by Stewart Mason

Brotha Lynch Hung's first release for his Real Talk label, The New Season is a cross-California collaboration between the Sacramento-based rapper and Compton's MC Eiht that's refreshingly free of the usual territory-marking: this is a true collaboration between two gifted MCs, both of whom are working at their respective peaks throughout. Uncompromisingly tough both in lyrical content and stripped-down, mostly electronic, and beat-driven sound, The New Season stands out from the flood of undistinguished gangsta clones due to the skills of both MCs. However, as good as the freestyling duet tracks are, it's on pounding solo showcases like Brotha Lynch Hung's "Neighborhood Boyz" that the album is at its best. Although many members of Master P's late-'90s posse have fallen into oblivion, The New Season shows that there's still interesting work to be done in the West Coast gangsta style.