Too Short NO TRESPASSING

Audio Mixer: Michael Denten.
Too Short wasn't really banished to the underground by the major labels. It's more like he found a more welcoming home there, one where he could release pimp-slap hip-hop that lives up to the name of his underground imprint, Dangerous Music. No Trespassing is filled with it, strutting and threatening like both emo-rap and the women's rights movement never happened, but the cottage industry of rap-rock is noted by the veteran, as the guitar-grinding opener "What the Fuck" suggests Too Short is considering getting some Kottonmouth Kings money. He's also going to teach the fan base a thing or two with the sound advice "You about as sorry as they come/They took you to a strip club and you bought up all the ones." Elsewhere, it's steeped-in-soul, old-school Short with the "keep it true" highlight "Respect the Pimpin'" with special guest Snoop Dogg, or even better, the killer single "I Got Caught" where convenient morality gets a singalong chorus. Girl got you down? "I'm a Stop" ("puttin' my thing up in ya") is the perfect pimp cure with 50 Cent, Devin the Dude, and Twista all on the brutish assist, but when it comes to strip club music, all you need is E-40 and a bleeping Bay Area beat to take "Money on the Floor" to the top of your table dance playlist. Those are all the elements for a Too Short classic, but overstuffing knocks it down a peg, so don't think of this as your prize money maker, but above average with plenty of "high mileage," as the street walker aficionados like to say. ~ David Jeffries

• Format: CD
• Genre: Pop