that gush over an artist like Panda Bear. I don't think 'I'll Sleep when You're Dead" is the quantum leap forward for Hip-Hop that Fantastic Damage was in 2002, but its still one of the most original and best albums of 2007.
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hypernationJan 24, 2008this album along with Saul williams niggy tardust will completely change your view on what hip hop is capable of. Incredible, diverse and all too rare in this landscape of mediocrity.
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MarkJMar 13, 2007Heavenly difficult
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AlexSMar 21, 2007AUDIO CRACK. chaotic production... razor sharp vocals... i hated el until i heard this album. its definitely worth the buy.
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ColinDMar 22, 2007
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TristramCApr 12, 2007Its no Fantastic Damage. A lot of the edge has dulled. The production is fun to listen to in a masterbratory, way to fret over, kind of way. I dunno. Its El-P and all but I was kinda disappointed.
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SeanP.Apr 29, 2007Incredibly dense and complex. It reminds me of Fear Of A Black Planet. Repeat listens are required.
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Oct 8, 2014You really can't stop listening once you start. El-P made his big entrance with Fantastic Damage, but in some ways this seems to surpass Fantastic Damage lyrically.
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Mar 5, 2016El-P knows how to construct beats and display raw lyricism. he does that again on here. this one is another awesome piece of work hes crafted. this is up there with his past works.
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Aug 1, 2019The dark and masterfully layered production is what makes this album able to stand the test of time. Over 10 years later and it still sucks me in every time I put it on. Certainly an album that is greater as a whole than as a sum of parts.
Awards & Rankings
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Once it hits its stride, it just keeps on getting better.
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UrbThere was a lot going on, but it's not until now... that El-P's music could actually be called full. So full that even silence weighs a ton. [Mar 2007, p.95]
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Paste MagazineAlready the best hip-hop release of 2007, and it ain't even close. [Mar 2007, p.68]