After releasing her strong debut album earlier this year, Love is on Hiatus, JNatural has spent a lot of time on the road. In anticipation of her tour this fall, the Project Blowed emcee got together with DJ Tramlife to create a bonus mixtape. They went the more traditional route with it, making one continuous stream of music as songs blend into each other. There are remixes of JNaturaL, along with songs about love that she and Tramlife felt kept with the theme.

The strongest part of the mixtape are the remixes, namely the run at the beginning of the second half, starting with “Heaven’s Game” all the way through “It’s a Love Thing.” Several of these songs make use of some early nineties tracks, which works extremely well with the original material. My favorite is the use of Artifacts’ “What Goes On?” on the remix of “Trigger Finger.” I don’t know if she already has plans for her next album, but her ability to switch between a rapid fire staccato delivery to a more melodic style meshes really well with the laid back swing and jazz samples that contributed to the Native Tongues sound. There are also some remixes at the beginning of the mix that bring in more contemporary styles such as dubstep, but it doesn’t click in quite the same fashion. As for the rest of the mix, it’s a little hit and miss. Tramlife does a good job making the songs flow from one to the next, but I don’t need a mix flowing from Barbara Lewis to Smokey Robinson to DJ Jazzy Jeff to Rufus Thomas. It’s not bad, but unless you aren’t familiar with these artists, there’s nothing noteworthy about the way they are presented. I could definitely do without the Katy Perry, but that’s just because I think she’s the worst.

It speaks to the talents of JNaturaL and also to the changing culture of mixtapes that my reaction to the Love Lapse Mixtape is that I wish it were just a remix EP. There’s nothing wrong with the rest, I just find it unnecessary. However, if you Love is on Hiatus, Love Lapse makes for a nice complimentary listen.