*** KRS-One

I GOT NEXT

(Jive)

Although he may not sell the most discs out there, few would dispute the "King of Rap" title that KRS-One holds in the eyes of many serious hip-hop fans. Still going strong after more than a decade, he's back with an album full of the boom-bap beats and conscious, supremely intelligent lyrics we've come to expect. Speaker-blowing tracks like "Step into a World (Rapture's Delight)," "Heartbeat," and "Real Hip-Hop -- Part II" and more mid-tempo throwdowns like "Come to da Party," "A Friend," and "Blowe" (featuring Redman) are augmented by the intriguing live jazz backing of "Over Ya Head" and the hard-rocking "Just To Prove a Point," which features the rock group Handsome. Some purists may complain about the latter two songs, but KRS-One deserves credit for trying new things and, as he does here, making them work.

-- Brian Coleman