Love & Hate

Album Review

Released after Lil Rob's two-part Twelve Eighteen series of albums — the second of which was plagued by leaks and delays — Love and Hate is a much less hungry and much more comfortable effort, which in this case, is good news. All the over-anxious moments that made Part Two a rocky road are now smoothed out, with the rapper sounding as suave as he wants to be on the bedroom number "Dream." Only the slang-slinging faithful will appreciate the song's sneaky line "I love your brain/But I also love your mind," but as Rob states on the fourth quarter highlight "What Goes Around Comes Around," "There's more to bein' hard than lookin' hard" and if there's one thing the rapper has on lock, it's the proper gangsta stance. When it comes to punch lines, this is arguably a lesser album than either of the Twelve Eighteen releases, but the poignancy and believability have both increased greatly, making the "Lookin' back it's killin' me'/Cuz you're not where you should be" line in the cautionary "Get a Grip" all the more effective as Rob seems right over your shoulder. The usual R&B flavors are back, and the party numbers are still exciting — the electro throwback "Jam" being the breakaway best — and even if the innovations are slim, this is the standard-issue Lil Rob album done right and will draw no complaints from his loyal fans.