In the twisted, sometimes laughable, sometimes tragic world of hip hop, Self Preservation is extremely difficult. Encore, with production help from The Architect, lays a blue print for the well-rounded, musically layered, hip hop album. Like a balanced meal, Self Preservation contains all the vital lyrics and beats for the malnourished music lover. While this album doesn't give the listener anything ground breaking they haven't heard before, it does aim to satisfy.

Love and Hate is a beautifully produced piano based track over a drum and cymbal loop. Expressing both sides of his personality, Encore spits:
When y'all see me, think Hate, fo sho', hitting in between each one of these flows. My hearts cold. Plus, each line I customize to bring it to you live leaving my mark upon my foes. So when y'all see me, think Love, fo sho', hitting in between each one of these flows, with my heart and soul. I bust, rhymes customize and keep this thing alive, breaking bread with my foes, yo.

Like O.C., Encore has the ability to delve into deep topics with a masterful vocabulary, and then flow some simple lines on a variety of topics. His lyrics are easy to slip into and the beats rarely get repetitive.

Tracks like "Sporadic" and "Its Going Down" are just plain nasty and make you smack the back button on your c.d player. He is definitely from the lyrical school of hip hop, which values word play and subject matter.

The most impressive musical poem is the title track, Self Preservation. A quiet, toy piano loop layered with a high hat and drum sets the background for an ill spoken word from Encore. He speaks on life, society, and hip hop's struggle to maintain it's integrity. This track really should have ended up as an introduction instead of an outro, but is mind provoking either way.

While Encore does not lead the struggle for hip hop purity, he definitely fuels the fire for the battle and delivers a stellar contribution to the list of albums which are actually worth spending your hard earned cash for. Through his words and emotions, its not difficult to discern how he earned the name Encore. Scoop it up. Chances are you'll be waiting for the applause to die down and the second set to begin.