The beats here were stronger than before, but Common himself is still the only one that is holding him back. His rhymes can get a bit preachy and repetitive at times and he gets more and more uncomfortably close to trying too hard to be controversial with every new release, something that turns me off of Kanye at times, too.

All these two cats need to do is just stick to the basics, find some magical beats and rap naturally over them and they will still be on the top of their games. But if they start getting caught up with the cars, women, and other braggadocio that is now unfortunately a huge part of mainstream rap, they may sell records, but they will be losing a huge fan base full of people like me.

I can't blame them for wanting to sell records, but I can blame them for being hypocrites. Either crossover completely, or keep things raw and true. No more of this in between bullshit. This was a step in the right direction for Common, as he stands out as a humble Hank when compared to cocky Kanye, but after seeing him show up in American Gangster, I could easily predict a negative change of pace next time around. He used to despise what rappers like T.I. stood for and now he's doing movies with them. Something doesn't smell right about that.

But this album feels good on its own, in spite of what he has done before or what he may do in the future and that's why it deserves a spot right here.

For fans of: Brother Ali, Pharoahe Monch, Kanye West, Talib Kweli, Slum Village

Dead Poetry Jam
25. (tie) Atmosphere - Sad Clown Bad Summer/Sad Clown Bad Fall/Sad Clown Bad Winter & Strictly Leakage (Rhymesayers)
25. (tie) El-P - I'll Sleep When You're Dead (Definitive Jux)
25. (tie) Sole & the Skyrider Band (Anticon.)
These three artists have their differences musically and have even had personal differences with each other, (Sole and El-P had an infamous public battle with each other about ten years ago) but they definitely are being grouped together for a reason. Slug of Atmosphere is the silliest one, but he knows when to get serious, El-P is the most acerbic one, but he knows how to have a little fun, and Sole is the abstract genius with the brand of dry humor and wordplay that might possibly be best served for the Monty Python set. All three are major pillars of the underground scene and don't figure to be going anywhere anytime soon.

All three are at the top of their game here and that is especially refreshing when it comes to Atmosphere, who I had nearly given up on a year or two ago when Slug seemed to be losing some direction. But he came back with a vengeance in 2007 on 4(!) superb releases — 3 EP's and one, internet-only full length — full of their best work since the legendary Lucy Ford EP's. Slug seems to have made a conscious effort to shut people like me up as he sounds more urgent, hungry, and determined than he ever has. You can call it the "quiet storm", as these 4 releases seem to have been hugely ignored by the public at large, but I can say with near certainty that anyone who was paying attention can attest to the furious fun that Slug and producer Ant brought to the table. Slug's calm, cool and strong confidence proved that he is interested in putting his name on the map of all-time hip-hop credibility and not just as it pertains to the underground.