Lil Rob Love & Hate CD

Photographer: Robert Benson.
One of the first West Coast emcees of Mexican descent to establish himself in the rap game, Lil Rob initially garnered a reputation as a street tough with gritty rhymes that reflected a Chicano-centric worldview comprising gang violence, custom lowriders, and barrio pride. Surprisingly, Rob's brand of gangsta rap, in spite of its generally earthy preoccupations, has made inroads into the mainstream--his feel good single "Summer Nights" received major rotation in 2005--and LOVE AND HATE, the rapper's 2009 album, is his most accessible and mature effort yet. While lead track "In My Blood," with it's proclamation of "It's in my blood to be an Aztec warrior," aligns itself on the nature side of the nature vs. nurture argument, Rob is surprisingly heartfelt in his pleas for the importance of getting an education ("You Don't Understand") and a making better life for oneself ("Dream"). Meanwhile, the music and production has matured on equal footing with the lyrics, with stirring, soulful strings and subtle Latin-flavors the dominant mode throughout.
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. ~ David Jeffries