R&B, as you once knew it, is dead: the transition to a new sound was so quick that if you weren't paying attention, you might have missed it. The party songs that drove your high school dances and the slow jams that provided the atmosphere for make-out sessions have been replaced.
While the sound is moving on and the artists we loved are getting left behind, the boys of 112 - Q, Mike, Slim and Daron - are trying to catch up.
"Pleasure and Pain" is the group's fifth studio release, and their second since their defection from Puffy's Bad Boy Records. 112, however, has not found the same success at their new label, Def Soul, as they once enjoyed at Bad Boy.
The formula Puffy developed for the group broke down after the split, and 112 chose the wrong producers, sound and image for their "Hot and Wet" album, their first release from Def Soul. The group tried to grasp a new sound that
didn't suit them with "Hot." Unfortunately, this same issue plagues their latest work.
First, the production of the album is problematic, especially on the first track, "Let this Go," which is overwhelming from start to finish. Honest and likeable vocals are completely eclipsed by the loud handclaps that punctuate the beat. It's doubtful there was a conscious production decision to feature the beat over the vocals. 112 have proven they have the ability to carry a track with their voices, so the errors on this track were a simple case of inadequate production.
The lead single "U Already Know" features front men Slim and Q, who trade verses sung in their distinctive styles. 112 fans will appreciate this track once they recognize the high-pitched vocal trills that distinguish the group. The quiet and circular beat has an hypnotic effect - unfortunately it almost disappears beneath the vocals.
The problem with the rest of the album is, ironically, the opposite - the beats just don't disappear. There's a lot of experimentation that finishes in altered and discordant rhythms. The result is that the music on "Pleasure and Pain" only grabs your attention because it is ugly, and that's got to be a shame.
The odd mixtures become dreamlike on "Last to Know." Handclaps, wind chimes and disappearing flutes are brought together. This beat would be strange if it weren't surrounded by tracks filled with highly varied sounds and tones.
"My Mistakes" is a repentance track. The boys are apologizing to all the girls they have wronged in the past, accepting responsibility for their womanizing and ingratitude. The mature themes are delivered over a beat laced with up-tempo cowbells - not a great combination.
Immediately following is "If I Hit," featuring one of the south's hottest rappers, T.I. The lyrics however, are not as mature as the themes it discusses: "You can get it anytime you wanna / If I hit, promise, there ain't gonna be no drama."
But this one fails as a party song because of the beat. The crunk distortions that accent this track are of low quality. They are lazy rip-offs of Lil' John, and they interrupt the flow of the underlying beat.
Fortunately, the album has a few bright spots towards the end. Tracks like "God Knows" return to 112's earlier sound. The beat is reminiscent of their hit song "Cupid," but it's different enough to still be creative. The melodic guitar riff that pushes this beat forward is what's missing from most of the album. A simple guitar could have saved us from all those handclaps, bells and whistles.
The appeal of "God Knows" and songs like it ("Why Can't We get Along") suggests that there is still room for growth in the older forms of R&B. Pure R&B still has fans in this post-Usher's "Confessions" world. But with artists like R.Kelly, Mary J. Blige and now 112 moving on to new genres and sounds, who will fill the gap?
