Cancer 4 Cure

Cancer 4 Cure is the third solo studio album by American hip hop artist El-P. It was released through Fat Possum Records on May 22, 2012. It peaked at number 71 on the Billboard 200 chart.[2]

Cancer 4 Cure
Studio album by
El-P
ReleasedMay 22, 2012 (2012-05-22)
Recorded2008–2012[1]
GenreHip hop
Length49:05
LabelFat Possum Records
ProducerEl-P, Nick Diamonds, Little Shalimar, Wilder Zoby
El-P chronology
I'll Sleep When You're Dead
(2007)		 Cancer 4 Cure
(2012)
Singles from Cancer 4 Cure
  1. "The Full Retard"
    Released: April 24, 2012

Background

El-P has stated that "I think that I’m trying to create an idea or illustrate a thought pattern, just because there’s darkness that I see and think about, it doesn’t mean I’ve given into it. I think the record is ultimately about not giving into it. For the most part I’m struggling with that darkness throughout the record. When I say it’s about wanting to live, I just say that because that’s how I feel. When you get hit with death, sometimes as horrible as it is, one of the things that can come out of it is a reaffirmation of how much you don’t want to go, and I think that’s what happened with me."[3]

The album is dedicated to American rapper and producer Camu Tao.[4] In an interview with Rolling Stone, El-P said, "Camu was a huge inspiration on this record, mostly because he had a huge effect on my life and who I am."[1]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.2/10[5]
Metacritic84/100[6]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[7]
The A.V. ClubA[8]
Chicago Tribune[9]
The Guardian[10]
Los Angeles Times[11]
Mojo[12]
Pitchfork8.5/10[4]
Q[13]
Rolling Stone[14]
Spin7/10[15]

At Metacritic, which assigns a rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received a score of 84, based on 39 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[6]

David Jeffries of AllMusic stated, "Cancer4Cure is about hip-hop like Glengarry Glen Ross was about sales, but these great works transcend their industries, offering solace and inspiration to anyone who would prefer a satisfied mind over a Cadillac Eldorado, or in current terms, an Escalade."[7] In contrast, Dan Weiss of The Boston Phoenix stated that the album "is definitely not El-P's Age of Apocalypse; in fact it's the only El-P production that sounds like it's been made on planet Earth, following hip-hop rules that someone else already defined."[16]

Accolades
Publication Accolade Rank Ref.
The 405 Albums of the Year 12 [17]
Beats per Minute The Top 50 Albums of 2012 34 [18]
Chicago Tribune (Greg Kot) Top 10 Albums of 2012 7 [19]
Cokemachineglow Top 50 Albums 2012 3 [20]
Complex The 50 Best Albums of 2012 10 [21]
Consequence of Sound Top 50 Albums of 2012 25 [22]
Exclaim! Best Albums of 2012: Top 50 Albums of the Year 14 [23]
No Ripcord Top 50 Albums Of 2012 36 [24]
Obscure Sound Best Albums of 2012 35 [25]
Paste The 50 Best Albums of 2012 12 [26]
Pitchfork The Top 50 Albums of 2012 45 [27]
PopMatters The 75 Best Albums of 2012 35 [28]
The Best Hip-Hop of 2012 4 [29]
Pretty Much Amazing Best Albums of 2012 20 [30]
Spin 40 Best Hip-Hop Albums of 2012 Unranked [31]
Spinner The 50 Best Albums of 2012 33 [32]
Stereogum Top 50 Albums of 2012 15 [33]
Treble Top 50 Albums of 2012 22 [34]
The Village Voice Pazz & Jop 26 [35]

Track listing

Track listing was confirmed by Fat Possum Records.[36]

No.TitleLength
1."Request Denied"4:32
2."The Full Retard"3:39
3."Works Every Time"3:35
4."Drones Over Bklyn"5:49
5."Oh Hail No" (featuring Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire and Danny Brown)3:41
6."Tougher Colder Killer" (featuring Killer Mike and Despot)3:39
7."True Story"3:14
8."The Jig Is Up"3:18
9."Sign Here"2:51
10."For My Upstairs Neighbor (Mums the Word)"3:15
11."Stay Down" (featuring Nick Diamonds)3:10
12."$4 Vic/Nothing but You+Me (FTL)"8:23

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.

  • El-P – vocals, composition, production, design
  • Little Shalimar – guitar (1, 2, 10, 12), production (4, 8, 11), vocoder (6), guitar effect (7), synthesizer (12)
  • Wilder Zoby – synthesizer (1), keyboards (3, 5, 7, 12), production (10)
  • Isaiah "Ikey" Owens – organ (1, 6), keyboards (5, 7, 9)
  • James McNew – bass guitar (1, 6, 10)
  • Camu Tao – vocals (2), composition (2)
  • Paul Banks – vocals (3)
  • Jaleel Bunton – guitar (3)
  • Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire – vocals (5), composition (5)
  • Danny Brown – vocals (5), composition (5)
  • Dave "Smoota" Smith – horns (5)
  • Killer Mike – vocals (6), composition (6)
  • Despot – vocals (6), composition (6)
  • Matt Sweeney – guitar (6, 12)
  • Himanshu Suri – vocals (7)
  • Nick Diamonds – vocals (11), composition (11), production (11)
  • Biondo – vocals (12)
  • Torbitt Schwartz – recording
  • Joey Raia – mixing
  • Glenn Schick – mastering
  • Ron Croudy – design
  • Timothy Saccenti – photography

Charts
Chart (2012) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[2] 71
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[37] 15
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[38] 7

References
  1. Cubarrubia, R.J. (May 21, 2012). "Q&A: El-P on His New Album and Staying Relevant in Hip-Hop". Rolling Stone. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  2. "El-P: Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  3. Alexander Fruchter. "Interview El-P: Back In The Flow". Ruby Hornet. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  4. Weiss, Jeff (May 21, 2012). "El-P: Cancer for Cure". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  5. "Cancer For Cure by El-P reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  6. "Reviews for Cancer4Cure by El-P". Metacritic. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  7. Jeffries, David. "Cancer4Cure – El-P". AllMusic. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  8. Harvey, Eric (May 22, 2012). "El-P: Cancer For Cure". The A.V. Club. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  9. Kot, Greg (May 20, 2012). "Album review: El-P, 'Cancer 4 Cure'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  10. MacInnes, Paul (May 24, 2012). "El-P: Cancer for Cure – review". The Guardian. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  11. Martens, Todd (May 21, 2012). "Album review: El-P's 'Cancer 4 Cure'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  12. "El-P: Cancer 4 Cure". Mojo (224): 92. July 2012.
  13. "El-P: Cancer 4 Cure". Q (312): 98. July 2012.
  14. Hermes, Will (May 22, 2012). "Cancer4Cure". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  15. Reeves, Mosi (May 16, 2012). "El-P, 'Cancer for Cure' (Fat Possum)". Spin. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  16. Weiss, Dan (May 15, 2012). "El-P - Cancer For Cure". The Boston Phoenix. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  17. "Albums of the Year 2012". The 405. 2012. Archived from the original on December 13, 2012. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  18. "The Top 50 Albums of 2012". Beats per Minute. December 14, 2012. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  19. Kot, Greg (December 7, 2012). "Greg Kot's top 10 albums of 2012". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  20. "Top 50 Albums 2012". Cokemachineglow. Archived from the original on July 30, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  21. "The 50 Best Albums of 2012". Complex. December 18, 2012. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  22. "Top 50 Albums of 2012". Consequence of Sound. December 14, 2012. p. 3. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  23. Keast, James (December 11, 2012). "Best Albums of 2012: Top 50 Albums of the Year". Exclaim!. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  24. "Top 50 Albums Of 2012 (Part One)". No Ripcord. December 18, 2012. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  25. Mineo, Mike (December 5, 2012). "Best Albums of 2012: #40 to #31". Obscure Sound. Archived from the original on March 1, 2013. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  26. Jackson, Josh (November 26, 2012). "The 50 Best Albums of 2012". Paste. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  27. "The Top 50 Albums of 2012". Pitchfork. December 20, 2012. Retrieved November 18, 2013.
  28. "The 75 Best Albums of 2012". PopMatters. December 9, 2012. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  29. "The Best Hip-Hop of 2012". PopMatters. December 11, 2012. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  30. "Best Albums of 2012". Pretty Much Amazing. December 27, 2012. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  31. "SPIN's 40 Best Hip-Hop Albums of 2012 (page 16 of 41)". Spin. December 11, 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  32. "The 50 Best Albums of 2012". Spinner. December 7, 2012. Archived from the original on December 9, 2012. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  33. "Stereogum's Top 50 Albums Of 2012". Stereogum. December 5, 2012. Retrieved May 1, 2015.
  34. "Top 50 Albums of 2012". Treble. December 9, 2012. p. 3. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  35. "Pazz + Jop 2012". The Village Voice. New York. Archived from the original on January 18, 2013. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  36. "El-P "Cancer For Cure" Album Art / Tracklist". Fat Possum Records. April 6, 2012. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  37. "El-P: Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  38. "El-P: Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
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