by Jason BirchmeierTruly a supergroup, Dungeon Family includes members of OutKast and Goodie Mob along with production by Organized Noize and Earthtone III (ET3) -- some of the most creative rap artists the South has to offer. And since Even in Darkness follows OutKast's extremely celebrated Stankonia album and the subsequent year of nonstop touring, it arrived with plenty of enthusiasm. However, despite the wealth of talent on Even in Darkness, you can't help feeling a little disappointed -- the end result isn't quite equal to the sum of its parts. Don't blame the producers, though. Organized Noize and ET3 offer some of their most creative tracks to date, taking Dirty South flourishes light years into the future. In particular, ET3's "Crooked Booty" and Organized Noize's "Trans DF Express" stand out, with both production teams going out of their way to bring a sci-fi, electronica-style sound to hip-hop with plenty of synth flourishes. But as wonderful as this album's production is, the songwriting is lacking. Everyone wants to rap on this album -- over a dozen Family members, to be precise -- but no one seems interested in writing songs. Potential hit singles like "Trans DF Express" and "6 Minutes (Dungeon Family It's On)" feature hooks, as do most of the other songs, yet the hooks don't hook you -- they're simply there because the song needs one. They're added-on ornament rather than the foundation of the song, and, worse, they're gimmicky retreads of endlessly recycled motifs (interpolations of "Trans Europe Express" and "The Show"). And that's really what makes Even in Darkness a slightly disappointing album -- there's creative production and some impressive rhyming but no "Ms. Jackson"-quality songwriting. It's as if everyone's too busy fighting over the microphone for anyone to sit down and write some well-crafted songs. Still, even if this album feels like a disappointment in the aftermath of Stankonia's brilliance, it's still one of the most creative rap albums of 2001. Even when these guys are giving halfhearted efforts, they're still years ahead of their peers.