‘Curtain Call 2’ is a follow-up, of sorts, and it looks at what came after. A whopping 35 track affair – an old-fashioned jewel-case double CD, in other words – there’s enough here to suggest that fans who have disregarded Eminem’s modern way have been mistaken, that some fires do burn. There’s also a lot of chaff, however, and a slew of brand management – if Eminem in 2002 felt molten, in perpetual evolution, then Eminem in 2022 is more monolithic, marbled.
Perhaps inevitably for a modern rap compilation, feature culture looms large. Opening with the Juice WRLD aided ‘Godzilla’, Eminem’s explosive flow is in full effect. If you’ve tuned out from Em’s trickery, then the impact is immediate – he remains the Usain Bolt of the mic, the fastest man in the booth. The novelty, though, can’t be sustained, particularly when evidence of his sometimes wayward quality control seeps through. ‘Walk On Water’ with Beyonce or ‘Love The Way You Lie’ with Rihanna remain faultless, but Bruno Mars team up ‘Lighters’ is fluff, inessential pop-rap.
Evidence of Eminem’s tastes and persuasions litter the project. Kehlani team up ‘Nowhere Fast’ still feels slightly jarring, her incredible vocal never truly aligning with Eminem’s bars. Indeed, ‘Curtain Call 2’ is at its most engaging when the Detroit figure simply cuts back on the Billboard tie-ins, and reminds us all why he became such a revered rapper in the first place. 50 Cent appears on old school bumper ‘Is This Love’ while the Dr. Dre production on ‘Crack A Bottle’ returns Eminem to his cartoonish best. Partnering Snoop Dogg on ‘From The D 2 The LBC’ results in gold, a low-slung West Coast breezer with some added Michigan grit.
