CRITICS LAMBAST EMINEM

While Eminem's new "Marshall Mathers LP" continues to build in anticipation of its release this Tuesday, so does the outcry over the album's lyrics, which include blasts at everyone from Christina Aguilera, carson daly',390,400);">carson daly',390,400);">Carson Daly and fred durst',390,400);">fred durst',390,400);">Fred Durst to Christopher Reeve, Sonny Bono, Gianni Versace and Em's fellow Detroit nemeses, Insane Clown Posse.

Despite the fact that his "Real Slim Shady" video is being played more than 25 times a week at MTV and has ruled on "TRL," Eminem was severely dissed by the channel's Kurt Loder, who called the new album "a whole new low in ill communication" on MTV.com.

Nevertheless, MTV continues to bang away at the album with a weekend-long "EMTV" celebration in anticipation of the album release on Tuesday, when the rapper will pay a visit to "TRL" and then make an in-store appearance across the street at the Times Square Virgin Megastore.

Meanwhile, advances of the album have been closely held, with writers only allowed to listen in the presence of a label representative, though most of the tracks are available on Napster.

The hip-hopper's alleged homophobia has also come under attack. Industry instigator (and ex-HITS correspondent) Jim Fouratt sent out an e-mail calling on edgar bronfman',390,400);">edgar bronfman',390,400);">Edgar Bronfman, Doug Morris and jimmy iovine',390,400);">jimmy iovine',390,400);">Jimmy Iovine to be "held acountable for their actions… I, for one, would like to know how they explain to their own children the ideas spewed out of the mouth of Eminem."

Much of the other chatter surrounds first-week sales figures, with guesses ranging everywhere from 250k to 1.4 million. As one chat room correspondent wrote: "MNM is a loser, a weak, whitey sucker of a rapper. If he didn't have Dr. Dre's backup (and ass to kiss), he'd be Vanilla #2 and everyone knows it…"

Unhhh, let the games begin.