Everything is Borrowed Review - The Streets Latest Work is Solid

Everything is Borrowed represents the latest from the streets. After exploding internationally with the concept album A Grand Don’t Come For Free, and then seeming to implode with Michael Skinner’s narcissistic ballad ridden follow up, The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living. Everything is Borrowed has been described as “a peaceful coming to terms album,” while the album feels more open and friendly then either Original Pirate Material or The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living, it lacks the intimacy of A Grand Don’t Come For Free. This album is perhaps better if its not viewed as a rap album, but as a spoken word album with rap undertones. The tracks on this record are in some cases achingly beautiful, and the vision that Skinner provides in his work is almost like British version of Kerouac or Ginsberg. Both poets and writers who expressed the rebel sentiments of an intellectual underclass that existed in the United States in the 1950's.


I thought the album highlights would be hard to find when I popped the the album in, but they definitely stand out. The track that kicks off the album sounds has a beat that sounds like a combination of the traditional Streets track, and Kanye West. “Everything is Borrowed” has a philosophical feel and poetic push to it. Its musical structure almost functions as a pop song versus a rap song. Its poetic theme breaks away from the beat scheme at times and tends to wander a bit. Scattered nature of the lyrics, and the amount of singing in the track aside, the poetry of the track is poignant, and beautiful.

“The Escapists,” who’s trip hop influenced beat strides along sides Skinners most epic and personal rhymes on the album. The combination is arguably one of his best songs. While its sounds seem almost infinite, the song never gets away from Skinner who uses it to bring his latest work to a faithful close.


“Alleged Legends,” is an extremely political ballad situated in England’s post 7/7 climate. More over it can be seen an over arching struggle in Europe, which the philosopher Solvaj Zizek writes about in his book Violence, between Progressive Multi-Cultural and nationalism/Islamic Fundamentalism. While the song is highly critical of Islam it never pushes to a direct attack, instead its merely a critique radical fundamentalism, and a plea for coexistence. In some respects it serves to both raise awareness, and serves to deconstruct an us/them diode which can often exists when exploring, and discussing the problems of assimilation, and multiculturalism, in North/south encounters. If that’s too much, not clear, or over your head, All you need to know is that the track has a bouncy beat, a dope Middle Eastern sample, and tight highly political rhymes. This track is good art.


The final track from the album I loved was a ballad of hopefulness and aborted suicide attempts, “On the Edge of a Cliff.” The beats on the tack are extremely jazzy, but rather then falling into a tried (and sometimes true) format, they are rearranged expertly. The result is a solid hip-hope beat, with a powerful force to it, never being aggressive but always pulling emotionally. This pull when combined with the contents of the lyrics, make this song by far the most positive track on the album. It should also be the hold music on any of those suicide prevention lines.

I was pleasantly surprised with this album, on one hand it failed to live up to the high bar set by A Grand. But A Grand is a once in a lifetime album for all but the most gifted and prolific artists. Everything is Borrowed however, cements in my mind, the Streets as an outfit cable of more then just the occasional witty and odd single. Mike Skinner is a poet, and by extension a craftsmen and rap is his workbench, even if it’s just borrowed. I have to say this album has me looking forward to the fifth and final streets offering, which according to Internet buzz will be a return to the darkness and dance floor beats that pushed The Streets into pop consciousness.

Watch Mike's Guide to the album