December 25, 2005 @ 11:02 pm

Jagged Edge - Jagged Edge (Sony Urban)

by: Laura Checkoway

Jagged Edge has always been those ’hood cats who harmonize about relationships, occasionally with endearing cheesiness. And while their gritty-yetgorgeous vocals have ripened over the years, the same can’t be said of their songwriting. But JE’s emotive delivery compensates for the bumps.

Here, on the vulnerable “Crying Out,” JE’s plaintive crooning to the steady kerplunk of teardrops works the angles with heartfelt sincerity. The equally mesmerizing “Seasons Change,” set to John Legend’s melancholy keys, shows how far JE’s churchbred vocals can reach when stirred by a broken heart.

By contrast, “Ass Hypnotic” exposes their simplistic rhyme schemes (“I was mesmerized by her booty / I said right then that I was makin’ her my duty”) over a plastic, synth-laden track. On “So Amazing,” Jermaine Dupri’s subtle drum patternsfail to re-create the party vibe of 2001’s classic “Where the Party At.” What’s worse, they rhyme “model” with “Coke bottle.” With a group like this, you’ve got to take the good with some bad. After all, a Jagged Edge is expected to be a bit rough.

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Article tags: Jagged Edge, Jermaine Dupri 

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