Penthouse Players Clique — Paid the Cost

Unique studio album released by Los Angeles hip-hop duo Penthouse Players Clique, released by Ruthless Records and Priority. The duo is made up of rappers Playa Hamm and Tweed Cadillac, who offer competent but not excellent rapping, here the guests are all stronger than them, even AMG in the sexist "Trust No Bitch" posse.

The record, produced by the Eazy-E label, rides the sexism throughout the whole tape and features different tracks related to the theme of girls, as well as braggadocio ones and a mediocre and generic lyricism that, unlike the usual works of Ruthless, here it also seems to go so far as to renounce gangsterism. Despite the lyrics, the tracks are solid thanks to an excellent production realized by DJ Quik, who seems to achieve better musical results on this record by the duo than his solo album of the same year, leaving some songs to the rhythms of the group itself and DJ Battlecat. The good funky simple soundscape, with a few good samples, helps the album do well in the charts (#1 among the Heatseekers), led by three singles. In the second part, this tape begins to bend towards monotony, showing itself a bit irregular: the group, in fact, exceeds in the fun by carving out an excess of useless songs without which the record would have been among the best of the year in the West Coast scene.

"N-Trance" features a splendid rhythm for intro song, slow beat, West Coast vibes, slow spoken delivery. "Undaground" has another good rhythm, with samples from a classic, slow syncopated smooth delivery of the duo; DJ Quik maintains a high level of quality even in the third cut, excellent light West Coast production, the duo lets the song breathe but doesn't transform it into a highlight. Unlike these performers, Eazy-E eats his spot with slow hardcore delivery on a beat with g-funk synths. A fresh jazzy lo-fi boom bap follows with Christmas bells preceding two slightly subdued lo-fi choices.

Production returns fresh in the pick number eight, with a good West Coast light boom bap; the Christmas bells are back in "Blak Iz a Poet", then followed by some enjoyable funky cuts, the second one features a pounding drum and guitar riffs in the background, samples from "Who Knows" by Jimi Hendrix. DJ Quik doesn't disappoint even in the second part of the tape, continuing to provide excellent fresh funky rhythms (dope that one of "Nathan's Changed", with excellent synths looped tight in the background, jazzy / g-funk vibes) with samples at the same level: the only ones exceptions are the almost country rhythm with very slow and almost imperceptible drum of "Handle Yo Bizness", with spoken delivery, and "X-It", short outro with light ballad rhythm.

Highlights: "Undaground", "Trust No Bitch", "Nathan's Changed", "P.S. Phuk U 2".

Rating: 7/10.