Search - Black Eyed Peas :: Behind the Front

Black Eyed Peas is known for gettin' down

Alan Pounds | Minneapolis, MN | 11/12/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was first exposed to Black Eyed Peas from their newest effort, 2003's "Elephunk". I dug on it quite a bit, enough to explore their earlier records. "Behind the Front," to my surprise, is much better than I expected. "Elephunk" pales in comparison to their debut in many ways. The beats are solid, funky and fresh, topped with well-timed samples. The biggest difference is in the lyrical content. The socially conscious lyrics on this album are positive, fun and laid back. It's uniquely funky, and keeps you coming back for more.



The first track on the album "Fallin' Up" starts it off right, representing what Black Eyed Peas is all about. Especially with the lyric: "I see you try to dis our function by stating that we can't rap - Is it cuz we don't wear Tommy Hilfiger or baseball caps? - We don't use dollars to represent - We just use our innocence and talent." Other standouts include "Clap Your Hands," their old-school-influenced first single, "Joints and Jam," "The Way U Make Me Feel," "Karma," "Love Won't Wait," and "Positivity".



All and all, The Black Eyed Peas shine here, really showing their old-school hip influenced talent. They change it up nicely with a fun and positive feel and attitude. I would recommend this one above "Elephunk" for sure."

Da' Peas Pre-Fergie Debut and One Of Their Best To Date!

MUZIK4THAPEOPLE!! | Orlando, FL | 01/18/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The first time I ever saw The Black Eyed Peas incredible

live show was in the summer of 1998 in NYC, and the

next day I was at the Virgin Megastore buying this album.."Behind The Front"!!

I was hooked and turned everyone I knew on to them!

This was (to me) when "Da' Peas" were at their best...

before the addition of Fergie and that sing-songy

commercial BS that they do now!

I love everything on this CD, including the little

game-show-like snipets which link the songs together.

It was funky, funny, trippy, hip-hop and even though

alot of people say they had too much "Tribe Called Quest"

in their sound at the time, if you had seen them live back

then you would've known that "Da' Peas" had their own

thing brewin' in a big way!

I would take this one and their follow-up

"Bridging The Gap" over their new stuff any

day of the week!

Okay--"Elephunk" was cool for the most part,

but they were already diluting their funk by then

and were actively seeking a pop audience.

From the new set, aptly named "Monkey Business",

the only one that really moves me is "Don't Lie"

but the rest puts me to sleep!

4-Real!--If you want to feel what BEP was about,

then "Behind The Front" and "Bridging The Gap"

are the ones baby!

Incidentally, there were some hot videos from those

two CD's which got little airplay on MTV, BET or VH-1.

Why do you have to sell your artistic soul and dull

your creativity these days to get acceptance in the pop world?



"

Criminally underrated album

Mark Amasuga | azusa, ca | 02/08/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Black Eyed Peas (before they became huge) used to be good. Really good. 'Behind the Front' is quite simply one of the best pure hip-hop albums I've heard in my lifetime. The beats are incredibly catchy, yet they're not the typical kind of recycled beat garbage you hear on their Elephunk and Monkey Business albums. These beats are fresh, lively. I would heartily recommend this album to ANYONE. Not just lovers of hip hop. Anyone who enjoys really groovy beats and adequate lyrics will love this album.



I suppose I can't blame BEP for selling out. Their first two albums were great, but they were getting no exposure, so they did what needed to be done (added Fergie and started putting out garbage) in order to make money. I'll just always wonder what might have been...."