Long ago, the Texas trio of Mike Jones, Paul Wall, and Chamillionaire were running shit on the down south Swishahouse mixtape scene, but unforeseen circumstances led to a falling out with the crew, making Slim Thug the third voice heard on “Still Tippin’”, rather than Cham. After seeing his former partners become household names this past year, Chamillionaire laid in the cut waiting for his own chance to blow up, and hopes to do so with the release of The Sound of Revenge.

     Without knowing the history, one might assume Cham was closer to G-Unit than he was to Mike or Paul, as he packs somewhat a different style, uncannily similar to 50 Cent’s. This comes out mostly when his hooks are sung (which seems to be more his forte), especially on the Scott Storch helmed lead single, “Turn It Up”, which finds him trading verses with Lil’ Flip. Loaded with guest appearances, these become the album’s saving graces, as Chamillionaire has a hard time keeping things interesting by himself. Bun B heats up the ultra-cool “Picture Perfect”, with a smooth Texas track bubbling under their verses. The same can be said for the depressing “Rain” (feat. Scarface) and the abrasive “Southern Takeover” (feat. Killer Mike), both of which fare better when their respective guests get mic time. 

   It’s not to say that Cham is wack or a particularly bad emcee, he’s just kind of there. He has his moments, such as the intriguing, yet abruptly ending narrative “Think I’m Crazy”, or on the stomping sounds of “In The Trunk”, but it’s not enough to carry the whole album. Things take a turn for the worst when he uses his charm to woo the ladies. Case in point i the clunky “Radio Takeover”, which attempts to tread the line between street and commercial sounds, or the strange dedication, “Grown and Sexy”, where Cham tells croons to his boo, “you look better from behind”. Compliment or insult?

     Considering that you can find pretty much the same line-up of producers and guests on any current Southern record, you are better off at picking up something else of the genre. Cham lacks the cool of T.I., the style of Paul Wall, the skill of Ludacris, and the intrigue of Young Jeezy, making him one of the lesser interesting aspects of hip-hop’s current Southern takeover.