...And Then You Shoot Your Cousin
by The Roots
  • Record Label: Def Jam
  • Release Date: May 19, 2014
Metascore
70

Generally favorable reviews - based on 26 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 26
  3. Negative: 0 out of 26
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  1. Q Magazine
    Jul 8, 2014
    60
    It's chillingly powerful, but the band sell short their cinematic ambitions with just 33 minutes of music. [Aug 2014, p.102]
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  2. Tiny Mix Tapes
    Jun 6, 2014
    60
    Even though …and then you shoot your cousin never quite betrays its allegiance to either criticism or satire and is consequently an awkward, variable amalgam of both, it offers something important in its efficacy to disrupt that logic and pave out a new line of progression for a mature act.
  3. NOW Magazine
    May 22, 2014
    60
    The half-hour run time makes the relentlessly cerebral approach more palatable, though the ending feels a bit too tidy.
  5. Spin
    May 20, 2014
    60
    Songs sag and soar at once.
  6. New York Daily News (Jim Faber)
    May 19, 2014
    60
    They raise issues only to question them, a point driven home by the askew music. It doesn’t make for the most direct, or exciting, of sounds. But by embracing hip hop and also standing outside it, the album lends the genre a perspective it could use.
  7. Consequence
    May 22, 2014
    58
    Despite the record’s production, some of the group’s most ambitious to date, it feels incomplete, seemingly ending five or six songs early. It’s a grower, yes, but there’s too much to unpack for it to sound vital to modern hip-hop’s equilibrium.
  8. The Wire
    Jul 21, 2014
    50
    The finished product proves too studied and reverent of its sources. [Jul 2014, p.64]
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  9. PopMatters
    Jun 20, 2014
    50
    It’s just the Roots resting on the laurels. I think they may need another movement.
  10. Boston Globe
    May 20, 2014
    50
    While the ambition and musical dexterity is admirable, the work doesn’t feel fully realized.

User Reviews

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User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 44 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 37 out of 44
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 44
  3. Negative: 3 out of 44
  1. geedup
    May 19, 2014
    7
    I always look forward to a roots album for many reasons as clearly they are hip hop, but on their own sh*t. They have never followed a trendI always look forward to a roots album for many reasons as clearly they are hip hop, but on their own sh*t. They have never followed a trend or the path where most hiphop is headed. This remains true with this album, but with more guest appearances and less black thought (which I didn't like). So much so that it is almost not hip hop. Further some of the songs I didn't like-including the "skits" and "interludes" that seem to slow down the album even further. After a few more listens, maybe it will hold up to their previous efforts-but now it does not.… Full Review »
  2. craigscorgie
    Jun 13, 2014
    10
    Each song is a completely standalone vignette, each character is a trope of hip hop culture. Criticism of the culture have been prevalent inEach song is a completely standalone vignette, each character is a trope of hip hop culture. Criticism of the culture have been prevalent in Roots music since Organix, but they have always been tongue-and-cheek and straight to the point about it. This is their most creative expression of their frustrations. The name of the album (a reference to a KRS-One lyric) is the perfect representation of what this album is and its spiral into darkness.

    Musically, this album is very much pushing the envelope of instrumentation in hip hop (even more-so than Phrenology). Although each song's lyrics are true to the concept of this album, the instrumentals do everything they can to break apart cohesiveness between songs. This is what turns a lot of listeners off of this album, but to me this is a brilliant way of building unique scenes for the characters to live and breathe in each song. Although told through vignettes, it has a theatrical effect similar to Opera that creates the different scenes for these characters to come alive. The ever-darkening instrumentals paired with standalone sketches creates a sense that everything is going to **** Dark, beautiful, brilliant... this will probably turn out to be one of the most under-appreciated Roots releases ever.    … Full Review »
  3. corbinwellsssss
    May 24, 2014
    0
    33 minutes of **** not one good song probably the worst **** i have heard this year and i thought soulja boy was bad yeah okay i think i'll33 minutes of **** not one good song probably the worst **** i have heard this year and i thought soulja boy was bad yeah okay i think i'll delete this **** off my computer now.… Full Review »
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