This record is four artist connecting for a reason. Cause as much as they are appearing under one name, they are still making this a collection of mainly solo tracks. Hence Sublymminal, Baby C, Metasin and producer in charge (apart from three cuts) MAV give us some proper Seattle flavor. And while the fresh cover doesn't let you think so, this is still some funk fo' dat azz, as MAV's production is mainly keyboard based, the lyrics however are more than mere rider themes, the player tales, bragging and boasting, as there are a lot of conscious glimpses on here.

Starting out we are checking the "Intro", that's one of the three beats that has someone else than or with MAV behind the boards. In this case Jeff 'Slick' Brooks does something for the trunks. Another cut is "To The Big Time", where MAV is sharing the production credits with Steve 'Da Brayne' Sherrard. This is also the one cut where the 2-0 step back, to let someone from the outside spit. The rapper is Terra, and he offers a really quick flow, that is further enhanced by a quirky voice, but offering rather little, with the lyrics being of a generated braggadocios style. Da Brayne was also responsible for the beat on "Ain't Nuthin' New", where MAV then appears as a performer, along with Sublymminal and Metasin. And here we are getting a quick proof, that these cats are well deserving your time, as we hear: "while you claiming that you pimping, you are scared to mack / you need a Cadillac to increase your confidence / I got a bus pass and a look of innocence".

If we are looking for the tracks that we like, we find "The World Turns (360°)" by Sublymminal, where he gives us some honest reflective coming to conclusions on the struggle, that we are much more than the beat. He's also coming correct on "The Struggles", a cut that also features Baby C. That cat is responsible for "Up In The Clouds", that's a smooth cut, that moves like clouds of smoke in an unstirred air. Here he addresses us directly, when he speaks of his needs and understandable wants. Flipping his game, he's offering the sung "No Wanna", that is again honest and reflective, what we certainly like. The beat on here however is getting too keyboardy. The same is holding back "Nothing To Lose", where Sublymminal and Baby C are looking at the world through their eyes, allowing and sharing with us a quick flash of how that is.

"Fuck It All" by Sublymminal and "One Time" by Metasin allow you to get grooving, meaning moving about, shacking things and all that good stuff. "Return Of The Gemini" is very lyrics focused, as Sublymminal is going for the punchline galore, as he rides this cut with his well tuned flow. Baby C is also straying away from the observing, when he reappears as "Da Reaper", making this a resurrected horrorcore cut. All of these cuts are certainly cool enough.

However, there's the weak tracks on here too, like the lame "All In You" by Metasin, where he gets his mack on, or better: tries to. And while we are going for an easy diss here, it still takes no effort to imagine the yawning on the face of the chick. Cause if he's as boring between the sheets, as lame as this track is, damn. Just check out the hook (and imagine it being sung): "do you like it, when I ride it, from the backside? / does it feel good, when I pump it back and put it all in you / do you like it, when I pull your hair and make you call my name / taste my manhood, swallow my love / and squeeze my face". There's another Metasin cut on here, where he gets the sexing on. It's called "Do It Like", and with the quicker beat, he is polishing up his reputation again, as this is brushing off all the lameness. / fear is false evidence appearing real / so release your fears".

What hopefully is obvious after having reading this review, that the lyrics often feature true honesty, the will to speak from the heart on the struggle, the life and what keeps these cats awake for a minute longer than their tiredness would make necessary. We are always supporting that and are always appreciative for artists that talk about these matters. Hence the 2-0 gets our props for that.