There are enough songs with worthwhile beats and guests to hold this album together to some degree, and depending on whether or not you like Flocka's lyrical style will be the degree.

The inspiring message that is clearly part of the appeal is still buried under too much empty rap rhetoric.

The problem is that it's just too light on hip-hop, and too close to the other experimental work they've already done in other side projects.

Rugby Thompson is one of those hard albums to critique in that as hip-hop it is inoffensive, and yet when it comes to pushing the boundaries of what the art and music could be there's literally nothing you could point to as innovative or revolutionary.

With so many albums in his volumnious catalogue, it's neither the best nor the worst, but a passable experience with intriguing beats and rhymes is all anybody can ask for from this eclectic eccentric of hip-hop.

In the end, I think that long time fans of Big K.R.I.T. will find the album to be well put together, but they'll still be left wanting just a bit more.

The end result is an album that is as unsuccessful as it is daring.

If you even have the least inkling of how funky giving Oh No "unlimited access" to the archives of Rudy Ray Moore would be, I think you realize how enjoyable it would be to let him loop these beats and cherry pick his favorite emcees to flow over them.

It is prime El-P, deep, heavy, funny, and banging all at the same time.

Whatever genre you want to label Dedication as, it is a remarkable album.

It's easily one of the best albums of the year so far, and has the sound and feel of a classic.

Vodka & Ayahuasca is not only one of the strongest rap releases so far this year, in terms of 'crazy combinations' it stands up to "Madvillainy" and "Hell: The Sequel."

Despite the superficial trappings of Strange Clouds his talent still breaks through the atmospheric turbulence and shines down on the listener.

This is gritty, grimy, hardcore hip-hop, as nasty as it wants to be.

The final installment is arguably the best of the three.

Regrettably though Soil 2 is a little more uneven than the last installment.

Ultimately the first edition of The Block Brochure is almost exactly what one could expect from an E-40 album, and if you already knew his steelo going in that's good news.

He's well-produced, well-connected, and well-forgettable.

The strength and the weakness of the Odd Future crew is that Tyler does stand out from the rest of the Wolf Gang, and in many ways.

Despite the many cooks involved in this project, it maintains a sonic and lyrical cohesiveness.

A missed opportunity to progress.

Though this won't go down as De La Soul's best album, it is highly intelligent, artistic and features razor sharp lyrics making it arguably Posdnuos and Dave's most musically ambitious project yet.

"Subject: Matter" is a strong EP. Homeboy Sandman proves himself to be one of the most nimble, unique MCs out there.

You can never really get a sense of what Q is or what he wants to be.

It's the sound of a composer showing just what can be done with a sampler in the right hands. Hip-hop producers should take notes.

Shabazz Palaces created an album that is deep, dense, cryptic, hypnotic, and beautiful in its own freaky way.

Personal, heartfelt lyrics and soulful production have been key factors in K.R.I.T. building the following that he has amassed up to this point in his career, and this time around he's coming with much of the same.

This is a clear and definitive evolutionary improvement from his solo debut on "No Introduction," which is all a listener or review could have really asked for.