Elephunk [PA] - Black Eyed Peas (CD 2003)

A little back history here. I've actually had a copy of Black Eyed Peas' "Elephunk" for quite some time now. Their first two albums were on the better side of average, and I applauded the first single "Where Is The Love", a good old-fashioned protest song with thoughtful lyrics. In a world where popular hip-hop now rivals pop music for lyrical vapidity, it was nice to hear some meaningful content. And I wasn't terribly mortified by the inclusion of Justin Timberlake on the song.

So, almost a year after it's release, I finally sat down and listened to the album. What I discovered was an album with appealing beats-"Elephunk" is definitely a head-nodder. However, as lyricists, the Peas leave MUCH to be desired. Most of these songs seem to float on one gimmick or another, and lead Pea Will.I.Am's lyrics occasionally border on the embarrassing.

The one difference from the Peas of old and the 2003 version of the Peas is the addition of vocalist Fergie. You might remember her as a cast member from the mid 80's show "Kids Incorporated" or as a member of the late 90's pop trio Wild Orchid. She has a pleasant voice, but she just seems a bit out of place in the group. It's like Christina Aguilera joining De La Soul-it just doesn't work.

I've become very familiar with the album's lead track "Hands Up", because it's one of the several themes of the NBA Live 2004 video game. It's got a weird little Tex-Mex sounding horn section in there, but is otherwise fairly unremarkable. Many of these songs seem to simply be excuses to shout a catchphrase repeatedly, and this track officially starts that trend.

"Labor Day (It's A Holiday)" commits the ultimate act of sacrilege-it samples Public Enemy's "Night Of The Living Baseheads" for what's essentially a party joint. If Chuck D. was dead, he'd be rolling in his grave. Since he's alive, I hope he merely locks The Peas in a room with Flavor Flav and a vial of crack. The vapid party joints continue with "Let's Get Retarded", which contains the immortal line "Step by step like we're the New Kids". If Donnie Wahlberg was dead, he'd be spinning in his grave too. But I think he'd be ok with that Flavor Flav/crack concept.

"Hey Mama", the set's third single, rolls along on an Island-spiced beat. It's as silly as singles get, but it has an addictive, appealing quality and a danceable beat, which is a slight spin-off of the incredibly popular "diwali" reggae beat. "Latin Girls" is borderline offensive. "Call your cousins 'cause I know you got dozens of them" is not exactly romantic poetry. The Peas proceed to further stomp a hole in Latino culture by using a sample of legendary Brazilian bossa nova composer Antonio Carlos Jobim on "Sexy", the album's next track. Among the examples of musical poetry here are Will rhyming "stare at ya" with "starin' at ya" and saying "I ain't tryin' to rush nothing/'Cause I ain't Russian". At this point on the album, I'm not only ready to break the CD in half, but I'm struggling to not bang my head against the wall.

The album's couple of truly enjoyable songs are all the way at the end. "The Boogie That Be" is a legitimately funky jam with additional vocals by Roc-A-Fella associate John Legend, while the aforementioned "Where Is The Love" closes the album-kinda. Possibly to force anyone who rips the song to listen to an additional track just because-the Peas tack another track onto the end of "Where Is The Love"-making this album a total non-necessity. If you want this song, you can pick up the Now 14 compilation.

For all intents and purposes, "Elephunk" is a Will.I.Am and Fergie album. The other two members of the group (Apl.De.Ap and Taboo) are like guest stars on their own group's album, only appearing on a few of the album's songs. Shame too, because they exhibit a little more heart and soul in their rhyming than Will does.

On the production tip, Will (who produced damn near the whole record) does his thing. These tracks are definitely good for the speakers, however the lyrical content is so ridiculous it turns you off from the whole album. However, this has turned out to be their breakout album, so apparently dumbing down for success has been good for them. I'd hate to think of how many of the million people who've bought "Elephunk" thus far will be using their CD as a coaster a year from now, though.

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars (and I'm stretching it, folks)

Repeat: "Where Is The Love", "Hey Mama", "The Boogie That Be"

Skip: EVERYTHING else

Great Music to Play While: Realizing you may have enjoyed this album better as a collection of instrumentals.