Akrobatik – Absolute Value

Grade: B+/A-

There aren’t many MCs like Akrobatik out there these days. Most rappers decide they want to just rap about one thing. They either talk about just selling coke, or just crushing a wack MC, or just saving the world, or just ejaculating on a woman’s back and covering her with a sheet. However, Akrobatik is one of those rare genuine lyrical throwbacks to the late ’80s and early ‘90s: a balanced MC. The Boston native is just as comfortable tearing an MC’s head off as he is dealing with complex social commentary as he is talking about how much he misses his girlfriend. With Absolute Value, Akrobatik releases his second full-length album, and his first solo release in close to five years. It’s the first bonafide good album of 2008.

You can hear a passion and earnestness in Ak’s lyrics that is lacking in other mic controllers. It comes across on tracks like “Step it Up,” where he spits grade-A braggadocio over a beat inspired by “Phantom of the Opera.” Yes, “Phantom of the Opera.” He again demonstrates his passion “Front Steps Pt. 2 (Tough Love).” Whereas as part 1, featured on his last solo album, Balance, was an ode to the joys of hanging on the block, Ak flips it on the sequel, using the song to admonish those who sit around, doing nothing with their lives.

Some of the albums brightest moments come when Akrobatik keeps it short and sweet, on songs that clock in at less than three minutes in length. “Soul Glo” has a bouncy exuberance, with its elastic drums, horn and keyboard stabs, and vocal stabs popping in and out throughout the track. It’s a decidedly different feel for the Beatminerz crew, who produced the track. The J-Zone produced title track features Ak throwing more lyrical jabs and uppercuts over Zone’s trademark off-kilter keyboards. “Ak B. Nimble” is a super-hyped uptempo track produced by Baby Israel, with Ak flexing his lyrical muscles over what sounds like a 110 BPM beat box. The album ends with “Back Home to You,” a brief but touching dedication to the loved ones he leaves behind when he tours the world.

Ak also shines when he teams up with a myriad of guests. He teams with Little Brother on “Be Prepared,” where they drop a little knowledge on the lackluster state of hip-hop and the world in general. “Beast Mode” teams Ak with his Perceptionists partners, as him and Mr. Lif trade arsenic-laced verses over a Fakts One beat. “Black Hell Breaks Loose” is the album’s high-water mark. Rapping over a nasty loop that seems inspired from a gritty Blaxploitation kung-fu flick, Ak shares the spotlight with Willie Evans Jr. and Therapy of Florida’s Alias Brothers (formerly Asamov). All show and prove with a ton of panache

While Ak’s collaborations with his contemporaries are clear winners, it odd that his tracks with hip-hop legends aren’t as strong. None are wack, but few really stand out on an album dripping with quality. Album-opener “A to the K,” featuring Cypress Hill’s B-Real on the chorus, lacks the energy of the albums other battle-oriented tracks. The legendary hip-hop badass Freddie Foxx aka Bumpy Knuckles sounds subdued on “If We Can’t Build.” The song isn’t bad, but it sounds like low-rent version of a late ’90s KRS-One track. “Kindred,” featuring Chuck D, is actually a strong effort, but for reasons nothing to do with the Rhyme Animal. The ode to how times haven’t changed, juxtaposing the days of slavery to post-Hurricane Katrina insanity, is both sad and beautiful. However, Chuck D’s rhetoric on the chorus doesn’t add anything to the song.

It’s good to see that Akrobatik hasn’t missed a step since his last release. It’s difficult to put together a cohesive solo album when you share mic time with some many MCs and use so many different producers. However, it all holds together, and Absolute Value pretty much bangs from beginning to end.