De La Soul has been doing this for a while. Their first album, 1989s 3 Feet High and Rising introduced the hip-hop world to the D.A.I.S.Y. age. This talented trio didn't take themselves too seriously, and with the help of board wizard Prince Paul and some support from their brethren in the now-legendary Native Tongue family showed people that you could make classic material without beign stiff. Later years saw the release of De La Soul is Dead, Buhloone Mind State and Stakes is High. Some found them too abstract for their liking in their earlier career, and others thought they abandoned their fans and were too direct on Stakes. Still De La retain almost universal respect.

Art Official Intelligence is intended to be a three album set, with Mosaic Thump being the first in the set. Again, they've tried not to be too far over people's heads on this one. Instead, they use their status as statesmen to comment on hip-hop as well as life in general.

Prince Paul stepped back on Stakes is High, letting the crew do some more of their own production and he's still missing from this disc. He is supposed to be on at least one of the others, and we look forward to that reunion, but De La carry the weight admirably without him. Pos, Maseo and Dave handle the lion's share of the production themselves, giving the album their own feel which is for the most part bouncy and alive. Some extra help was enlisted in the form of Supa Dav West, Ad Lib, superproducer of the moment Jay Dee, Rockwilder, Mr. Khaliyl (formerly of the Bush Babees) and Deaf 2 U Inc. Each of these does a fairly admirable job of keeping the feel of the album, with the possible exception of a slightly disappointing showing from Rockwilder.

The three plugs handle the lyric duties with their usual blend of witticism, skill and humour, playing off each other in a way very few groups can match these days. Their chemistry as a group will have older listeners reminiscing about other lyric tag team specialists like Das EFX, Smif-N-Wessun, the Artifacts and of course fellow Natives A Tribe Called Quest and the Jungle Brothers. This is a group where each member is willing to put aside their ego and take a back seat to the next member or step up as needed so the group as a whole will sound right. Able guest spots are provided by Tash & J-Ro of the Alkoholiks, Xzibit (who seems to be on EVERYONE's album these days), Redman, D.V. Alias Khrist, Indeed and Mike D and Ad Rock of the Beastie Boys. Unfortunately, Busta Rhymes doesn't deliver up to his potential on the already lacklustre "I.C. Y'all" Chaka Khan appears to blaze "All Good" with her usual flair. Freddie Foxxx provides the chorus on "U Don't Wanna B.D.S." but doesn't bless us with a verse. Some extra surprise guests also appear on the hilarious "Ghost Weed" skits, but I'm not going to ruin the surprise here.

This is one of those albums that may take a few listens to grow on you, but there is some stuff that shoudl hit you right away. Check "My Writes," the first single "Oooh," "Thru Ya City," "Set The Mood," "Copa (Cabanga)," "Foolin'" and the bouncy, latin-tinged "The Art Of Getting Jumped."

Mosaic Thump is another strong album from a crew of Supa Emcess who are consistently underappreciated. While probably more accessible to a mainstream crowd than some of their previous work, Mosaic Thump will remain hot to those who appreciate music for music's sake and don't need mirror-perfected screwfaces and thug sensibilities. Worth your hard earned ducats and worth waiting for parts two and three.