Guru

When given the right backdrop, Guru's relaxed purr is the picture of effortless force. When it's not, the ex-Gang Starr/would-be superstar simply sounds bored. Not that you could blame him for yawning through the overstuffed Version 7.0. "If I sold out/I coulda sold millions," he claims on "Hall of Fame,"...

By Rich Juzwiak

June 23, 2005

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When given the right backdrop, Guru's relaxed purr is the picture of effortless force. When it's not, the ex-Gang Starr/would-be superstar simply sounds bored. Not that you could blame him for yawning through the overstuffed Version 7.0. "If I sold out/I coulda sold millions," he claims on "Hall of Fame," making what would be a good point if the album's beats (provided by him and coproducer Solar) weren't full of cheap Top 40 pandering. (Note: Sped-up samples are the new twenty-inch rims -- everyone has them, so they're no longer impressive.) Then he adds on the same track, "Ya need to put me in the hall of fame," with no interest in showing you why.

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