Record Review - Masta Killa Live

Ever since Masta Killa snuck some verses into “Da Mystery of Chessboxin’” back in ‘93, he’s been the shadowy soldier of the Wu-Tang clique. Except for his brilliant ‘04 debut, No Said Date, and the slightly less good Made in Brooklyn, he’s drawn little attention to himself. Hence, there’s not a lot of BS on his resume. Actually, there isn’t much of anything on his resume. This live NYC show kicks off with an a cappella run through the rhymes that landed him the Wu gig in the first place. Inspectah Deck and GZA sporadically join in the chant, and when they whip out “Duel of the Iron Mic” three songs in, there’s no denying that this show needed to be documented. Wu-Tang classic “Triumph” is cut short, muddling the flow, but “Silverbacks” and “Digiwarfare” come to life with surprising new energy. Live hip-hop is a hard sell for anyone. It took a true Masta to pull off an essential live album in the Wu-Tang canon. 4 out of 5 stars.