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Rapper and Redneck Having Their Moments

Graffiti the World (Universal Republic Records)
Rehab

By Kory Wilcoxson

Somehow Rehab manages to take two overplayed musical clichés – the rappin' white boy and the Southern redneck – and breathe some life into them, giving the band a sound that isn't nearly as tiresome as it deserves to be. And yet, Graffiti the World has limits.

Frontman Danny Boone plays his role to perfection. On songs like "Lawn Chair High" and "Bartender Song," he extols the virtues and dangers of hard living and better life through chemicals, rap-singing over guitar-heavy beats and a few token DJ scratches. While there's no new ground broken here, Rehab falls in line behind other rap-rock acts like Linkin Park and Uncle Kracker.

When the band sticks to what they do well, Graffiti is a nice diversion. When they overreach, the results are cringe-worthy. On the title track, Boone and company attempt an ecological statement that is either obtusely tongue-in-cheek or naively sincere. Either way, it's out of place. Other attempts at storytelling (the middle-class suicide on "Red Water," an adulterous affair on "Walk Away") feel contrived.

Find out more at rehabmusic.com.