It seems like that as critics are busy completing their yearly best of lists that some albums released toward the end of year get overlooked as this was no where to be seen. It's unfortunate because this is a pretty consistent piece of conscious hip hop as it should be only containing 9-10 tracks, and I could see many enjoying this more than I do. The beats have something different than most hip hop with some similar electronic production traits as some recent albums I've checked out such as Radio Galaxy's 'We Come in Peace'' & H.I.S.D.'s 'The Weakend'. A comfortable 3.5/5. Best Tracks: The Black Opera, Villains, Dark Comedy, Monsters and Robots, The Magician

The pop-rap smash hit, 'Where Is the Love', was one of the first rap tracks I loved. I had it on a mixtape that I used to play on a walkman, and 'Hands Up', that was featured on NBA Live 2004, is a standout too. Besides the bookends, that are good songs, most of everything else is forgettable. Best Tracks: Hands Up, Hey Mama, Shut Up, Where Is the Love?

This starts off brilliantly and makes it very hard for you not to be disappointed with the rest of the album. 'NY Weather Report' to 'Say Something' are all 5/5 songs, but from there most of the beats just lack anything special. Talib would have been better off spreading them around a lil. Among the weakest here are Madlib's beats ('Soon the New Day' & 'Eat to Live') who I'm not a fan of and are borderline boring tracks. Worth checking out because the best are crack, and the worst ain't too bad, but it's too inconsistent for a higher rating. Best Tracks: NY Weather Report, Hostile Gospel Pt. 1 (Deliver Us), Say Something, Hot Thing, Listen!!!

I've said this with Slaughterhouse and other hip hop groups, but to be a successful hip hop duo or group, in my eyes, there needs to be distinction between the rappers. I don't hear enough between the Bone Thug members and they don't have captivating voices. It all sounds a tad too similar early on into this release and while they are good technical fast rappers, at times they are extremely difficult to understand, although this complaint isn't exclusive to these rappers. Overall, I find this to be pretty boring and one paced. Even the Grammy winning single 'Crossroad' is lackluster. One of those hip hop albums heralded as a classic that I don't get. Best Tracks: Down '71 (The Getaway), Mo' Murda

I'm a fan of B.V. His first two albums have some of the best R&B the mainstream has given us over the past 10 years, and his next two had their moments as well. There are too many weak features on this, with the best tracks being solo tracks. It doesn't help when I only really like one of the featuring artists in Cassidy. In saying that, 'Mirror' is pretty good, but it would have been much better without Wayne who misses a lot more than he hits with his features these days. While I'm on this topic, I've never really been a big fan of a quick 16 in R&B songs. There are exceptions to the rule, but a lot of the time I find it to be a bit pointless. For his 6th effort, Bobby would be better off just having one or two features for radio play and keeping the rest for himself. Hit or miss but the hits are fantastic. Best Tracks: Before You Break My Heart, Nothing on You, Save Me from Me