This is one to spin a couple of times, then never again.

For the moment, we are treated to a promising if frustrating record that remarkably lacks a hit single itself.

At 10 songs and nearly an hour long the "Back to Reality" album packs a lot of bang for the buck, and if you're in the mood to go retro this is the perfect album to fire up when you put on your Michael Jackson glove, fire up the Coleco, play Donkey Kong 'til your hands get sore then go party at Studio 54.

Mr. Dibbs and Oh No might have been preferable to will.i.am and Nottz, even though the beats here are decent enough. It's cool to see Murs get the money he deserves for his project and even to hear him team up with luminaries like Snoop, and it's head and shoulders above the other garbage the major labels are circulating these days.

Considering how tight "Strength & Loyalty" is, it's not likely anybody is going to forget Bone Thugs-N-Harmony any time soon.

With "The Undisputed Truth," Brother Ali improves as a rapper, while sacrificing none of the unique, personal touch that made "Shadows on the Sun" so impressive.

With very little filler and a strong selection of songs from start to finish, the hype that this is potentially "album of the year" according to Atlantic Records may ACTUALLY be true.

It's hard to complain much about Event II given Del's razor sharp wit and deft tongue skills.

The amount of enjoyment you take out of this is undoubtedly directly proportional to the amount of money you put into Meow the Jewels.

“2000” is very much worth celebrating. Much of the production is handled by Statik Selektah, now a veteran with a strong reputation who regularly works with Joey and it’s his sample-flipping in particular that makes this album stand out.

It feels like the audio version of Madonna releasing a coffee table art book of her sexual exploits, and I’m not in any way judging you if you get off on that, but it’s just not my thing.

Dam-Funk's production is solid and quite funky, while Snoop's personality shines through his vocals just as they have for the past twenty years or so.

While not as strong as some of her earlier albums, it does rectify the mistakes found on "This is Not a Test" and show that far from stagnating Missy is growing as an artist both in front of and behind the mixing board.

So ultimately the way I'll sum up Slime Flu is like this--I liked more than I hated and if his name came up on a mixtape in the near future I wouldn't skip over his track.

The “Eminem sound” the first “Curtain Call” could accurately collate and celebrate (given 100% of it was produced by either Dre or Em) has been pushed aside in favor of party trick flows and quick-win hooks from guests. It still seems to be a successful approach, but it’s not as satisfying to revisit.

The album’s sole difference from its predecessor is the length. It’s not lyrically mind-blowing, but its hip-hop for fans in the know and those tired of the vapid mainstream.

Despite it's unevenness, Ridin High is a nice portfolio from an up-and-coming duo.

None Shall Pass is a record you can listen to over and over, simply in trying to decipher exactly what's being said, adding almost infinite replay value.

It's a decent but underwhelming album, and one that inspires apathy more than adoration or disgust.

The irony of the Notorious soundtrack is that it may actually be a better "Greatest Hits" album than his actual "Greatest Hits" album, even though it's not presented as such.

It's not a new sound, and, at points, the tracks feel monotonous as they bleed into each other. Still, there are certainly standouts.

An ambitious album that takes chance that mostly succeed and only occasionally miss the mark.

"Chilltown, New York" proves itself a worthy successor not only to 2002's "React" but to the rest of Sermon's long and storied rap career.

Rob Sonic absorbs elements of earlier electronica, industrial and IDM to create delectably expansive, engrossing parfaits of sound- this is perhaps the greatest space boogie funk record since The Cold Vein dropped.

It's hard at times to be a fan of this genre, because it can be overly formulaic and offer little hope for the future, but despite the dark trappings there's still some musically redeeming fun to be had.

At his best on "Evolve or Be Extinct", though, he reaches a pleasing mixture of understated beats and slice-of-life rhymes that are occasionally profound. At his worst, songs like "Scar" have neither beats nor rhymes I ever want to hear again.

Every time you turn the page to another chapter of "Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang" you get a pleasant surprise.

Sigel is qualified enough as an artist to hold down an album on his own, but one gets the sense he didn't want to take any chances this record wouldn't sell and had to make sure there was one cameo for everyone.