After the ambitious project of releasing ten albums in 2010, it would be completely understandable if LMNO took 2011 off. The Long Beach emcee wasn’t content to rest on his laurels, though, and dropped Overtime right at the end of December of 2011. Produced entirely by LD, they team up to bring us yet another collection of solid hip hop in the Visionaries member’s catalog.

The title of the record is a play on words, both referencing the fact that LMNO has been put a lot of time in in the studio in recent years, and that he’s been on his grind for a long time. As a result, even though this album doesn’t necessarily have any “wow” moments, there isn’t a weak point on Overtime. There’s just track after track of laid back West Coast beats with socially aware lyrics. It’s what LMNO does best. LD does have a lot of fun piecing together relevant samples, whether it’s Marv Albert or KRS-ONE, but those wouldn’t matter if he couldn’t put together plenty of great beats with big drums that demand that you turn the stereo up. LMNO is an emcee that doesn’t have a hook such as a booming voice or lightning quick delivery, but when you clearly and consistently present lyrics that are smart and personal and work on multiple levels, anythinng else takes a back seat. A song like “Growing Up Out Loud” is a great example of LMNO’s appeal - a straight ahead beat with vintage keyboards and simple bass line provides a platform for LMNO to discuss coming of age in the Southern California hip hop scene and how the underground split from the mainstream. “Less Obvious” might be my favorite track on the album, especially since it’s really two songs in one. It starts as a darker, slower guitar driven song gives way to a funky keyboard jam, and the lyrics shift tone from encouraging listeners to look for the truth hidden within the lies told to us by news outlets and politicians to one encouraging listeners to take positive action in their own life.

Overtime might seem like an afterthought the way it was released at the end of the year with little fanfare, but it’s worth your time. If every afterthought album in hip hop was as solid as Overtime, we’d be doing just fine. LMNO has been consistently rewarding listeners for years, and this is no exception.