Infamy

Queens rap duo Mobb Deep have spent nearly a decade scaring the shit out of us. Across four albums, their bleak tales of urban ugliness have been jarring, not for their sonic wonders, but rather for the duo’s refusal to pretty up their raw, grim rhymes. So it’s a bit of a surprise to hear the smooth coos of rising diva Lil’ Mo ringing through “Pray For Me,” the first cut on the Mobb’s latest album. It sets the stage, though, for the pair’s most accessible and, yes, pop-friendly outing yet. The more dogmatic hardcore bangers will probably cry “foul” at such a move, but fact is, the dark, gruff simplicity of their old approach (which is still too-well-represented here on tracks like “Clap” and “Kill That Nigga”) has grown tired. MCs Havoc and Prodigy spit plenty of bile about the usual tripe—guns, drugs, bitches and thugs—but mesmerizing guitar lines (“So Long”), lush, classic soul production (“Nothing Like Home”), and even a genuinely gooey love song (“Hey Luv (Anything)”) ensure Infamy isn’t simply Mobb Deep as usual.