Oh, where have you been Mr. Complex? After the demise of Rawkus it was a toss up where he would end up. He released his debut album, Hold This Down, on 7Heads to moderate critical acclaim. Time passed, and although he traded verses with many lyrically inclined emcees, one of the most respected pioneers of the underground movement managed to slide under the radar and subsequently vanished. Well….POOF muthaphukkaz! Complex is back again with a brand new album on the Raptivism imprint. Twisted Mister is Complex’s second full-length go round of rapid flows and witty wordplay. Don’t blink, because you might just miss another good record.

    Mr. Complex comes into this record fully clothed with flows. With recognizable wit in tact, he rips into “Emotional” proving that his swords are still sharp as ever. It just wouldn’t be right if Pharaohe Monch didn’t join his good buddy on the ridiculous “Scream Shout”. The two emcees tear the beat to shreds as they compliment each other nicely, and have many fans yearning for another Pharoahe Monch album. Mr. Complex impresses throughout with his diversification of subject matter over a little known team of beatsmiths production. Even though they aren’t well known they provide a sufficient backdrop for Complex to spit lines like “Who’s the sickest emcee to touch a mic? / go home and fight about it/ turn colors in the face get all tight about/ u know how many emcees a day I be waxing/ stayed tuned, I keep you abreast like….ah….Janet Jackson.”  Trying to focus on one of the many Mr. Complex quotables is like picking Barry Bonds most memorable home run. There are just too many to count and no answer is wrong.

     Mr. Complex keeps things appealing with his interesting concepts. Listeners may get a kick out of the women obsessive “Glue”. With lines like “I got your name tattooed to the side of my dick” you know you’re in for an interesting ride.  You would even think that when Mr. Complex goes another different direction with a sort of “girlie” song that he may lose momentum. Not so my friend.  When the melodies of “Scrape Your Back Out” begin, you might think he’s softening up, but as soon as Complex breaks into the humorous ode about breaking chicks off you realize that he hasn’t sacrificed a bit of his integrity.

     Even the guests that fall through manage to not steal the spotlight from Complex (which may be a hard feat nonetheless), but instead compliment his album to a much greater extent. Dilated Peoples lend their sound to Mr. Complex on the malicious “No Brainer”, while Vast Aire’s distinguishable tone advises Mr. Complex to “Calm Down”. Even Will Ferral of Anchorman and Old School fame acts an ass on the “Plex Goes Hollywood” skit. (How’d he pull that one off??)

    Twisted Mister is a reminder to all that Mr. Complex is eternally ill. While many emcees rely on the strength of their production team or the star power of their crew, Mr. Complex utilizes his sheer talent to put him over. A versatile emcee with style, concepts and lyrics is an endangered species nowadays. Twisted Mister is a reminder to those who thought that Mr. Complex would waltz off into the fog never to resurface. Mr. Complex has staying power whether you like it or not and Twisted Mister reaffirms that.