More Than Music, Vol. 2 (Edited)

Among today's prominent hip-hop collectives, Harlem's Diplomats -- aka Dipset -- have followed an unusual template for stardom. The group, comprised of heavy hitters Cam'ron, Jim Jones and Juelz Santana, along with less celebrated MCs like JC Writer and Hell Rell, has yet to release anything nearing a classic album. Dipset albums are almost defiantly inconsistent -- slick and synth-driven one moment, vintage and burbling the next; here dark and growly, there sweet and soulful. And yet, Dipset and its individual members have now released a stunning number of hit tracks, everything from Cam'ron's '02 sweet 'n' sour smash "Oh Boy" to Jim Jones's hypnotic drawl "We Fly High" to the group's sample-driven singalong "Dipset Symphony."

It's a go-for-broke approach that's thoroughly New York. While Southern crew records have tended to prize evocation of a scene -- molasses-mellow Houston, crunky ATL -- here the binding theme is aspiration for the green. The willingness to take a Wall Street-style gamble is what qualifies you for the Diplomats. Your betting strategy is up to you. Hell Rell said it best, on the first More Than Music's title song: "The Bronx is where I reside/ Haze get me hizzigh/ I hustle to get rich/ You hustle just to get by."

And so we listeners get albums with constant shifts in sound, scattered sloppy cuts, and some of the higher high points in the hip-hop kingdom. That's certainly the case on More Than Music, Vol. 2. "Sometimes" and "Get That Money" overheat with big plastic synths and striving lyrics. But the outsized club style feels just right on "Street Pharmacist," where the wild rhythms and synthesizers are leavened with an anthemic top-end hook. It's a subtle production edit that makes the verses feel stirring and bold, rather than just cocky -- the fine line the 212 has long walked.

Like most Dip releases, More has a couple cuts that blatantly outshine the rest (and don't bother to sound much like them, either). In this case these are title track "More Than Music" and Cam'ron-led "Suga Duga." "More" is for the devotees of Harlem flow. Based on a spare, lightly funky guitar beat, it sees various Diplomats take turns drawling through street-corner verses, recalling Harlem World-era Ma$e. Killa Cam's "Suga Duga" is the production triumph. Surging Motown horns, bouncy beats and sweet backup vocals set up a hugely likable -- dare we say friendly? -- joint for the group's most established star. And Cam doesn't disappoint. His rhymes are both sweetly romantic and dismissive of wannabe MCs. It's beef delivered with a pop hero's smile, flowing that's both ruggedly real and radio-ready. And it smells like yet another hit.