Coolaid CD

Some have called Coolaid, Snoop Dogg's fourteenth full-length, a "back to basics" triumph. Certainly, the album has a familiar feel, with the veteran West Coast rapper's decision to include a number of G-funk inspired cuts - many reminiscent of his key early '90s work - paying dividends. Of course, it's not all synth-laden head-nodders; "Super Crip" is a crisp, Golden Age slammer, "My Carz" samples and loops up Gary Numan with great success, and the auto-tune heavy "Light It Up" doffs a cap to radio-friendly R&B (and, yes, Snoop sings). At 20 tracks deep it's something of an epic, but flows impressively. In other words, it's the kind of entertaining, thrill-a-minute set we'd all been hoping for. Snoop, it seems, is still the big Dogg.