Not a review, but a sloppy rant regarding Common's new album

I like Common. I really do. Not as much as Immortal Technique, Atmosphere, or many of the greats in underground rap these days, but there's no denying that Common is a deeper, more poetic emcee than 95% of rappers that have achieved the same level of commercial success. Common will release his latest album, Universal Mind Control on Tuesday, and will be selling it for a mere $0.99 on the Zune marketplace. If you've been following this story, this shouldn't be news to you, as Common announced this a few weeks ago. At that point, it was hard to imagine any fan of music justifying passing on the album. I got a chance to hear the album last week, and after a week of thinking and re-listening, I've come to the conclusion that this album is awful. Not only is it by far Common's weakest album, but it's also one of the worst albums I've heard this year, and honestly of the same quality as your average mainstream hip-hop garbage. Universal Mind Control is a flat-out terrible album, and while Common did say beforehand that this one was going to be a "club" album, it's unfortunate that one of hip-hop's better lyricists couldn't at least make a club album that was good in comparison to other club albums. The lyrics are awful, the beats are awful, and I'm actually torn as to whether this album is even worth $0.99. You can listen to it in its entirety at Common's myspace page, and if you think it's worth it, you can find more information on how to get it for 99 cents right here.