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Waka Flocka Flame, ‘Flockaveli’ (Asylum/Warner Bros.)

Waka is more agitator than rapper–imagine DJ Kool as an unhinged goon with a fetish for brawling and gunfire. “I’m drunk as hell / Can’t you tell?” the Atlanta rapper barks on “No Hands,” a track whose epic strings befit a strip club Zeus would frequent. But pole-dancing fodder is scarce; the rest is an unforgiving crush of unveiled threats over ricocheting drums and choleric synths, most provided by young producer Lex Luger (best known for Rick Ross’ summer anthem “B.M.F.”). Flockaveli‘s flaw is not Waka’s coarseness, but his generosity — 25 guest verses from anonymous Brick Squad cronies suck up air instead of letting Waka breathe without mentor Gucci Mane’s oxygen tank.