Pitchfork

Ghostface is, far and away, the most relevant member of the Wu-Tang Clan right now. (Of course, that's kind of like saying LC is the most brilliant Laguna Beach cast member, but still...) Mr. Tony Starks has parlayed his Wu-Tang fame into a sort of last-man-standing maneuver, which may sound complicated and heroic, but is actually quite simple: Put out good records with good beats by good producers and never, ever lose your fire or ability to spit vibrant, and sometimes downright bizarro, rhymes. Sound easy? Tell that to U-God. Hell, tell Raekwon while you're at it (but we're keeping our fingers crossed for the 06, Chef!)

The last two years were pretty busy for Ghostface, with the release of the The Pretty Toney Album, Theodore Unit's 718 mixtape album, his collaboration with Trife on Put it on the Line, appearances on DangerDoom's The Mask and the Mask, and countless guest spots. This year looks to be no different, as Ghost will kickstart 2006 with the February 28 release of his next solo album, Fishscale, on Def Jam.

The lineup of producers on this disc should make hip-hop aficionados' mouths drool: MF Doom, Pete Rock, J Dilla, Madlib, and Ghost himself are all offering up beats by the pound on the new joint. Wu-Tang members Raekwon and Cappadonna will also put in appearances on several tracks, as well as up-and-comer Ne-Yo, who's featured on the album's lead single, "Back Like That". For a Real Audio stream of the song, click HERE.

Regarding the sound of the record, Ghost had this to say: "Fishscale is just me showing that I can still ball with the best of them. With each album I learn, so this album has the most knowledge of all of them." Also, according to his press release, Ghostface hasn't gotten high for over two years, rendering his flow "focused and free." Um, sounds like a press released written by a pot smoker, but whatever.

While the sequencing hasn't been worked out and not all producers are credited, the following is a list of songs that will most likely appear on the record, with producer credits in parentheses:

Shakey Dog (Lewis Parker)
Kilo feat. Raekwon (Moss)
Be Easy (Pete Rock)
Charlie Brown (MF Doom)
Barber Shop (Studio Steve)
Big Girl (Ghostface)
Bricks feat. Big and Raekwon (Cool & Dre)
Back Like That feat. Ne-Yo (Xtreme)
Chunky (Pete Rock)
Wu Joint (MF Doom)
Clips of Doom (MF Doom)
Whip You With a Strap (J Dilla)
Dawn feat. Cappadonna & Trife (MF Doom)
Rae & Ghost (?)
Underwater (MF Doom)
CanCan feat. Shawna & Shareefa (Ghostface)
Crackspot (Crack Val)
Family Affair (Pete Rock)

And as if he wasn't enough of a cartoon character already, limited edition nine-inch-tall Ghostface action figure is coming this spring. The doll speaks "original recordings of Ghostface Killah catch-phrases", and comes with a 14-karat gold chain, "GFK" robe, gold chalice with Swarovski crystals, and a Ghostface Doll mixtape by an as-yet-unnamed DJ. Barbie, you got served.

But wait, it ain't over, motherfuckers: Everyone who buys the doll will have a one in 500 chance of winning a grand prize of spend an entire day with Ghostface. When your head stops spinning, think about the in-depth discussions you could have about blue and cream Wallabies, baked ziti, and broken ovaries. Sigh.

The icing on the Fish-cake is a Wu-Tang reunion tour that will hit East Coast clubs in February. Sadly, ODB will be the only member that won't be able to attend, but that shouldn't stop this tour from being ri-goddamn-diculous.

In March, Ghost will head out on his own headlining trek in support of Fishscale, with M1 of Dead Prez and Sam Scarfo opening up. Hopefully they'll go over better than Tru Life did on that last tour...

Cherchez La Ghost:

02-06 New York, NY - Nokia Theater *
02-07 New Haven, CT - Toad's Place #
02-08 Boston, MA - Palladium #
02-09 Boston, MA - Palladium #
02-10 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory #
02-11 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory #
02-12 Baltimore, MD - Sonar #
02-13 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club #
02-14 New York, NY - Hammerstein Ballroom #
02-17 Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Revolution #
02-18 St. Petersburg, FL - Jannis Landing #
02-19 Orlando, FL - Hard Rock Live #
03-06 Cleveland, OH - House of Blues $
03-09 Indianapolis, IN - Vogue Theatre $
03-10 Chicago, IL - House of Blues $
03-26 San Diego, CA - House of Blues $
03-27 West Hollywood, CA - House of Blues $
03-28 Anaheim, CA - House of Blues $

* with Fort Minor
# Wu-Tang Clan reunion
$ with M1 of Dead Prez, Sam Scarfo