Where’s Black Rob been? After the huge banger ‘Whoa’ and so-so album ‘Life Story’ it seemed he vanished into the Bad Boy underworld where the likes of Craig Mack vanished, never to be seen again. Finally after his recent splurge of guest appearances with DJ’s such as Kay Slay, his sophomore effort has hit the streets, and for better or worse it will alter Black Rob’s understandably small reputation for ever.

The album begins with the self explanatory ‘They Heard I Got Life’ on which Rob flows over a thunderous bass line with lines like “Fuck it Black man, show some reserve, you ain’t a herb, this just a kid with a lot of nerve”. Next comes the better ‘Watch Your Movements’ featuring an in-demand Akon on the chorus with Black Rob rhymes over another jumpy soundscape with ease. ‘Star in the Hood’ is sadly quite formulaic although Rob’s lyrics continue to go with the saying ‘sweet but simple’. ‘B.R’ is a self confessed Bounce track with Rob rapping couplets such as “Who shine like disco lights, blow the fuse on the cordless mic” and with help from r&b temptress Cheri Dennis in the background this is another short but sweet track. ‘Ready’ is better with more drums and more egocentric lyrics but the track is hindered by the sickly chorus. ‘B.L.A.C.K.’ is another nice track even with it’s slightly misleading title and Bad Boy formula. “When You Come Home” is Rob at his storytelling best. By no means is he a Slick Rick or Nas but he holds it down despite another (although better than previous efforts) r&b chorus. “Ya’ll Know Who Killed Him” is another vault raiding exercise with Biggie featuring. It’s not the worst, but don’t you think this is a slightly insensitive track to have a deceased Biggie on? ‘Team’ brings out the, well, team with appearances by Aasim, Babs, Chopper and Ness. Black Rob understandably outshines his b-list guests and although the song is no ‘Symphony’, it definitely serves it’s purpose. With lines like “Puff, puff, pass, till my lungs can’t take it, even law in the book, my gun goin’ break it, homie I ain’t the one, don’t come with the hatred, give you the fundamentals and lace you wid the basics” it’s easy to see why this is one of the best. The album ends with ‘The Verdict’ which wraps up a fairly flimsy concept.

Wow. This album was more than I expected, especially from the Bad Boy camp, and although Rob is certainly no super wordsmith he holds an entire album with ease and builds on his freshmen effort. This album will spend more time in rotation than I expected and is by far the best thing to come from Bad Boy this year. Black Rob has done well, but I’m sure he his a better album in there somewhere.

Download : ‘Team’, ‘They Heard I Got Life’, ‘Watch Your Movements’, ‘Warrior’, ‘Ready’, ‘When You Come Home’

Don’t Bother : ‘Star in the Hood’, ‘Smile in Your Face’

Overall : 4 Out of 6 Shots; Black Rob returns with a solid effort.