World Party

After playing second fiddle to the Fugees and the Roots on support tours since 1995, Atlanta hip-hop collective Goodie Mob (an acronym of sorts for the Good Die Mostly Over Bullshit!) launch an all-out assault for major league hip-hopping glory.

Their third studio album is a cross-over orientated offering. It comes with an invitation to party like its 2000 and celebrate the hope for a new dawn of racial harmony and mutual understanding. While this route has been the artistic downfall of many a hip-hop pretender in the past, World Party manages not to tumble into well-intended cliche territory.

Aside from the highly crass and tacky artwork, the grooves certainly don't let the side down. The tension between red raw beats and accessible party anthems is kept razor sharp, so cuts such as 'Chain Swang' and 'Get Rich To This/Parking Lot (Break)' are kept both bright and breezy yet retaining a dark and moody undertone.

Indeed, the ebb and flow of the beats is so strong it serves to show up the slightly flat vocal production which makes for some grating listening, particularly in the first half. Hence when TLC pop up to guest on 'What It Ain't (Ghetto Enuff)' it's a welcome respite from the rather two-dimensional rapping/rasping that precedes it. This centrepiece is followed by album standout 'Rebuilding', re-visiting a familar hip-hop theme with delicious harmonies and by far the strongest and hardest-hitting raps on offer at this party.