Asleep in the Bread Aisle

A particularly bad review of the Asher Roth album made me think. On the one hand the Eminem comparisons are perfectly valid, he does sound very similar to Eminem, but on the other hand, it is unfortunate that he does, because his style is so different. Whereas Eminem is urgent in his delivery, Asher Roth isn't. Thus the comparison with Eminem misleads, one hears the voice but one misses the punch, which isn't even being attempted to be delivered, it's a more laidback style with more laidback themes. This means that at the same time as people are right to say that he obviously sounds like, and wants to sound like Eminem, this point is also unfair, because he obviously doesn't want to be the same type of rapper as Eminem, at least most of the time, it must be remembered this is the first album and perhaps there is still a certain element of an identity crisis going on - not only critics, but Asher Roth himself, have to work out where he is in relation to Eminem.
Personally, I prefer the style of Eminem, I prefer the urgent delivery to the laidback style, rap with bite, just in rap generally. And so the subject matter, ("I Love College"? - as it says at the end of Dazed and Confused, "if these are the best days of my life, shoot me now.") is also not really to my tastes, but at least he raps what he knows, rather than trying to pretend to be the Eminem he's not. Yet I think that Asleep in The Bread Aisle is still an album with some good tracks on it. Not every track, about half of it seems a bit weak to me, but it certainly has it's moments, and it definitely shows promise.
Love this track