PROMOTIONAL ONLY! NOT FOR SALE!

Rampage, a member of NYC's Flipmode Squad and cousin to Busta Rhymes, seems to be deeply concerned with bootlegging. The bane of NOT FOR SALE especially East Coast artists, who often hear their own songs on mix tapes before they've been mastered, bootlegging takes money PROMOTIONAL ONLY from the artist in terms of residual payments for someone else playing the song and such dramas. He was concerned, PROMOTIONAL ONLY so concerned, that on the review copy of his debut album, Scout's Honor by Way of Blood has a special feature, a member of Flipmode (sounds like Flex) saying, "PROMOTIONAL ONLY, NOT FOR SALE!" something like every fifteen seconds, through verses, choruses, skits and all.

Now, the idea is PROMOTIONAL ONLY admirable, in that it is important to all of NOT FOR SALE us, with the NOT FOR SALE importance of keeping it real. However, it makes it somewhat hard for anybody PROMOTIONAL ONLY to figger out what the heck anybody is saying with all the NOT FOR SALE crazy stuff interjected.

From what one can NOT FOR SALE make out (even Busta Rhymes' verse on "Flipmode is Da Squad" was blotted out by the anti-bootlegging chatter), the album has a perfectly acceptable sound, "acceptable" meaning "okay." Bolstered, of course, by the chorus of "Da Night B4 My Shit" with a faux journalist asking, "how will you deal with the success of being a superstar?" and an intro that says this is "bigger than rap music itself," the normal MC braggadocio arrogance has been elevated into delusional hubris ... unless Rampage knows a lotta things we don't. Can we expect a multimedia marketing blitz from Elektra that would make even Puffy's jaw drop in amazement? Did we miss news of a secret platinum single in Uruguay? One is left wondering as they examine the album itself.

The gentle piano of "Wild For Da Night" is a delicious musical moment, which features Rampage at his best, and the resurrection of PE's classical "Public Enemy #1" as "Flipmode Enemy #1" (a slightly odd interpretation of the original, but oh well, they're all high) was entertaining in that it gave up props to some classical material. The two sample driven cuts on side two, "We Getz Down" and "Niggaz is Bad" as well have their entertainment value, but short of looking for another Busta Rhymes photo op, this album wallows in mediocrity and average lyrical delivery. Rampage has a good voice that moves well with a solid baritone sound, but the echoes of Busta in his style and the lackluster other inflections leave the listener wondering if that much more energetic Twista or KRS album is lying around nearby.

Rampage has the possibility, is one is to follow Guru's mantra, of becoming a great MC. If it is indeed "mostly the voice," he's almost there. But almost only counts in horseshoes, hand grenades, and tactical nuclear weaponry a unles ion (DJ Scratch and mostly, with better work by far from Teddy Riley and Backspin the Vibe Chemist) comes up to a higher benchmark and the delivery grows into its an, as ee Homosapien can a e will forever be on someone else's tour bus, flossing in the shadow of Busta. top">top | help