Having started their hip hop career in 1993, Maspyke seems to be stuck there with grainy samples and rhymes that portray life in the hood, pretty around-the-way girls and of course, their lyrical prowess. On “No Big Deal”, Maspyke sound like sour old heads lamenting over the state of the younguns wilin’ out and “running around like it’s no big deal.” Yet, Maspyke rehashes the requisite hip hop track about their “finesse” with women on Step, checking out females in the club as MC “H-Bomb” charmingly notes, “the bubble on your back is swollen, girl/so let the rhythm put it in motion, girl.” Right.

 Easily the main problem with this album is the dual monotony of uninventive beats and irritating rhyme delivery. The songs tend to run together with only an occasional relief from the stiff beats and too similar rhythms on each track. “Nevaleave” and “The Writer” are damn near identical. Plus, H-Bomb and rhyme partner Tableek tend to lack an identity and seem overwhelmed by early 90s hip hop convention. Both of their rhymes styles are choppy and either blend into the background or become repetitively annoying. They also seem to be trying to bring back the “posse” cut by sometimes rhyming in unison which is completely ineffective and corny.

 Ironically, this adherence to old school sensibilities which is often album’s main liability may be an asset to some. “Lightly Anxious” is reminiscent of A Tribe Called Quest’s melodic beats and the curious voice sample on “Recipe” is on some mid-90s RZA ish. Maspyke is at best an homage to some of hip hop’s most timeless artists invoking thoughts of Brand Nubian, Pharcyde, Tribe, Digable Planets and even Jay Dee. But these artists were great because of the way they changed the game and brought a new voice, style, flava etc. Static is an okay listen, mainly because of the references to other great artists you’ll glean from the album. But the album still makes us wonder, who is Maspyke, where is Springfield, and if they can’t do it better than the greats, then who cares?

While Maspyke (Hanif, Tableek and resident in-house producer Roddy Rod) have a slew of material in circulation, their proper debut, Blackout, is a mish-mosh of new beginnings and worthwhile returns to past glory.  The problem with Blackout doesn’t lie in the production, or the emceeing; it lies within the overall product that we see placed upon the table.  Though Blackout will serve as a valuable tool for the uninitiated, those of us who are already down cannot really even consider this an album.  Reason being, some of these tracks are very dated, five-years old in some cases and in hip hop chronology, that might as well be a lifetime.  The inclusion of virtual underground classics like “Lost in Belief”, “Far East Politics”, “The Umpire”, and “Played List” are wonderful cuts, and the wordplay on “Idol Minds,” is more than flattering, as both Hanif and Tableek display their lyrical diversity. Yet, Maspyke is just the latest accomplice in a disturbing trend that includes incorporating very dated material onto their “debut” album.  To further illustrate this point, the trio’s albeit slim batch of new material shows great promise, as “Spirit of ’92,” is a glorious throwback record, taking us all back to when hip-hop and life in general was much simpler.   

That being said, be careful to note that this is far from a mediocre album, so don’t let the rating (@@@) deter you.  The finished product is above average, but you have to subtract points due to the cobwebs you will find while slipping the disc into your sound provider of choice.  Hopefully, Maspyke will quickly follow up Blackout with a fresh batch of new material that will hip us to where there going, not where they’ve already been.