The Beatnuts - Milk Me By Brian Kayser

Rating: 3.5 / 5

The Corona, Queens duo of Psycho Les and Junkyard JuJu have lasted longer than anyone thought they could thanks to the niche they created for themselves in the Hip Hop industry. These guys have been through a lot of drama in the industry, as they've never had a great label situation, got one of their most-recognized beats stolen by none other than J.Lo, and never really blew up past the highest underground level in Hip Hop. You can't call the Beatnuts superstars, but you also can't deny their place among Hip Hop's elite, as they've weathered the storm and stayed true to their original formula that they've perfected on "Milk Me."
Thanks to lots of crate-digging, banging drums, and a completely original sound, the Beatnuts' in-house production has given them that funky sound that everyone recognizes as the 'Nuts. While the Beatnuts are behind Hip Hop classics like "Beatnuts Forever," "Watch Out Now," and "Off the Books," their new album follows the trends of their previous albums, banging beats and sub-par lyrics with some star-studded guest appearances. Keep in mind that no one's ever bought a Beatnuts album to hear what they have to say. It's all about the beats. Psycho Les and JuJu have never failed to deliver fans with classic beats over feel-good party lyrics. The bottom line is that the Beatnuts won't deliver a classic album like "Illmatic," but they will deliver a high-quality Hip Hop album that won't leave you disappointed at the end.
"Milk Me's" first leak was "Hot," which features old-school legend Greg Nice and a crazy horn sample. With a simple hook and banging beat, "Hot" is sure to have all the Beatnuts' fans nodding along. "Hot" sets everyone up for the lead single featuring Akon, "Find Us." This is a certified club-banger and one of the hottest Beatnuts records to drop in a long time. Akon's been getting a lot of shine lately for his "Locked Up" track with Styles P, and he adds the knockout punch on here as Psycho Les and JuJu will have everyone getting drunk on the Beatnuts sound again.
One of the best tracks on "Milk Me," the duo's sixth album, is "Buggin,'" which features old school MC Prince Whipper Whip. Whipper Whip never really made it big, but his old-school flow on this track will take you back to the old-school rhymes of Kurtis Blow and the Treacherous Three. State Property's Freeway comes through on the catchy "U Nahmasayin," which comes off as one of the best tracks on "Milk Me." Les and Ju set Free up perfectly as he comes through on the last verse with his patented high-pitched flow. On tracks like this and "We Getting Paper," which features former Terror Squadrian Triple Seis, the 'Nuts get outshined lyrically by their guests, but that's how it's supposed to be. You don't go to the Beatnuts for lyrics, just like you don't go to Playboy for the articles. If you want beats, holla at Les and JuJu.
"Confused Rappers" is a track that has JuJu addressing the beat-jacking situation with Jennifer Lopez, who made the hit "Jenny From the Block" with the same beat as "Watch Out Now." An interesting side note about "Watch Out Now" is that there are five different versions recorded, and the original was supposed to be for the first Violator compilation, but the Violator heads chose "Beatnuts Forever" instead. Anyways, Big Ju gets at Jenny with the lines "you know you haven't been to the block for a minute/getting all the little Latin girls to bite/when you really can't sing and you're no Salma Hayek." "Milk Me" is not an album that is going to blow you away. It's not as tight as their older albums like "Stone Crazy," but it is better than their last effort, "The Originators." The Beatnuts will never fall off completely though, because they have carved their own place in the game that no one can touch. With rare samples chopped to perfection and simple party lyrics, this is definitely an album that you'll want to blast out your system.