Daily Staff Writer

“The Firm Soundtrack”

Various Artists

Put Nas, RBX, B-Real and KRS-One over a Dr. Dre beat and you’ve got a hip-hop classic called “East Coast West Coast Killers.”

Put Nas, Foxy Brown, AZ and Nature over a Dr. Dre beat and you’ve got an album of boredom entitled “The Firm.”

Four of hip-hop’s most self-centered, money-obsessed, egocentric half-talents come together in what’s billed ostensibly as an all-star collaboration of talent on Dr. Dre’s own Aftermath label.

To be fair, Dr. Dre doesn’t share all the blame. The production crew trackmasters handle the majority of the album’s beats, including the few surprising moments of dope cuts.

One of the good moments is “Desperados,” which considering it features a cameo by hip-hop’s man-of-the-moment Canibus, is no surprise.

“At a thousand degrees Celsius; I make MC’s melt; fuck my record label; I appear courtesy of myself,” Canibus raps.

This is an album desperately searching for direction. Of the 12 full-length songs, one-third have “Firm” in the title; this leads one to think something was lacking in the creativity department.

The songs themselves only confirm this suspicion. The lead single “Firm Biz” attempts to rework a disco/soul classic with the help of former En Vouge singer Dawn Robinson, but fails to impress.

Ever since Nas’ debut on “Illmatic,” he has been wasting his talent on gangsta cliche.

Rhymes like “Who mack most splash it up with lactose, pretty thug style, I blow you out slug style” have zero impact.

AZ, as an obvious Nas imitator, is even less impressive, while Foxy Brown continues to use her body to sell her boring rhymes.

Nature isn’t even worth mentioning, so I won’t.

Bottom line — even if you like any of these artists, it’s not worth the cash for this collection of crap.

1/2 star out of five.

— Steve “Flash” Juon

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“Evolution”

Boyz II Men

Only once in a blue moon does an actual supergroup come along. Those groups make their mark on the public and do nothing but blossom from the seed they plant.

Boyz II Men is one of these groups.

In the great scheme of things, these fellas from Philly will be remembered as a group that was able to stand the test of time.

The rhythmic jams Boyz II Men churn out are constant chart-toppers, while the smooth ballads are immediate heart-stoppers.

On the group’s latest album, “Evolution,” Boyz II Men prove Motown Philly is in full effect by once again being on top of its game.

The title of the group’s sixth album (counting remixes, unplugged and Christmas albums) is extremely fitting, which is evident in the much more mature sound of the music and flow of the award-winning lyrics.

While songs like “4 Seasons of Loneliness” and “A Song for Mama” are getting heavy radio play, other joints like “Never” and “Girl in the Life Magazine” are going to be become quick favorites and soon join the likes of the Isley Brother’s “Between the Sheets” and Teddy Pendergrass’ “Love TKO” on booty tapes everywhere.

The only unfortunate thing for this album is it falls into the the trap of many albums in the ’90s with its cover of New Edition’s “Can You Stand the Rain.”

What saves the group though, is the ease with which it pulls it off. Ronnie, Bobby, Ricky, Mike and Johnny would be proud.

You know these brothers are at the top of their game when they can make a song about their mamas hit the top of the charts. The only question is: can the popularity be attributed to Boyz II Men’s singing or Babyface’s lyrics?

5 stars out of five.

— Rhaason Mitchell