Waterworld Too isn’t the “classic” that Masters Of The Universe was argued to be, but it does a good job of expanding on the blueprint of “average guy rap” found on the debut. One thing that separates this release from its unofficial predecessor is the fact that it’s no longer a binary duo, but instead a self-appointed “magnificent seven” emcees on wax. Like many crew albums, this does take away from the tightly packaged, natural cohesion between the tracks and the emcees, because the listener is being bombarded with so many styles at once. And as usual, out of the lucky seven, their leader One Man Army (aka Lo), is the strongest member, with an incredibly likable voice, clever wordplay, and true emcee charisma - just listen to him rip through “Double Essay’s (S.S.A)”, with the sole purpose of pointing out emcees are ass-backwards.

But as a crew, they are at their best when picking on hip-hop’s opposite sects on “Word Em Up” or shady cats eyeing the women in their life on “Player Haters”. They also use several extended metaphors, some which work, some which don’t. “Monsters” and “Subterraneous”, which compare industry and society’s evils to creatures of the night seems a bit cliche while the terrorist hijacking of your “Mental Planes” is a somewhat tasteless metaphor that hits a little too close to home after September 11th. On the same token, the traffic metaphor for “Life In The Fast Lane” works just fine.

Fans of Binary Star will undoubtedly enjoy this album, as will those who take interest in Middle American, bedroom based, homemade hip-hop from groups like K-Otix and All Natural. While not as consistent as Masters Of The Universe, it still works as a nice introduction to Lo and his crew, and perhaps the starting point for a new legacy of Midwestern emcees.

The appeal of this duo from the D, definitely lies in its production. The art of sampling has certainly been lost in this new age of keyboard beats, but Binary Star bring it back with the rawness on tracks like “Slang Blade”, “Conquistadors”, and “One Man Army”. They also get props for ressurecting the jazzyfat vibes of the early 90′s on tracks like “Reality Check”, “New Hip-Hop” and “Evolution Of Man”. The production on this album definitely brings back something that has been missing from hip-hop music in the last five years, and for that, it’s appreciated.

The message that Binary Star gives is much like that of several other underground crews, such as All Natural or Schoolz Of Thought. The lesson that looms over the entire spectrum of their music is simply to do this art for the love and not for the money. While this angle is appreciated (much more than the sensationalized flossiness of someone like Cam’ron, for instance), lyrically, these youngsters don’t really cover any new ground that hasn’t been handled better by old pros like De La Soul or Common. The message does remain positive, yet its execution could have been fine-tuned a bit.

Still, while some may say that this album sounds dated, being that it was recorded over two years ago, (and emulating a sound from seven years ago,) these days, it’s rare to find sampled based hip-hop as well produced as this, and for that it deserves merit. “Glen Close” still remains Binary’s shining star, as the storyteller?s brilliant alliteration matches the layers and change ups of its production. While not many of the other tracks are as well executed as this one, clearly there is room for growth. In comparison to debut LP’s from A Tribe Called Quest or The Roots, the future may be similar for Binary Star, with their second or third albums demanding the most respect.