Somewhere between the old-school revival tactics of Jurassic 5 and the shiny Ghetto Fabulous R&B/rap blurring of Puffy & co, sits one of the most talked about debut albums in hip-hop history. Fantastic Vol II's release was delayed by a year, but record company shenanigans caused the Detroit trio of Jay Dee, T3 and Baatin to swap labels; in the process, Vol II was widely bootlegged. For once, the pirate's desperation to get the music out there is understandable: hip-hop doesn't come much fresher than this. Take the soulful R&B of D'Angelo, add Q-Tip's laid back flows and mix in a dose of deep 70s funk, and the Slum vision of hip-hop soul starts to take shape. Indeed, both of the aforementioned superstars make their presence felt, appearing on the slow-bumping jazz groover "Tell Me" and the blaxploitation-funk of "Hold Tight", respectively. There's a new school of roots-rap-soul artists, all luscious late-night grooves and chilled rhymes, fusing the elements from funk to electro and soul to hip-hop, and Fantastic Vol II sends Slum Village straight to the top of the class. --Dan Gennoe Track Listings 1. Intro 2. Conant gardens 3. I Don't Know (Feat Jazzy Jeff) (Original) - Slum Village 4. Jealousy 5. Climax (girl shit) 6. Hold Tight (Feat Q-Tip) - Slum Village 7. Tell Me (Feat D'Angelo) - Slum Village 8. What's It All About (Featuring Busta Rhymes) - Slum Village 9. Fourth & Back (Feat Kurupt) - Slum Village 10. Untitled (fantastic) 11. Fall in love 12. Get dis money 13. Raise it up 14. CB4 15. Once Upon A Time (Feat Pete Rock) - Slum Village 16. Players 17. Eyes up 18. 2 U 4 U 19. Go ladies