Souls of Mischief

Essential debut from Oakland super-emcees, down with Del The Funky Homosapien and the Hierogrlyphics fam. Phesto, Tajai, Opio, and A-Plus tear the mic to pieces, unleashing head-spinning flows over choice samples and jazzy loops galore. Every song on this record is hot, the title track is nothing short of classic.

More than the Phracyde, the Freestyle Fellowship, or the unaffiliated Funkytown Pros, this young Oakland foursome stay aloft on the spiderweb of ideas all West Coast Native Tongues types try to swing from: playful rhyme sounds, metaphorical rhyme violence, spare jazz-intricate beats, and an aversion to all things gangsta, including hooks. They even eschew dirty words: "D.C. got schemes/And we ain't got spit." They won't necessarily stay in your head after the record's over. But while they're there, you won't believe how much life they've got. (Grade - A-)