Reviewed by Mike Rimmer

Along with the question "Can white men sing the blues" comes the equally puzzling conundrum, "Can white Christians rap?" Obviously TobyMac's and John Reuben's sterling work suggests that they can but there's something about Mike and Jamey who are a pair of West Coast rappers and their outfit Royal Ruckus that makes me mutter into my goatee. Don't get me wrong, there are moments on this album that are pure class. The guys' sense of humour means that the best tracks on here are the ones where they have a laugh. Songs that celebrate their awkward adolescence like "Geeky Music 4 Kidz" and the many references to the hard life they've led working for Starbucks summed up in "The Latte Show" grabbed me more than their attempts at serious stuff. I've enjoyed playing the brilliant "Let's Start A Boy Band" on my Rimmerama show because it's such a mickey take of contemporary pop. However the overall effect is that the band take the lack of street cred and all round naffness of a Michael Peace and double it. In the end there are too many tracks to skip to get to the gems!

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