Chester French
'Love the Future'
Ivy league wiseacres hit industry pay dirt.
Chester French are kind of undeniable, which is good because you'll probably want to deny them. Harvard brats bankrolled by Pharrell, singer D.A. Wallach and multi-instrumentalist Max- well Drummey joke about the whores knocking on their door amid Beach Boys melodies that usually signify innocent wonderment (a recent Clinton Sparks mixtape titled Jacques Jams -- heh, heh -- amps up their rap cred with Bun B and Pusha T appearances, as well as their self-aware dork side via "Nerd Girl," featuring R&B future-freak Janelle Monaacute;e). And despite groaners like "She craves affection, so I use protection," their major-label debut gets by on smarmy-smooth suburban- pop melodies, cheeky genre mash-ups, and good bad jokes. After they high-five themselves for scoring a "Puerto Rican Pamela Lee," maybe they'll even graduate to having something to say.
