Round About

アルバムレビュー

On his third album, J-rapper Seamo flirts endlessly with dance music and basic R&B well outside of the normal realm of hip-hop proper. Dance is the prime star here, with keyboard riffs heavy and Seamo bursting at the seams with party rap explosions to accentuate the riffs. This only amplifies as other stars take their turns (BoA being the most notable chart-topper to make an appearance). The music is light, with none of the menace of some of the more modern — and perhaps less chart-friendly — rappers such as Nitro Microphone Underground, Zeebra, and King Giddra. Seamo just keeps up with the beats in a singsong delivery, his relatively thin vocals getting a little electronic tweaking now and then for effect. Aside from a couple of more exciting numbers ("Do It!," with part of the group Home Made Kazoku guest starring, is a great example, as is "Hot!," which could be a leftover loop from a Busta Rhymes track for at least part of the song), nothing stands out as great, nothing stands out as poor, and everything sounds like a remake of a Keith Sweat piece, mixed appropriately to cover a number of additional variations of mood.