Full Circle

Let me just start out by saying this album is awful. Not just a little bit bad, but a true stinker. But what, you may ask, was I expecting when I chose to review Boyz II Men? Not much, I guess.
Boyz II Men's music has been a staple of cheesy radio for at least a decade now. Originally billed as friends of Bell Biv Devoe and Another Bad Creation (remember that song - "Boyz II Men, ABC, BBD"? - OK, maybe you don't), these R&B boys from Philly became a supergroup on the strength of such ballads as "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" and "End of the Road." They perfected that '90s style of R&B - which, as my cynical friends used to call it, stood for "rap and bullshit." They had the power ballads, the occasional hip-hop beat and meaningless rap thrown in. They even did a song with Mariah Carey.
Now the Boyz are all grown up, and - surprise - doing the same old thing. "Full Circle" is heavier on the "bullshit" than the "rap" side of R&B, with sappy titles like "Relax Your Mind," "Makin' Love" and "That's Why I Love You." In fact, the whole album is just one continuous hour of cheese - perfect fodder for all those easy-listening stations back in the States. For all you Boyz II Men fans out there, I'm truly sorry.