Magnum Force
For all its pistol-packing pretensions, Heltah Skeltah'sMagnum Forcestrikes more like a .22. It's a perfectly decent hip-hop album, but decent is about as exciting as it gets. The duo of Ruck and Rock are blessed with two of the more distinctive flows and voices in the rap world, but neither they nor their motley crew of producers are able to capitalize on it to any degree. Songs like "I Ain't Havin' That," "Magnum Force," and "Gunz 'n Onez" might peak your interest for a quick minute, but they quickly fade into obscurity. Ironically, some of the best moments on the album come in the form of skits like "2 Keys" and the hilarious "Call Tyrone" (following up on Erykah Badu's notorious song of the same name).--Oliver Wang