By
Phil Leckman
2Pac
"Until The End of Time"
(Amaru/Interscope/Death Row)
Grade: C
Is 2pac Shakur really, truly dead? The crown prince of west coast hip-hop supposedly shuffled off this mortal coil back in September1996, but his productivity since then vastly exceeds most living artists. The Shakur legacy, now overseen by his mother Afeni, has produced 3 full-length albums, a greatest hits collection, a book of poetry, several hit singles, and even videos cleverly spliced from pre-existing footage. "Until The End of Time," the latest entry in the cash-in-on-2Pac cavalcade, features two discs - over two full hours - of unreleased material from the tatooed rapper's 1996"Makaveli" sessions. Even this hasn't exhausted the prolific performer's vaults - a second double album is slated for later this year.
There are some tracks of distinction here, such as the rapid-fire, aggressive "All Out," and if nothing else, this collection emphasizes the enormous debt many of today's rap stars - like DMX, Jah Rule, and especially Master P - owe to 2Pac's attitude, delivery, and lyrical vision. Others, like "Until the End of Time"also highlight Shakur's lyrical ability - whatever his faults, 2Pac was an urban poet virtually unequalled within his genre. But there are good reasons why much of this material never saw the light of day, even on "Makaveli," Shakur's weakest studio album. The brutality and misogyny that marred so much of his work is glaringly obvious. The beats are anemic and lackadaisical, a far cry from the Dr. Dre-produced strings and keyboards on "All Eyez on Me," Pac's 1996 magnum opus. His reputation has made posthumous collections like this one virtual money in the bank for both Shakur's mother and the increasingly irrelevant Death Row Records. But the farmer whose goose laid golden eggs, those exploiting 2Pac's fame should take warning - sub-par releases like this will only develop their meal ticket's legacy.
