Common: Universal Mind Control

Hooking up with Kanye West, the key producer on his last two records, certainly didn't hamper Common's late bid for hip-hop superstardom. A collaboration with production dynamos the Neptunes shouldn't hurt either, although their hard-edged sound on his eighth album elicits a brasher tone from the respected Chicago rapper, who has built a 16-year career on literate, conscious rhyming. 'Sex 4 Suga' - grinding beat, testosterone-addled lyrics - is an archetypal Neptunes cut. More familiar ground is covered on 'Changes', a paean to the Obama victory. It feels like an album of two halves but Common is on agile form throughout, spouting witty innuendos on 'Punch Drunk Love'.