AAVV — New Jersey Drive Vol. 2

Second soundtrack of the film of the same name, released two weeks after the previous one. I don't know what exactly happened, it almost seems like Tommy Boy decided to put together and release discarded songs from the original soundtrack.

However, they don't sound like scraps: this disk features 8 songs in 35 minutes, it sounds cohesive, compact, sturdy, tight and strong. Representative, also: only Naughty by Nature comes from New Jersey (East Orange), while all the other artists are from New York. Participating E Bros, Black Moon, Smif-n-Wessun, Heltah Skeltah, OGC, Biz Markie, Jeru the Damaja, OC, Organized Konfusion, The Flip Squad Allstar DJs, Big Kap, Funkmaster Flex and Mad Lion, born in London and raised in Brooklyn.

The E Bros perform "Funky Piano", Knobody & Roc Raida tight rhythm, good elegant piano, tight drum, smooth delivery of performers. The next piece's one of the highlights of this compact extended play: "Headz Ain't Ready". Rhythm of Evil Dee and Mr. Walt, aka Da Beatminerz, boom bap with dry drum midtempo and honest samples, followed by a shower of verses coming from Louieville Sluggah, Starang Wondah, Top Dawg, Ruck, Rock, Tek & Steele, Buckshot, Ruck, Steele, Top Dawg, Tek, Buckshot and Rock, before the outro.

Naughty by Nature spit hardcore along with Cruddy Click, Kandi Kain & Road Dawgs Connections, on a quick self-produced beat with Al Mal. It follows an interesting tune by Biz Markie with musical carpet by Marley Marl, then "Invasion": DJ Premier pulls out the best production here, great jazzy boom bap with Jimmy McGriff "Playland" sample, perfect drum, excellent delivery of Jeru wrapping the beat. Mad Lion delivers hardcore ragga over a poor rhythm created by KRS-One, then OC, Pharoahe Monch & Prince Po perform "You Won't Go Far": they do a tight hardcore track on Organized Konfusion's jazzy boom bap. The last piece is performed by Funkmaster Flex.

It doesn't match the previous volume in terms of sales and charts, reaching the top 60 of the Billboard 200 and the top 10 among rap records. Nonetheless, in this short record there are some of the best East Coast performers and producers of the period, and in terms of quality, the project is significantly better than the other. 7/10.