The Lonely Ones - Aceyalone

Following their reggae flavored collaboration Lightning Strikes, The Lonely Ones finds cutting-edge rapper Aceyalone and producer Bionik absorbing Motown, soul, and doo wop, creating a dressed-up, jump-jive style of hip-hop that's so vibrant, it's like that Afrika Bambaataa and James Brown cut "Unity" but written by Smokey Robinson with production from Fatboy Slim. So distinct it'll wreck any mixtape it lands on, the brilliant "What It Was" puts a whole new spin on the "back in the day" cut with '60s background vocals and a fingersnap beat. The very Supremes "Step Up" with Treasure Davis is equal shares b-boy and beehive while the raised fist "Power to the People" features a Chambers Brothers-styled backbeat as it protests "The TV got me like Poltergeist" like it was Gil Scott-Heron for the Urban Outfitters crowd. If it all sounds too contrived and clever, but everything here sounds surprisingly natural, leaving only the 33 minute playing time and the lack of liner notes -- where did all these horns come from? -- as things to complain about. ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide