Album Review: Big Boi - Vicious Lies And Dangerous Rumors

A triumph. Unmitigated, unqualified and unsullied. Here Big Boi has realised the ambition he first showed with the so-so Sir Lucious Leftfoot in 2010. He's refined his strengths – surrounding himself with as many talented people as he can – and worked on his weaknesses, the most notable of which being his often monotonous persona behind the mic. Here, as an improved rapper flanked by excellence, Big Boi rises to the occasion.

In The A is a tour de force our host would not have been able to handle two years ago. It is the clearest example of Big Boi's arrival as a solo artist. A tribute to Atlanta with a double-length verse each from hometown heroes T.I. and Ludacris, Big Boi stands tall alongside two of the best rappers out on a beat made for kings only. It's a thrilling ride. She Hates Me is Kid Cudi-fuelled self-pity. It rumbles along, haunted by its guest, and mourning a stumbling relationship. There's an arrogance – “I'm a make her love me again” – but there's a tacit acknowledgment that Big Boi might just be a useless boyfriend, a theme we hear often enough in rap but here it's perfectly executed. Lines is the album's best. No lie, the beat recalls Rage Against the Machine's debut album. No lie, Phantogram's searing chorus is one of the sharpest moments in recent pop music. Incredible.

That Big Boi would put together something like this was by no means inevitable. The weakest Outkast member, he was vulnerable to being seen as a middling talent with friends in high places. Here, he's made a high place of his own.