quote:

In ‘06, Chicago duo Kidz In The Hall dropped their debut album School Was My Hustle, a memorable if inconsistent LP that justifiedly saw the duo spouted as the next big thing on the Hip-Hop underground. Coprimising of Naledge on the mic and Double O behind the boards, Kidz In The Hall’s debut worked so well because of its personality, Double O’s energetic and soulful beats perfectly backing up Naledge’s personal stories of life and love. So will Kidz In The Hall’s sophomore release The In Crowd bring further underground and critical success?

Good stuff first - the album hits the ground running with a couple of bangers, most notably the boom bap of Black Out and the Cool Kids esque throwback sound of the Masta Ace assisted Drivin’ Down The Block. The Pledge is yet more glorious boom bap while the criminally underrated Camp Lo add their lyrical brilliance to Snob Hop. Double O is as good as expectected throughout, his soulful hard hitting beats embracing old school Hip-Hop whilst also sounding up to date and fresh.

However, the main flaw of the album becomes clear quickly - the quality and abundance of guests. Their is 17 guests spread across a 14 track album, some far too obvious (Sean Price, Phonte, Buckshot), some mediocre c-list MC’s (Skyzoo, Guilty Simpson) and a few nobodies. The clutter of different voices robs The In Crowd of what made School Was My Hustle so impressive, the charisma of Naledge on the mic. Although Naledge excels at times, showing lyrical dexterity on Black Out and cockiness on Drivin’ Down The Block (“Girls fantasize bout having labor pains” /” Cause they see my ride and they thinking that I make it rain”) too often he wanders into cliches and dumbed down rhymes, most embarassingly on Love Hangover (”I adore here truly” / “I am her groupie”).

Maybe Kidz In The Hall have tried to be too clever with this album, sacrificing the integrity of the LP with the abundance of guests brought in it seems to ensure underground and commercial success. Too easily, Naledge becomes another voice struggling to get heard rather then being the star MC of the album. When Kidz In The Hall stay in their comfort zone - that means soul infused boom bap - they excel but they lack the talent to pull off a real pop hit, as forgettable tracks like Lucifer’s Joyride show. Nonetheless, The In Crowd is not a bad album - Double O’s production is far too nice for a start - but when compared to their debut it is a disapointment and a regression, lacking the personality that made Kidz in The Hall so entertaining in the first place.

Rating: 3/5