Raekwon (feat. Inspectah Deck, Ghostface Killah, and Method Man) – “House of Flying Daggers”

Wu Tang Clan side projects used to come and go like in-laws at holiday time. Likewise, they became equally tiresome to see pop up every year, but that didn’t stop some tender memories from being created. Raekwon’s solo LP debut, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, is one of the fondest of all those memories, but the Wu’s “Chef” just hasn’t been able to cook up a second course that deserved to follow it. Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II (due out Sept. 8) may finally be the second helping everyone’s been starving for. If the entire album is as tasty a morsel as “House of Flying Daggers”, then Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 isn’t the hip hop album everyone should be excited about this year. Everything about this track screams bloody murder, from the rhymes (‘Niggas crash n’ burn/Ashes be placed in Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s urn’), to J-Dilla’s Da’ Bomb Squad-meets-70’s-kung-fu-flick production. I’m sending my compliments to the chef on this one. Did I mention the video is awesome? It’s awesome.