Assigned the task of representing the Pacific Northwest in the world of soulful, Everyman hip-hop, Seattle's Blue Scholars are out to, one imagines, reclaim the city from Sir Mix-a-Lot. This sophomore set from the throwback populist duo is a mellowed-out affair that doesn't quite nail the heights of its self-titled 2004 release, but still presents a lot to like for fans of rap songs about actual humans. Geologic furnishes some great rhymes on "North by Northwest," a love letter to the band's hometown, and the pair hits a peak in the loping groove of "Still Got Love," a great summer-in-the-city jam. "Bayani" at times falls victim to some unwritten ordinance that organic hip-hop must exist only in midtempo, but it also flashes big hints that the duo may yet be capable of something extraordinary. —Jeff Vrabel