Since coming out of the underground scene of Los Angeles, the Black Eyed Peas have been known as a high energy Hip Hop group that came with a good flow and lyrical talents. Their first single, “Joints & Jams,” from their debut album Behind the Front, achieved radio appeal, as well as a spot on the popular soundtrack for Bulworth, and started to get the group well known in the mainstream. Their sophomore LP Bridging the Gap seemed to be a nice balance between commercial appeal, with the hit “Request Line” featuring Macy Gray, and their usual underground sound, although not as good as their debut. However, with the release of their third album, Elephunk, the group seems to be too focused on getting that next radio hit and overloads the effort with party jams that don’t exhibit much replay value.
The first single, “Where Is the Love,” seems to have achieved the commercial success desired with conscious rhymes over production that combines a subtle uplifting beat with instrumentation supplemented in the background, and vocals from the newest member of the group, Fergie, and Justin Timberlake on the chorus. The lyrics seem heartfelt and if read on paper would be more powerful, but in the context of the song almost sound forced, like the group felt it would be popular to write a conscious song. The soft tones of the group and “happy-go-lucky” type of beat just don’t really seem to fit the content written, and sound like they should be delivered in a more angry tone.
One of the party jams mentioned above is “Labor Day (it’s a holiday),” an up-tempo potentially radio friendly track that samples James Brown. The singing in the hook sounds reminiscent of Madonna’s hit song “Holiday,” but since the lyrics aren’t very imaginative or original the song as a whole doesn’t sound like it required much hard work or time to make. Not only does it sound unoriginal, but many of the tracks throughout the album sound incredibly redundant, such as “Let’s Get Retarded,” “Hey Mama,” and “The Boogie That Be.”
One of the only highlights on the album is “The APL Song” a surprisingly good mix of conscious rapping and singing that lacks the inconsistent feel of “Where Is the Love”. This is a mellow track that sounds almost folk-like, and discusses life in the ghetto in a positive light, over an interesting production ensemble. The hook is intriguing since it uses a different language, in a very soulful and relaxed tone.
For any real Hip Hop head, this album does not have the replay value that one would like to get for the price of CDs nowadays. It does have a few highlights such as “Anxiety” with Papa Roach, and the aforementioned “The APL Song”, but mostly comes out as if it’s a forced effort made for the sole purpose of creating radio friendly and commercially successful tracks. Sure, it might get a few people to dance if you played the album in a club, but most of the album is simply party lyrics that demand no attention, and sub-par production. Black Eyed Peas has put out much better, and should do whatever they can to get back to their underground roots.
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