Prince Paul has always been one of hip-hop's most insane characters. As the genius behind music for such luminaries as De La Soul, Stetsasonic and the Gravediggaz, his credentials are impeccable. His last project was the brilliant hip-hop musical "A Prince Among Thieves."

Dan "The Automator" Nakamura is also a fixture in the hip-hop community, having worked with many of the greatest. His most notable work in the last little while was as producer for the Dr. Octagon project with Kool Keith.

What both of these artists have in common is a dedication to quality hip-hop, talented artists and pushing the creative envelope. They have come together on this project, the Handsome Boy Modeling School and the results are amazing.

Both Nathaniel Merriweather (The Automator) and Chest Rockwell (Prince Paul) are far more concerned with the quality of the music than with having big names in commercial rap all over their album. As such, they eschew such current popular artists such as Juvenile, Ja-Rule and their ilk for more talented but less known artists like Encore, J-Live, Sensational, El-P of Company Flow, Grand Puba and Sadat X. They also bring such often slept on artists to the table as Mike D of the Beastie Boys, Dave of De La Soul, Del tha Funkee Homosapien, DJ Shadow, Sean Lennon, and Money Mark.

With two geniuses behind the boards, it's little wonder that this album has such rich, varied and complete production. No two and four bar loops for these two, as they are always introducing new elements and experimenting with new styles. While some of the production, notably "Megaton B-Boy 2000" may be too experimental for some, those who have followed the careers of the projects two overseers know that they are always trying new things, and are always on the cutting edge of hip-hop.

Many producers who put together albums end up with projects where lyrics are secondary. Not so in this School of true, living hip-hop. Not a single artist comes weak lyrically on this album. At the same time, Paul and the Automator have managed to keep the focus on their tracks. This is a delicate balance which was no doubt difficult to achieve.

Tracks to check for: All of them. This album is a brilliant progression and an excellent mood setter, with breaks, humour and serious, hardcore hip-hop all interspersed at the perfect times. That said, particularly check for "Metaphysical," "Look At This Face," "Waterworld," "Once Again," "The Truth," "The Projects," "Sunshine" and "Torch Song Trilogy."

Another common failing of compilation albums is coherence. This too is handled exceptionally well on this project. The songs seem to flow into one another, with the skits perfectly spaced. It's also obvious that Paul and Dan have great senses of humour, because some of the skits are hilarious! Particularly, listen to "Father Speaks" at the very end of the album.

The final verdict: RUN RUN RUN RUN. You need to have this album in your collection. It's great driving music, great coolout music, and just generally great music. You'll also get an opportunity to hear some up-and-comers in the hip-hop community. Ab amazing musical experience, and worth every penny you'll pay.