Spins: Album reviews

Common – Universal Mind Control

Artist: Common Title: Universal Mind Control Label: Geffen Genre: Hip-hop/Electronica Common's discography is a testament to aspirations of longevity and relevance, and not just for commodity. It's been his agenda to satisfy the artistic need before soundscan figures and that has placed him in a long term, amicable position. Universal Mind Control is Common's 8th LP which covertly borrows some of the best moments of his past discography but packaged for 2008. From the title track on through, there's original moments that cater to those who crave the mellowness of Like Water for Chocolate but also serve those who didn't discover the brilliance of Electric Circus until after J Dilla's passing. While an A to Z list of producers could've satisfied the prerequisite for "hip hop" LPs these days, UMC is forged by only two, Mr. DJ and The Neptunes. Fittingly, the latter have always been better on the boards than on the tube and their touch on UMC prove they are engineers of friendly sounds that could not have projected better with any other emcee. Sonically UMC boasts the same bravado and gentlemanly machismo that Common puts down. From sexual candor to raw emcee throw downs, there's really no need to dissect each track of this LP simply because this is better as a whole. Fans of Common won't disagree, and new fans will find out that Common's train has been picking up passengers along the way one caboose at a time. While the the layman's version mildly boasts only 10 tracks, the iTunes version offers an additional two. But when you sacrifice quality for quantity like Common has for over a decade, we realize it's always better off this way. - DJ Myxzlplix www.myspace.com/common Download at Itunes Purchase at Amazon Download at Amazon

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