Outkast

Aquemini:
Taking off from their last two albums, this shows Outkast experimenting more and more. Their magnum opus was to come, but this was a near brilliant effort. A-

Stankonia:
"Bombs Over Baghdad". With that phrase the first masterpiece of the new millennium was made. In those 5 minutes and 3 seconds, entering another dimension is possible. Other highlights include the big hits "Ms. Jackson" and "So Fresh and So Clean", as well as cuts like "Slum Beautiful". Enlighten yourself. A+

Speakerboxxx/The Love Below:
A cool concept, but only one of these really takes off. And it becomes obviously clear who is the brains of the operation. On Big Boi's Speakerboxxx, there aren't any duds other than the obvious Lil' John and the East Side Boyz collab., "Last Call". A simple misstep, but Big Boi's collaborations as a whole seem much less experimental, and the disc doesn't offer anything that fans of the duo haven't heard before. On the other hand, Benjamin's starts shooting off like an aerial repeater on the fourth of July. From the electro-funk-jazz-pop rock number one hit that is "Hey Ya!", Mr. Benjamin makes it clear that he is a serious musician (he plays guitar, piano, programmed the synths, and even plays sax on one tune), hellbent on pushing boundaries. "Prototype" and the ever hilarious "Roses" bring back memories, and "She Lives in My Lap" brings the funkity hop to new levels. Both are worth checking out, but Mr. 3000 shows his raw talent as a producer, songwriter, and even as a singer. B/A