Entertainment

'Unknown Language' - understandably good

Contributed Photo of the album Cover for TOK's Unknown Language.

Album Title: Unknown Language

Artiste: T.O.K

Producers: VP Records

Ratings: Four and a half Stars

IT HAS BEEN long awaited, and now it is finally here, T.O.K's Unknown Language.

The album kicks off on a high note with the up-tempo party song Hey Ladies and the track list is Solid As A Rock.

The album just does not give listeners a chance to cool down and catch their breath, as the tracks continue to turn up the heat with Fire Fire and She's Hotter. The latter of these two songs, I am sure, was once upon a time called She's Hot, but since being remixed on a Reggaeton rhythm, featuring Pit Bull, the song is now even 'hotter'.

TOK finally allows listeners to take a breath and slows the tempo down a few notches, with Tell Me If You Still Care. In this song, the group showcases their singing talents, putting the song to an R&B upbeat track.

The group's giant hit single Footprints follows, maintaining that smooth, non-hardcore deejay flavour that the album started out with.

Wah Gwaan is a song that one would expect TOK to do, it is in keeping with their characteristics and personality. The song is done to a 'churchy' tambourine-shaking rhythm that just makes listeners want to get up and clap as if they are in a Pentecostal or revival setting. The message of the song is positive as well.

TOK then maintains the hype with Survivor, before they introduce a few tracks that would be relatively new to local fans. Some of these tunes include Music's Pumping, Weak and No Way Jose. The last two of these tracks, however, seems to move from one extreme to the next in terms of the message that they are trying to get across. One songs tells of how Weak they are for a particular female, a situation that the male ego would not allow a man to be comfortable in, while the latter of these tunes firmly outlines some criteria for women to get their money; "...if she don't play then we nuh pay."

After addressing the women, TOK then turns their attention to getting 'High', the next best thing. This song has a nice bouncy rhythm and the way in which they spit the lyrics in tandem with the rhythm is simply awesome.

The album brings the curtains down with songs like Galang Gal, Gal You Ah Lead and Unknown Language, tracks that are already popular with local fans.

The chorus for track 14, Neck Breakers, may be offensive to the ears and the lyrics to some women, but listeners should enjoy the entire album. The fact that most of the songs on the album are already staples on the music scene may either score for or against the group. That, of course, depends on the listener.

Track Listing

1. Hey Ladies

2. Solid As A Rock

3. Fire Fire

4. She's Hotter

5. Tell Me If You Still Care

6. Footprints

7. Wah Gwaan

8. Survivor

9. Music's Pumping

10. Weak

11. No Way Jose

12. High

13. Galang Gal

14. Neck Breakers

15. Gal You A Lead

16. Unknown Language

- Teino Evans