Despite a three-year absence and diminished membership,
Crime Mob
returned fairly unchanged on their second album,
Hated on Mostly
. Their crunk style of
rap
remains chiefly indebted to
Three 6 Mafia
and is highlighted by some potent productions, most of them credited to group member
Lil Jay
.
"Rock Yo Hips"
is the clear-cut single, tailor-made for club play and boasting a
Lil Scrappy
feature.
"Circles"
is the other standout, mostly because it's a change of pace -- relatively downtempo and sullen, built around an old
soul
sample (
"Going in Circle"
by
the Friends of Distinction
). There are a few other strong songs here, such as the title track and
"2nd Look,"
both of which are rabble-rousing, if overly typical. What makes
atypical, above all, is the group's pair of female rappers,
Diamond
and
Princess
. These young ladies are not only skilled rappers, but they're charismatic and good-looking. They distinguish
from the group's innumerable, almost exclusively male contemporaries. Beyond the potent productions, handful of standout songs, and pair female rappers,
frankly isn't all that interesting. It's a more mature and commercial album than the group's self-titled 2004 debut, certainly, but it still leaves plenty of room for growth. [A clean version, with all profanities removed, was also released.] ~ Jason Birchmeier