Watermelon, Chicken & Gritz

At a time when digitized beats and crudely consumerist attitudes rule the airwaves, the distinctively organic aesthetic of Kentucky-bred hip-hop sextet Nappy Roots\' debut release is refreshing. Rotating MCs flip profound rhymes about growing up in the South and their struggles to be heard, giving a semiautobiographical feel to songs like \"Peanuts.\" \"Aw Naw,\" the first single and arguably the album\'s catchiest tune, surrounds a dope slice of country life with unique rhythms that fuse banjos and harmonicas with contemporary, bass-filled beats. In a similar vein, \"Life\'s a Risk\" boasts some slick introspective lyrics from group member Skinny DeVille, who rhymes about staying away from the pitfalls of street life. In the end, Nappy Roots come out sounding like a harder-edged upgrade of Arrested Development\'s Southern-tinged roots rap. Let\'s just hope they don\'t suffer a similar fall off the face of the earth. --Dalton Higgins (Amazon)