Critical Beatdown
by Ultramagnetic MC's
Listen & Collect
Complete your collection or upgrade your listening experience.
Ultramagnetic MC's bestography
Critical Beatdown is ranked as the best album by Ultramagnetic MC's.
(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).
Listen to Critical Beatdown on YouTube
Critical Beatdown track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 80 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Critical Beatdown rankings
Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings). Click to see how the rankings are calculated (Last updated: 3 hours ago)
| Year | Source | Chart | Rank | Rank Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 |  imacgill | Top 100 Music Albums of 1988 | 65/100 | 2 |
| 2026 |  zags7000 | Top 100 Music Albums of 1988 | 29/100 | 4 |
| 2026 | Exist-en-ciel | Top 100 Music Albums of 1988 | 31/100 | 4 |
| 2026 |  Patman360 | Top 83 Music Albums of 1988 | 12/83 | 4 |
| 2026 | shanelovesyou1111 | Top 32 Music Albums of 1988 | 26/32 | 1 |
| 2026 |  LedZep | Hip Hop - ATLiens, Bulletproof Wallets & Labor Days | 54/100 | - |
| 2026 |  ERadio | Top 45 Music Albums of 1988 | 18/45 | 3 |
| 2026 |  Graeme2 | Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | 90/100 | 11 |
| 2026 |  Norman Bates | Top 100 Music Albums of 1988 | 21/100 | 4 |
| 2026 |  Larcx13 | Top 31 Music Albums of 1988 | 17/31 | 2 |
| Total Charts: The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. | 101 | |||
| Total Rank Score: The total rank score. | 331 | |||
Critical Beatdown collection
Showing latest 20 members who have this album in their collection | Show all 21 members
Critical Beatdown ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 3 ratings for this album. | Show all 94 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 08/03/2026 09:17 | Pienk | 746 | 80/100 |
| ! | 07/01/2026 21:20 |  LebowskiRams | 1,470 | 77/100 |
| ! | 05/20/2026 06:40 | cicadelic | 14,211 | 73/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)
This album is rated in the top 3% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 77.2/100, a mean average of 76.2/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 77.8/100. The standard deviation for this album is 19.2.
Critical Beatdown favourites
Showing all 8 members who have added this album as a favourite
Critical Beatdown forum mentions
BestEverAlbums 08/24/2026 08:00 in Chart of the day (#5414): By Graeme2View latest topic →
pedro1976 06/20/2026 06:51 in What album are you listening to? (cont.)
neilgee 09/11/2023 09:01 in What album are you listening to right now?View all forum mentions
Critical Beatdown comments
Top Comments First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Showing comments with any number of votes. Manage Profile)
Widely acclaimed as one of the best hip hop albums released, this record has influenced a huge number of hip hop artists since it's release in 1988 and set many trends, particularly the structure and patterns of Kool Keith's lyrics which have been unintentionally replicated (sometimes intentionally) by a huge number of rappers since it's release in 1988.
babyBlueSedan TOP 100 COMMENTER 06/08/2015 00:16 | #143282 | TOP COMMENT
Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.
This is the most forward thinking rap album of the 80s, and possibly of all time. The sampling and production still sounds fresh, which certainly can't be said about some other acclaimed 80s hip hop. And the lyrics are creative and unique as well; they often stray into the most generic, overused subject of the time for hip hop lyrics (rapping about how great an MC you are), but the similes and word play is something that wouldn't be seen again until the Wu Tang Clan. Just an incredible album all around. Also, Kool Keith is probably the most underrated rapper ever.
Graeme2 TOP 100 COMMENTER 09/22/2019 11:08 | #242907 | TOP COMMENT
Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.
Ego Trippin' was initially released in 1986. You here that track in the context of this 1988 record and it just sounds pure '88. That track was so far ahead of the pack in every way, not least in production where it's just the full breakbeat, with no hint of it being chopped like Marley, or drum machine in sight. They also have the audacity in it to diss Run DMC.
So underrated. This is rap the way it should be
Album Rating: 77.40
(1,161/15)
04.10.1988
Ultramagnetic MC's (USA): Critical Beatdown
1.Watch Me Now 70
2.Ease Back 81
3.Ego Trippin' 77
4.Moe Luv's Theme 83
5.Kool Keith Housing Things 84
6.Travelling At The Speed Of Thought 88
7.Feeling It 75
8.One Minute Less 72
9.Ain't It Good 84
10.Funky 77
11.Give The Drummer Some 76
12.Break North 73
13.Critical Beatdown 79
14.When I Burn 70
15.Ced Gee (Delta Force One) 72
The top-voted comments get featured on our charts, Album of the Day, and the site newsletter.
