Producers: DJ Scratch, Lee Stone, Diamond, The Alchemist, Pharoahe Monch.

Enginneers include: Sharon Kearney, Troy Hightower, Tony Donovan.

Personnel includes: Pharoahe Monch, DJ Scratch, Prince Poetry, MOP, Shabaam Sahdeeq, Apani, Redman, Method Man, Lady Luck, Busta Rhymes, Talib Kweli, Common, Black Thought (vocals); DJ Total Eclipse (cuts).

Producers: DJ Scratch, Lee Stone, Diamond, The Alchemist, Pharoahe Monch.

Engineers include: Sharon Kearney, Troy Hightower, Tony Donovan.

Audio Mixer: Troy Hightower.

Recording information: Campo Studios, New York, NY; Cutting Room, New York, NY; Grandma Hands Studio, Jamaica, NY; Mirror Image, New York, NY; Unique Recording Studios, New York, NY.

Photographer: Franck Khalfoun.

Arranger: Lee Stone.

After three critically acclaimed albums as part of the trailblazing Queens duo Organized Konfusion and one of the most memorable tracks of 1999 ("The Mayor") on the Rawkus compilation SOUND BOMBING II, Pharoah Monch steps into the spotlight with his solo debut, INTERNAL AFFAIRS. Known for his metaphorical deftness and involved lyrical execution, Monch delivers intense raw rhymes throughout on tracks like "Behind Closed Doors" (on which he boasts, "How I made it, you salivated over my calibrated raps that validated my ghetto credibility").

Although Monch always brings his remarkable mic skills to the table, a more accessible radio sound has been substituted for the intellectual complexity of his Organized Konfusion material. Street anthems like "Simon Says" and "The Ass" make this a great party album. "The Next Shit," with Busta Rhymes celebrates the new generation of ambiguous East Coast word play (sample lyric: " I stare at data that have my niggas katamaranding around gats, cop figures like Knots Landing"). However, those in search of the classic storytelling of his past work should check "God Send" with former OK partner Prince Poetry and "Queens," a stunning tableau of the trials and tribulations of life in his hometown South Jamaica.

Pharoahe Monch, the more dynamic member of the ultra-underground duo Organized Konfusion released Internal Affairs, his first solo project, in late 1999. Pharoahe, a lyrical mastermind and card-carrying subterranean hip-hopper for eight years plus, possesses the ability to convey a message through painting clear pictures with his rhymes, even when the palette has a smaller range of colors. On Internal Affairs, Pharoahe does well to mix his colors, adding another subtle shade to hip-hop. This album's seismic single, "Simon Says," allowed the legendary Pharoahe Monch to taste from the cup of crossover exposure with only slight alterations in style. Organized Konfusion albums, and Pharoahe's work in particular, were always met with critical acclaim, primarily on the strength of lyrics. In the end, however, taking the road less traveled forced Pharoahe to watch as his less talented contemporaries saturated music culture. On Internal Affairs, Pharoahe alternates between the abstract and the formulaic quite seamlessly; the abstract cuts contain commercial aspects and vice versa. There's a lot of experimentation musically here, but nothing that could not reach the ears of the ever-expanding and increasingly salacious masses. Beat jewels are laid by the double-dutied Pharoahe, and Lee Stone and Diamond of DITC fame. The absence of recognizable sampling is an underground rubric, and Pharoah stays true to it. Sequencing on the album is layered and innovative. While both versions of "Simon Says" are hardcore club hits that favor repeat listening, "The Truth" may be the most listenable track for its sound and message alike. Internal Affairs inspires a range of impressions with a premillennial buzz of frenetic energy, which is illustrated by its extraterrestrial tone. Here is a mixture of subtle thug-ism, storytelling, and poetry of desperation. [Internal Affairs was also released in a "clean" edition, containing no profanities or vulgarities.] ~ M.F. DiBella