If the cartoon rollercoaster-ride cover of The Pharcyde's 1992 debut Bizarre Ride II... was a good indication of what was in store, then you can be sure that The Pharcyde knew what they were doing here; the band, subdued, under a starry night-sky in smooth white tuxes.
Before they were characterised by a manic (sometimes verging on *sick*) sense of humour interlaced with a human frailty rarely heard in hip-hop circles - how many rappers do you hear talking about getting dumped or not even being able to get a girlfriend in the first place? - and a sound incorporating everything from sleek, soulful jazz to a resolutely old-skool flava. 1996 sees The Pharcyde concentrating on following the smoother path of past glories like "Passing Me By" and "Otha Fish" without sacrificing any of their skills.
"Bullshit" glides in on a scattering of swingbeat stardust before "Pharcyde" kicks in proper with *the* definitive Pharcyde rap which should be blasting out of every vehicle's stereo from coast to coast.
"Groupie Therapy" demonstrates The Pharcyde approach to the war of the sexes. While casual onlookers will spot the 'Bitches' and 'Hoes' and point the finger those that look closer will discover the sting in the tale :- Fat Lip phones his girlfriend to tell her he loves her before disappearing with a groupie on tour, only to get back and find his girlfriend has been doing the same thing. And "Now I seek counselling from a therapist twice a week". Not yer average every-day type rappers.
The Pharcyde once admitted that hip-hop still hadn't produced a song that could make you cry (a journalist's slightly suspect pre-requisite for 'real' music) but didn't preclude the possibility. Well, "Moment in Time" is a slow soul-full about absent friends that's "Life is just a moment in time" hook puts a lump in the throat. Congratulations gentlemen!
And it goes on. Pianos tinkle gently, the double bass ebbs and flows, the snare shuffles, and guitars pimp like it's 1976 and The Pharcyde have just meatmorphosised into a hip-hop Isley Brothers. Special mentions to "Hey You" which is smooth like Haagen-Daas, floating like a butterfly and stingling like a bee and "The Hustle" which is Saturday Night Fever dragged into 90's Brooklyn.
"Devil Music" steals in with lyric of the year in its bite-the- hand-that-feeds chorus of "Every time I step to the microphone/I put my soul on 2 inch reels that I don't even own" over the album's roughest beat, before the uplifting "The E.N.D." rides off into the sunset and rounds off the impression that the last hour has been a genuine bona-fide *journey*.
This'll be a disappointment to those who are looking for more of the same after the debut - this is a different kind of genius altogether to Bizarre Ride II.... But to those of us who are always looking for hip-hop artists never frightened to surprise and grow, this is a revelation.
