In 1997 both Eminem and Atmosphere released their debut albums to comparable acclaim; both artists were given the tag of “Rap’s great white hope.” Atmosphere’s underground success and hard work put them at the top of the independent scene, while Eminem slowly began blurring the color lines in hip hop and basically taking over the world. In 2001, Atmosphere followed their debut, Overcast!, with their critical masterpiece Lucyford. In the meantime, Atmosphere rapper Slug had become the most universally loved figure in underground hip hop. The next year, 2002, saw Atmosphere’s major label debut with Godlovesugly, an album that was so mediocre it almost made Slug fans forget all about his past accomplishments. With white rappers being more recognized than ever, punk label Epitaph signed Atmosphere to a one-album deal, and in 2003 the label released Seven’s Travels, the album that will likely make or break Atmosphere’s mainstream career.

Atmosphere producer Ant has the ability to find communicable loops as good as anyone since Prince Pauls heyday. Too bad he can’t run with them like Paul could. Ant takes funk, soul, and psychedelic samples, programs minimal drum loops and just lets the songs go. If Ant were to spend a little less time digging for loops and a lot more time programming, his beats would greatly benefit, and Atmosphere might actually warrant half the attention they receive.

But enough about Ant. No one likes Atmosphere because of Ant.

Often heeded as the best rapper alive, Slug sets fire to Seven’s Travels, telling stories of the road in the way only he can. The major predicament with Seven’s Travels is that Ant’s backdrops almost never live up to Slug’s performances. On only five or six songs does the listener really get the unblemished package.

While the second half of Lucyford is, by far, Atmosphere’s crowning moment to date (likely due to superior guest production), Seven’s Travels presents Slug’s most integral lyrical effort to date. It’s often argued that Slug has the best delivery in hip-hop; while his flow, cadence, intensity and charisma are nearly unrivaled, his lack of variance and growth keeps him from putting up the kind of album he’s capable of. Ever since his efforts in the super group Deep Puddle Dynamics, Slug has seemed scared of stretching his imagination and has as a result slowly retracted back into the standards of hip-hop.

Seven’s Travels has it’s knockout moments. “Bird Sings Why the Cage I Know,” “Trying to Find a Balance,” “Lifter Puller,” “Dencemolorado” and “Always Coming Back Home to You,” are all some of Atmosphere’s best moments to date. Again, Slug and Ant have put out a pretty good album with enough high points to justify a purchase. But until Slug can get past his loyalty for Ant and work with some more meritorious producers, he will just be settling for songs that could sound so much better. Seven’s Travels goes down as another pleasant teaser from the great Slug and evidence that camaraderie can sometimes be a handicap.

Copyright 2004 Ad Media Inc.