Dr. Dre's 1992 album "The Chronic" remains one of the most influential albums in West Coast hip hop, yeah, but it also stands as one of the most ICONIC pieces of music ever. After the break-up of NWA, Dr. Dre moved his sound in a different direction, one that's more laid back in many ways, but also one that's capable of bringing all the heat, pummeling, and relentlessness of albums like "Straight Outta Compton". But if there's one thing this album has over that one and many other hip-hop albums of the time, is an unrivaled level of absolute ridiculousness. From the intro, we have featured artist and co-rapper Snoop Doggy Dog rambling a diss over this chaotic and messy piece of synth-instrumentation. It's an incredible tone-setter with Snoop changing his vocal inflection in these absurdly over-the-top ways. This entire album comes off as almost a comedy or a satirization of its genre, it's a parody of itself...and it's incredible for it. The very first full track "Fuck Wit Dre Day (And Everybody's Celebrating)" is eerily addictive. Maybe it's the blaring synth or the bouncy bassline, or maybe it's the simple, yet smooth flows of both Dr. Dre and Snoop (including a sick back-and-forth at the end). The entire track is a diss at Eazy, homophobic yes, but it's so absurd you can't help but smile at it. The "west-coast whistle" or "G-synth" or whatever you want to call it is the staple of this album. It makes this album a holistic experience. It captures a cruise through south central LA, in the scorching afternoon heat, and there's a blunt there of course. My favorite synth lines are on "Deez Nuts" and of course "Nuthin but a G Thang". I don't know what it is about this song but it's so addicting, I think it's the synth and bass. I also find it fascinating how simplistic Snoop's opening bars are like "1, 2, 3 and to the 4 Snoop Doggy Dog and Dr. Dre are at your door". Few rappers can pull off such a simple, almost nursery rhyme-type bar, and make it sound this smooth. Snoop's smoother delivery very nicely contrasts Dre's deeper voice all over this album, they're a great duo. "Deez Nuts" is just as ridiculous as it sounds, with a hilarious opener, and one of my favorite moments is that outro by Nate Dogg (RIP). In terms of hilarity, the skit "$20 Sack Pyramid" and the closer "The Roach" (one of two songs that interpolate Funkadelic's Mothership Connection directly) also hit the mark. I likened this album to a comedy, but the serious and tougher moments also work just as effectively. "Lil' Getto Boy" sounds incredible instrumentally, because it's a much-needed change-up with a gorgeous flute-driven groove. Snoop and Dr. Dre detail what they've experienced and what they continue to witness with the youth in Compton. The most spine-chilling song here must be "The Day The N Took Over". This album was released around the time of the infamous 1992 LA Riots, and this song captures the angry reactions of the community at the time. With clips of reporters dubbed over these incredible layered vocals and the posse cut aspect of it, this entire song perfectly captures the heated and chaotic events that unfolded at the time. The two other posse cuts here are incredible, "Lyrical Gangbang" and my personal favorite "Stranded on Deathrow". The Deathrow label itself had a very eerie (and possibly sketchy) aura surrounding it, but this song, with epic synth leads and incredible verses, never fails to make me go crazy. Bushwick's intro is great and RBX's line "Blinded by the Light it's time to learn braille" is one of my all-time favorite hip-hop lines. The Lady of Rage verse is great too. I think this album is so iconic that even if you've never heard any songs off it, you've still FELT this album through its influence. It sounds of the time but has also aged tremendously well. Aged well sonically at least, lyrically it stands as questionable today. I don't think it should be taken too seriously but I understand any criticisms leveled against certain lyrical moments here. This album still sounds grand and sounds like this entire subgenre of Hip-Hop captured in one tightly packed, hilarious, and damn-near flawless experience. Easily one of the greatest hip-hop albums ever.