Eve

Ain't nothing more refreshing than a late winter's Eve release.\nEdgy and fresh, Eve is the blonde with a bad attitude who exploded onto the male-dominated rap world as the First Lady of Ruff Ryders. She proved she had staying power with blasting lyrics and honest messages. This time around, Eve\'s seeing red, and her new CD, Scorpion, has plenty of the same sting that made her debut a hit. While lacking outstanding singles like "Love is Blind" or "Gotta Man," Scorpion mixes hard rap with some Lauryn Hill-esque sounds to produce a serviceable follow-up effort.\nThe first song, "Cowboy," is enough to make anyone second-guess Eve's sanity. It sounds like a takeoff of Jay-Z's "Can I Get A...," except less funny and more useless. Luckily the disc shifts right into her first single, "Who's That Girl?". A catchy song and declaration of superiority, this song (Bottom Line, my world, my way/Any questions?) lets Eve tell us she's still rap's queen of the scene. The song, boosted by Latin-sounding trumpets and an easy smoothness, allows a welcoming entrance into her harsher material, kind of like Eminem's choice of "The Real Slim Shady" as a prelude for The Marshall Mathers LP.\nThe CD loses a little steam with "Let Me Blow Ya Mind." I had higher expectations for this collaboration with No Doubt's Gwen Stefani, who poured an added dimension into Moby's "South Side," but the song is a cheesy, unnotable tune with a practically invisible Stefani. The syncopated hook reminds me of OutKast's "Mrs. Jackson" and seems completely out of place.\nThe beats pick back up on "You Had Me, You Lost Me," whose tattle-tale, taunting tone complements Eve's slam on a former love. Next come the anthem "Gangsta B******" and "That's What It Is," which have Eve exuding self-confidence from every pore.\nEve switches style a bit in the second half of the CD. Possibly the best song comes in the electronic-string sounds of "Scream Double R." DMX's bass voice performs well in this track that demonstrates Eve's spoken words blending into her singing voice, which overtakes entirely on "No, No, No." It's too bad Eve doesn't sing more often, because her voice has potential for emotional power. And she can switch from sharp to soulful with ease.\nNo matter what, Eve always seems to command attention. Give the poison time to run its course, and Scorpion will sink its pinchers into any fan of rap music.