Every posse needs a dad. The straight man, the designated driver, the one who patiently explains the likely consequences of putting bricks through windows. I get the feeling Method Man is the Wu-Tang dad, running after the RZA with sunblock and reminding Raekwon to wash the dishes. He has historically been among the most commercially successful of the group in his own ventures and comes off as the most conventional—I can't really imagine a world in which a predeceased ODB endorses deodorant.
Method Man is a standout rapper. Tical, produced by the RZA and put out by Def Jam in 1994, was a phenomenal album, and 1998's Tical 2000: Judgment Day was only marginally less so. He made Blackout! with frequent artistic and commercial collaborator—and fellow deodorant shiller—Redman, an album that was a lot looser and bonged-out than his previous work. Wu-Tang as a unit is self-consciously dark and serious, and Method Man seems to be pretty confrontational, clashing with and complaining about a litany of entertainment-industry types—so getting to cut up a bit with Redman (and also in movies such as How High and Soul Plane) is probably good for dad's heart.
Method Man, who has a long list of aliases—de rigueur in the Wu clubhouse—lays it down with a deep rasp over serious beats and is touting his new album, 4.21 . . . The Day After, as a move toward more conscious and sensitive music. It also refers to the day after International Weed Smoking Day, so you'd do well to honor the holiday and remember your manners at the show. Puff-puff-pass, guys, puff-puff-pass.
Method Man with Masta Killa and Inspectah Deck at the House of Blues, 1530 S. Disneyland Dr., Anaheim, (714) 778-2583; www.hob.com. Mon., 7 p.m. $25-$28. All ages.
