Rising from the ashes of the Solesides collective, it's Quannum —

a new name for the same old players: DJ Shadow, Latyrx, Lateef the Truth

Speaker, Lyrics Born, and Blackalicious — loads of guest artists

contribute rhymes and more, too.

And if you're not familiar with these most accomplished DJs and MCs of

the underground hip-hop scene, Quannum Spectrum is a perfect

introduction.

Think of it as a good mixtape. Or better yet, as a late night radio show.

In fact, Quannum Spectrum has several interludes taped live on

the San Francisco Bay Area's semi-famous Late Night Hype show on pirate

radio out of Berkeley. The album's vibe is late night, too; most tracks

are mellow, kicking it in a laid-back style reminiscent of vintage A

Tribe Called Quest.

Quannum Spectrum begins in high gear with "Concentration" (RealAudio

excerpt), a collaboration between Quannum and the mighty Jurassic

5. Over a futuristic, funky shuffle, the seven MCs effortlessly interweave

their rhymes, sounding like a group and not just a freestyle session.

Blackalicious' "One of a Kind" keeps up the pace with its dense, skittering

beat, only to be trumped by Divine Styler and DJ Shadow's truly apocalyptic

"Divine Intervention."

A third of the tracks were produced by DJ Shadow and after the vaguely

pretentious SciFi-isms of U.N.K.L.E.'s Psyence Fiction, it's a relief

to hear him getting back to roots, cutting together impressive beats.

The only real misstep is "People Like Me" (RealAudio

excerpt), a so-smooth-it's-slick R&B ballad by Joyo Velarde. It

may have been included to make a statement about expanding the context

of hip hop, but the point is strictly academic when the song is this bad.

Other weak links are MCs such as Lyrics Born and Gift of Gab, vocalists

so nasal that it's hard to take them for more than a couple tracks at a

time. Additionally, the album loses momentum with a few lackluster songs

— the anemic "Looking Over a City" and Lyrics Born's annoying funk

recitation, "Hott People."

However, Quannum cannily save the best for last: "Bombonyall" (RealAudio

excerpt) is a raucous, old school–style battle song. The

whole crew throws down over one of Shadow's explosive beats, challenging

all comers from coast to coast. It's a statement of supreme confidence

from a vital underground scene that's earned its bragging rights.