It has almost become a music cliché to talk of how conflict within a band leads to exemplary music.
The thing that underground hip-hop prides itself on -- above all else -- is its dissimilarity with itsmainstream counterpart.
System of a Down's Mezmerize does little to move past the style of the band's previous efforts, System of a Down, Toxicity and Steal This Album, but manages to put forth a strong effort that is both radio-friendly and pleasing to longtime fans. Toxicity managed to be brutally heavy as well as exotic and experimental, but Mezmerize often lacks these characteristics, instead falling back on the formulas found in SOAD's earlier work.
It would be nearly impossible for Queens of the Stone Age to better or even match its 2002 breakout hit, Songs for the Deaf.
Sage Francis' new album A Healthy Distrust is, simply put, the future of underground rap. A Healthy Distrust is the finest political rap album to come out since Dead Prez's Let's Get Free, and could possibly revive rap the way Company Flow's Funcrusher Plus or Black Star's self-titled debut did in the late '90s. Possibly the most brilliant lyricist in recent times, Francis blends his own brand of complex wordplay with a solid flow that is often lost on many indie MCs. Francis' unorthodox style flaunts the conventions of rap music.
