The Safe Is Cracked [PA]

Book-ended by excerpts from a telephone interview between DJ Envy and an incarcerated Prodigy, Mobb Deep's eighth full-length finds the Queensbridge duo as hungry as ever, even with over 15 years in the game. Relying on their tried-and-true formula, Hav and P trade hard-boiled verses of gangsta nihilism and even rock over Count Dracula's theme music on "Watch Ya Self," chanting "Your life could end up like a horror flick" without a hint of self-mockery. Aside from the soulful Alchemist-produced ghetto love song, "What Goes On," the beats on THE SAFE IS CRACKED are all Havoc--vintage East Coast boom bap at its darkest.

• Genre: R&B
• Format: CD
• Released: 05/04/2009