“Love Thirst”
by Jean Grae
(Blacksmith)

A recent item from superb R&B blog SoulBounce: “Has Jean Grae
Kissed Her Career Goodbye?” The New York MC’s Jeanius album was
supposed to come out this year after two years on the shelf, and a
video for this song was to premiere near Valentine’s Day; neither has
materialized, plus Grae has been writing valedictory notes on her
MySpace blog. But maybe not—the album is now due out July 8. As
for “Love Thirst,” anyone who knows Grae’s earlier work knows she’s a
classic battle rhymer, so nearly six minutes of plush R&B with
breathy orgasmic gasps at the end is certainly a change. You wouldn’t
likely guess who it was in a blindfold test, though that’s probably as
much due to Grae’s relative obscurity as her smoother tone here. But
just to kick against the grain a little, she throws in a dig at her
man’s forgetfulness—”Maybe we should tape this so you can
remember”—that the quick follow-up, “I’m just playing,” does
nothing to mitigate.

“Perfect Timing”
by C.L. Smooth, ft. Skyzoo
(Coalmine)

I’m not going to pretend I’ve kept up with C.L. Smooth in the decade
and a half since he released one of hiphop’s greatest records, “They
Reminisce over You (T.R.O.Y.),” with Pete Rock in 1992. So I couldn’t
verify whether he’s had a track as drop-dead gorgeous to work with as
this one in a while. (It’s from a new compilation, Unearthed, on
new hiphop label Coalmine.) The lyric isn’t great, but Smooth is
commanding enough and Skyzoo’s verse even gets away with name-dropping
“T.R.O.Y.,” albeit not by much. But it’s M-Phazes cutting up Marvin
Gaye (I think) in the background that stops you; even during the
verses, the producer adds enough uncanny filtered sparkle in the
background to hold you by itself.

“My Hood”
by Capone-n-Noreaga, ft. Clipse
(PTG/Thugged Out Entertainment)

Queens hard men, about to issue the sequel to 1997’s definitive
hard-man document The War Report—the new album is titled,
naturally, Report the War—invite Virginia Beach’s Clipse
along to claim respective turf. Mostly, it’s fairly rote hard-man
stuff, but the second verse is where they take it home. Waxing
rhapsodic about pubs, the Ave, 21st Street, the Q train, and “the
shorties in the summertime thongs/I miss the chicken wings, there’s
nothing like Wong’s,” C-N-N sound almost transported by their own
nostalgia.