Like Water For Chocolate was a refreshing change from the usual hip hop gangsta fare and joined a mini renaissance of conscious nu soul hip hop albums from the likes of Mos Def, Talib Kweli and The Roots. The star of this album is J Dilla / Jay Dee whose production is exquisite and Common’s flow pairs perfectly with the beats. Lyrically, Common is frequently interesting, occasionally (and surprisingly) homophobic (for which he has apologised) and occasionally obscure.