producer: dj quik

guests: mausberg, james debarge, will hudspeth, shaboobie, amg, erick sermon, kam, digital underground, raphael saadiq, suga free

There were two John Coltrane CDs lying next to this album here, when this CD was picked up to be reviewed. And while it would go too far to compare the musical genius of 'Trane, with the huge and enormous talent of DJ Quik, mentioning the position of the CD cases still somehow makes strange sense. Let's face it: a hip hop beat is monotone. Quite often it's not changing from the first boom up to the last bap. Of course: add a chorus, that usually is a little different to the rest of the track. And yes, oftentimes this works. Sometimes this has been done to perfection, like on O.C.'s "Times Up". But nevertheless: for a big big part, hip hop is a bridge-less, a climax-less, a melody-less music genre.

Enter DJ Quik. Everyone that has peeped "rhythm-al-ism" knows how brilliant that album was. While the lyrics weren't mindblowing, the production was deep. It had structure. It had layers. It had sense. It had funk. It was music, in the most traditional of ways. It was as close as 'g-funk' could ever get to the musicality hip hop of a Lauryn Hill (man, I'm gonna get slack for this comparison). It was a dope, a funky, a fresh, fresh album. Now DJ Quik goes for the 'if it ain't broke, don't try to fix it' and gives us "Balance & Options", just in time for the summer. While the last album sounded very playful at times, this album doesn't sound forced, but it also does not have the happy childish feel, the other had. While the last one was to be played during the day, this is for the summer nights. And damn is this album still funky.

"Change Da Game" will most likely not do that. But Quik spits "I'm the only nigga that promised to show up / with more talent than any nigga and I didn't wanna blow up / I shine like glitter 'cause I'm natural / if on the first night I hit, then that's a hoe / and I gotta stay away". All of that to an organ driven track and a matching hook, sung by James DeBarge and Will Hudspeth. The piano of "Did Y'all Feel Dat?" is more traditional westcoast, and the same thing can be said about "We Came 2 Play", featuring AMG and James Debarge, while "Pitch In Ona Party" is giving us back the feel good vibe, on this strongly 'rhythm-al-ism' material resembling track. Now that in itself is not a bad thing, so isn't the sing along hook.

Speaking about his new view on life, the title of "I Don't Wanna Party Wit U" is misleading, as is the changing, but funny chorus, "-I don't wanna party wit you- Hell naw. 'Cause bitch you scary, you 20 years old, with 3 kids, 7 tattoos, you're bald but your legs are hairy. / -I don't wanna party wit you- Hmm, hell naw. You need to put some lotion on, 'cause your skin is peeling around them bullet wounds on your back, you're fat plus you're abortion-prone". This track is actually about respect, about leaving negativity behind, about "I ain't at the club / I'm chillin with my homies in the city of hugs / because they need me more than that hoe", about having a mature point of view.

But a bitch is still a bitch. At least in the Quik universe. So on the party bouncy "Sexuality", he kicks "selling you a nice drink while you eat it up / negotiate with you for a minute then beat it up / underground laws the rules still apply / macking is an art reserved for the fly / she don't know why you trying to harm her (Dumb) / looking for a dick in shining armor / yeah, the same that be saying you with dick on your breath / bitch either get dropped or get left". And while his content is not constructed in the most poetic kind of way, he flows strong over this track here. The collaboration with Erick Sermon, "U Ain't Fresh", a track where Kam shows up too, does neither impress on the lyrical, nor the musical tip, while it's still aight. But the honest "Roger's Groove", dedicated to Roger Troutman, has Quik on the talk box, and this track moves forward with a funk wah wah guitar hidden in the back, trading sounds with the drum.

In no way blasphemous, Quik does "Quikker Said Than Dunn", a remake of "Eazy-er Said Than Dunn". While this beat is still working, and Quik treats this classic with respect. He does not add any updated sounds to it, and so is conserving this track in almost original form, even adapting his flow, the questions / answer thing, the sample breaks, everything. On "Do Whutcha Want" something happens that you never dared to hope for: Humpty Hump goes nasty over a Quik production. AMG is getting down too, and the Bar-Kays sample gets us onto some train to memory lane type vibe. Even putting down a track with an orchestra (the South Central Philharmonic Orchestra), shows Quik's intend to create something magical. "Well" is a success. Raphael Saadiq is providing the hook, and Quik is again giving us some of his newfound understanding.

So, now it's time to relax, sit back, have the sun tickle our skin, or hear the rain bounce from the window, as the instrumental "Quik's Groove V" is such a strong musical piece, it will not need a nail and hammer to remain on your mental wall. Showing how Quik could resurrect R'n'B, the James DeBarge solo cut "Tha Divorce Song" is exactly having everything that so much of today's R'n'B is missing.

What leaves us to quote two more lines from "I Don't Wanna Party Wit U": "see lyrics ain't nothing if the beat ain't cracking". Well, a songs is also not that much of a hoot and a holler without lyrics. Quik might not be your science mc or your most metaphoric, but fortunately he comes solid, honest, and his expressed heart is containing more soul, than much of today's 'ego-spoiled' rhyming. And the other quote: "we get props from Wall Street to y'all street". Hopefully he does. As he again gave us an album that's easy to enjoy. Now you just need to check it out, before you can agree or disagree.