Brutha (Def Jam)
Artiste: Brutha
Overall rating: B

YOU'VE seen their top-rated BET reality show Brothers to Brutha. Now R&B newcomers Brutha are ready to woo fans and critics alike with their 10-track self-titled debut album. For the most part, the album scores high marks.

Comprising blood brothers Grady, Anthony, Cheyenne, Jared and Jacob, the South Central Los Angeles-bred quintet has emerged with a laudable debut bolstered by a soothing-meets-groovy mix of contemporary rhythm and blues, pop, hip hop sounds and sophisticated soul.

It helps too that their project is backed by commendable production help, deft and lyrical songwriting and strong vocal capabilities as they croon about love, heartbreak and finding love again. Nothing new, but the delivery and chemistry among the brothers is worth praising.

Jump-off single Can't Hear The Music, which features hip hop disciple Fabolous, is ideal for the dancefloor and finds the singers getting close to a female at the club. Their female-wooing continues with singles like the sex-you-up track Set It Off and the tender Just Being Honest.

On the other hand, they lament the end of the affair on the beautifully penned She's Gone (produced by The CornaBoyz) and the slow and grinding Ghost. But the real highlight here is the club jammer Bang Bang (which samples the Nancy Sinatra classic about being "shot down" by a lover), and boasts some sturdy beats.

The R&B/pop scene has had more than its fair share of flash-in-the-pan boy bands (B2K, anyone?) that appear with a handful of hit singles one minute and are headed for 'splitsville' the next. Brutha seems likely to be an exception, considering their tight familial bond and years of performance together under their belt, before the mainstream came knocking. But the limelight is notorious for ruining friendships and ending group careers, so anything is possible.
But with a debut album like this, hopefully they'll be around for a while.

TYRONE'S TOP FIVE: Bang Bang, She's Gone, What If, Just Being Honest and Can't Hear The Music.

Executive Class

Gardens with Gravel

Death to the Mullet!