The Meth Lab

The Meth Lab is the fifth studio album by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan member Method Man. The album was released on August 21, 2015, under Hanz On Music and Tommy Boy Entertainment.^[1][2] His first album since 2006's 4:21... The Day After, the album features guest appearances from Redman, Hanz On, Streetlife, and Wu-Tang Clan members Raekwon, Inspectah Deck and Masta Killa. It was recorded in Staten Island at Track Stars Studios on VanDuzer Street under the supervision of executive producer Hanz On and producer/engineer Pascal Zumaque.

The Meth Lab
Studio album by Method Man
Released	August 21, 2015
Recorded	2013–2015
Genre	Hip hop
Length	55:36
Label	Hanz On Music Tommy Boy
Producer	Hanz On (exec.) Ettore Mazzei (exec.) 4th Disciple Cee the Architek Code Red Daez Don't Panic Ent. J57 Level 13 Mathematics Pascal Zumaque Ron Browz Zarko Krstic
Method Man chronology
4:21... The Day After (2006) The Meth Lab (2015) Meth Lab Season 2: The Lithium (2018)

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	59/100[3]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
Billboard	[5]
Consequence of Sound	B[6]
Exclaim!	6/10[7]
HipHopDX	[8]
Pitchfork Media	4.0/10[9]
Rolling Stone	[10]

The Meth Lab received mixed reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 59 based on 11 reviews, which indicates "mixed or average reviews".^[3] David Jeffries of AllMusic gave the album three and a half stars out of five, saying "Uncle Murda, Streetlife, and Hanz On appear often, making this LP close in structure to the crew-focused Theodore Unit releases from Ghostface, but that's not a complaint as much as a caution. Consider this a Meth-led posse LP aimed at returning fans, and a very good one at that."^[4] Paul Cantor of Billboard said, "Method's skill and charisma are by far the highlight of The Meth Lab, but there's not enough of him to make this unremarkable compilation pop."^[5] Del F. Cowie of Exclaim! stated, "Too often, the album is weighed down by pedantic, average beats and too many run of the mill guest verses, indicating Meth's generosity is a bit of a weakness. Ultimately, it dilutes The Meth Lab's potency."^[7] Andrew Gretchko of HipHopDX said, "The Meth Lab may be Method Man’s return to solo work, but without a true connection between the tracks the album feels more like a mixtape than an album, a string of songs that range from uninspiring to a reminder that Method Man was once one of Hip Hop’s elite."^[8]

Track listing

The Meth Lab track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Intro"	Clifford Smith, Jr.	RZA	0:18
2.	"The Meth Lab" (featuring Hanz On and Streetlife)	Smith, Jr. Patrick Charles	Cee the Architek	2:54
3.	"Straight Gutta" (featuring Redman, Hanz On and Streetlife)	Smith, Jr. Reginald Noble Charles	Ron Browz	3:59
4.	"Bang Zoom" (featuring Hanz On, Streetlife and Eazy Get Rite)	Smith, Jr. Charles Eazy Get Rite	Level 13	3:47
5.	"50 Shots" (featuring Mack Wilds, Streetlife and Cory Gunz)	Smith, Jr. Peter Corey Pankey, Jr. Charles Tristan Paul Mack Wilds	P. Version Don't Panic Ent.	3:58
6.	"The Pledge" (Hanz On and Streetlife)	Charles	Mathematics	1:10
7.	"2 Minutes of Your Time"	Smith, Jr. Ronald Maurice Bean	Mathematics	2:06
8.	"Worldwide" (featuring Hanz On, Uncle Murda and Chedda Bang)	Smith, Jr. Leonard Carl Grant	P. Version Don't Panic Ent.	3:27
9.	"Soundcheck" (featuring Hanz On and Carlton Fisk)	Smith, Jr. George Cooney	P. Version Code Red	2:27
10.	"Water" (featuring Chedda Bang)	Smith, Jr. Chedda Bang	P. Version Code Red	3:25
11.	"Lifestyles" (Cardi, Eazy Get Rite and Freaky Marciano)	Eazy Get Rite Freaky Marciano	P. Version	4:10
12.	"The Purple Tape" (featuring Raekwon and Inspectah Deck)	Smith, Jr. Corey Woods Jason Richard Hunter Akie Bermiss James Victor Heinz Anthony Messado	Akie Bermiss J57	3:24
13.	"Intelligent Meth" (featuring Masta Killa, Streetlife and iNTeLL)	Smith, Jr. Charles Dontae L. Hawkins	4th Disciple	4:01
14.	"Symphony" (featuring Hanz On, Streetlife, Kash Verrazano, Carlton Fisk and Killa Sin)	Smith, Jr. Jeryl Grant Charles Cooney Kash Verrazano Messado	Daez	3:20
15.	"What You Getting Into" (featuring Streetlife and Donny Cacsh)	Smith, Jr. Charles Donny Cacsh	P. Version	3:38
16.	"Another Winter" (featuring Hanz On, Streetlife and Carlton Fisk)	Smith, Jr. Charles Cooney ANSON	4th Disciple	3:32
17.	"Rain All Day" (featuring Hanz On and Dro Pesci)	Smith, Jr. Frederick J. Gatto	Daez	2:42
18.	"So Staten" (featuring Hanz On and Hue Hef)	Smith, Jr. Hue Hef Pascal Zumaque Zartical Isaac Hanson Taylor Hanson Zac Hanson	P. Version Zartical	3:43
19.	"Outro"	Smith, Jr.		0:15
Total length:				55:36

Deluxe edition bonus tracks

No.	Title	Producer(s)	Length
20.	"The Meth Lab" (Instrumental)	Cee the Architek	2:37
21.	"Straight Gutta" (Instrumental)	Ron Browz	3:36
22.	"Bang Zoom" (Instrumental)	Level 13	3:49
23.	"50 Shots" (Instrumental)	P. Version Don't Panic Ent.	3:56
24.	"The Pledge" (Instrumental)	Mathematics	0:52
25.	"2 Minutes of Your Time" (Instrumental)	Mathematics	2:09
26.	"Worldwide" (Instrumental)	P. Version Don't Panic Ent.	3:02
27.	"Soundcheck" (Instrumental)	P. Version Code Red	2:13
28.	"Water" (Instrumental)	P. Version Code Red	3:24
29.	"Lifestyles" (Instrumental)	P. Version	2:52
30.	"The Purple Tape" (Instrumental)	Akie Bermiss J57	3:25
31.	"Intelligent Meth" (Instrumental)	4th Disciple	4:03
32.	"Symphony" (Instrumental)	Daez	3:23
33.	"What You Getting Into" (Instrumental)	P. Version	3:39
34.	"Another Winter" (Instrumental)	4th Disciple	3:33
35.	"Rain All Day" (Instrumental)	Daez	2:46
36.	"So Staten" (Instrumental)	P. Version Zartical	3:43
Total length:			109:38

Charts

Chart (2015)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[11]	80
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[12]	77
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[13]	183
French Albums (SNEP)[14]	133
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15]	38
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[16]	12
US Billboard 200[17]	57
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[18]	4
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[19]	6
US Top Rap Albums (Billboard)[20]	4

References

1. "Method Man Announces New Album The Meth Lab". Pitchfork. 2015-06-01. Retrieved 2015-07-24.
2. Hudson, Alex (2015-06-01). "Method Man Cooks Up New Album 'The Meth Lab'". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved 2015-07-24.
3. "Reviews for The Meth Lab by Method Man". Metacritic. Retrieved 2015-09-11.
4. Jeffries, David (2015-08-21). "The Meth Lab - Method Man". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
5. "Method Man Gets Lost in the Mix of Too Many Guest Stars on 'The Meth Lab': Album Review". Billboard. 2015-08-21. Retrieved 2015-09-11.
6. Kaye, Ben (2015-08-17). "Method Man – The Meth Lab". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2015-09-11.
7. Cowie, Del F. (2015-09-02). "Method Man The Meth Lab". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved 2015-09-11.
8. Gretchko, Andrew (2015-08-31). "Method Man – The Meth Lab". HipHopDX. Retrieved 2015-09-11.
9. "Method Man: The Meth Lab". Pitchfork. 2015-09-03. Retrieved 2015-09-11.
10. Dolan, Jon (2015-08-21). "Method Man's New Album: The Meth Lab". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2015-09-11.
11. Ryan, Gavin (August 29, 2015). "ARIA Albums: Disturbed Debuts At No 1 In Australia". Noise11. Retrieved August 29, 2015.
12. "Ultratop.be – Method Man – The Meth Lab" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
13. "Ultratop.be – Method Man – The Meth Lab" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
14. "Lescharts.com – Method Man – The Meth Lab". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
15. "Officialcharts.de – Method Man – The Meth Lab". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
16. "Swisscharts.com – Method Man – The Meth Lab". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
17. "Method Man Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
18. "Method Man Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
19. "Method Man Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
20. "Method Man Chart History (Top Rap Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 1, 2015.