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You have to appreciate a concept album: an LP that has a central theme that ties elements of all the songs together.  It adds an interesting layer to an artist’s work;  creating a narrative that the listener can follow along to  – introducing unique characters and storylines.  88-Keys’ Death Of Adam being the best and latest example.

But it is very difficult to pull off.  The artist in question needs to have a full commitment to the concept and/or theme at hand.  A strong concept can be the glue that ties an album together, but it can also prove to be restrictive to a rapper’s creativity.  If you tell people you’re dropping an entire LP talking about chicks, you kinda have to stick to, well, speaking on chicks.

Cali rapper Sean Wyze has taken a crack at creating such an album with his latest release Chicks & Snares.  Ironically, the concept is probably the weakest part of the whole joint.  There’s no question that Wyzedrops bars on the various birds in his life, but its secondary.  Most of the lyrical content addresses other daily stresses with equal measure:  Wyze has 99 problems and his chick is only one.  

Not to worry – what Sean Wyze lacks in conceptual design, he makes up for in beats, rhymes and other content.  With production coming primarily from beatsmith JansportJ, Chicks is a solid product throughout.  Wyze fits well with the snare-heavy, production laden joints from J, which gives the album a cohesive feel that is sometimes missing when a producer and rapper don’t mix well.  Thankfully, J and Wyze fit together like mac and cheese.  Behold:

“Breakout Music”

While the flow from Wyze is tight, he could use a little more distinction to really put him in a position to blow.  When he sits about his own particular experiences,  it works.  His musings on “Black Is Free 09 Memo” are far more compelling than the generic lady-drama joints, and really give us some insight into who he is an an individual.

Throughout Chicks, Wyze demonstrates he’s capable of uplifting thought (“The Wyze Show”), real talk (“In The Streets”) and just getting busy (“Jump, Jump”).  Wyze has the talent.  But a stronger identity on wax would draw in listeners and keep them there.

Sometimes the most interesting story is your own.

Tags: Chicks and Snares, Jansport J, Sean Wyze