ALBUM REVIEW

There probably isn’t any area of music that promises a shorter career than rap. That Salt-N-Pepa is still making records after more than 10 years in the business rates a mention by Ripley. While it would be crass to call them the elder stateswomen of rap, this sassy trio did set the stage for younger, sexually expressive upstarts such as Foxy Brown and Lil’ Kim.

What’s “new” about Salt-N-Pepa is the religious messages in some of this album’s tracks. While it’s commendable that they’re stretching out in a more uplifting, spiritually motivated arena, the group’s forte is still worldly, raunchy, of-the-flesh fare.

“Say Ooh,” its latest feisty homage to black men, contains all the vintage spice associated with SNP. “Gitty Up” is even better. Borrowing heavily from Rick James’ “Give It to Me Baby,” it’s got enough sexy ideas to keep pace with rap’s demand for raw frankness.

No one is suggesting that Salt-N-Pepa abandon the high road. Still, it may be tricky to fuse its spiritual aspirations with the style that has spawned a whole wild breed of hormonally charged rap femmes.

*

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to four stars (excellent).

*

Hear the Music

* Excerpts from Salt-N-Pepa’s “Brand New” album and other recent releases are available on The Times’ World Wide Web site. Point your browser to: https://www.latimes.com/soundclips