The Movement [PA]

Compared to his partners in Wu-Tang Clan, Inspectah Deck usually keeps a low profile; besides his features on Wu LPs or solo projects from GZA or Killa Beez, he surfaces only when he's finished an album. Four years after a debut that reportedly took four years to reach the stores, The Movement also dropped on a new label. Sporting few features and only a pair of main producers (Hassan from UMC and Ayatollah), Deck certainly isn't out to break the Top Ten. In fact, sporting a message to "protest the radio stations," he's out to take hip-hop back from the crossover artists. Fortunately, he's clever enough to know that the music is what matters and that if he simply makes a great rap album the fans will follow. The Movement has plenty of what Wu-Tang fans know and love: first and foremost, the smooth flow but also the scarred soul samples. Versatility is the name of the game, from laid-back blaxploitation funk on "The Stereotype" to harder material like "U Wanna Be." One of the best moments comes with a tag-team between two of the best hardcore rappers of the past ten years -- Deck and Kool G Rap -- on "Framed." ~ John Bush