Rappin’ Twan and Skiem Hiem

Though they each have solo careers, these two KC rappers make sense as a team, both in terms of their big vision and their musical chemistry. The contrast between Skiem’s raspy-edged rhyme style and Twan’s full-throated punch makes relatively simple arrangements such as “Tycoonin” compelling (not that stuttering percussion, delicate piano and backing vocals are really all that simple). But this disc abounds with diverse flavors. “Killa City” opens with edgy keyboards crawling dark streets, before some outerspace choir haunts “Get It From a Batch.” Then a springy guitar line bounces off a satisfying funk groove on “P.I.M.P.” In this catchy context, it makes perfect sense when the duo roughs up Sean Kingston on “Take U There.” And the album’s sampling highlight has to be its reworking of Willie Hutch’s love song, “I Choose U” (better known for its role in Jaheim’s “The Chosen One”) as an anthem to the streets.