Torrio is driven, clever, and occasionally inspired, but those qualities don’t always come across on record. Producing his own tracks, the Cleveland rapper mixes thin keyboard tracks and predictable low-budget beats. Although the highlight of The Big Picture is a hook lifted from Stevie Wonder via Coolio, Torrio’s third disc is no paradise.

That said, the digital-only release is still worth the download, if only because Torrio pulls together some of the area’s rising talent. He gathers verses from Phantasy headliners like Vincenzo, Ill Eagle, KingDom, and Butters host Garbs Infinite. They’ve got skills, but unfortunately not much to say: They go to the club. They hustle all day. Every day.

Akron crew Team Tuck is the disc’s breakout star. On the bouncy “Some Girls,” Tuck captain X-tro rhymes so convincingly about violating your girl that you’ll want to check her for fingerprints. If Coolio mounts a comeback, he should get a verse from X-tro.

This article appears in Sep 19-25, 2007.