Rolling Stone (11/28/02, p.90) - 3 stars out of 5 "...[This] album will thrill fans who stopped clocking rap a decade ago and heads who never let go..."
Spin (11/02, p.124) - 7 out of 10 - "...Balances the MC's party-startin' with darker musings..."
Q (11/02, pp.103-5) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...An unexpected delight..."
CMJ (10/14/02, p.6) - "...All six members of this group are extremely talented. What Jurassic 5 has done, and continues to do, for hip-hop is a wonderful thing..."
Vibe (11/02, p.154) - "...POWER IN NUMBERS is colored by a spiritual ache that transcends anything J5 has done before..."
Mojo (Publisher) (1/03, p.73) - Ranked #5 in Mojo's "Best Urban Albums of 2002"
Mojo (Publisher) (11/02, p.106) - "...An almost austere album, the production deliciously dry...Classy."
Jurassic 5: Chali 2NA, Cut Chemist, Marc 7, Zaakir (Soup), Akil, Nu-Mark.
Additional personnel: Nelly Furtado, Big Daddy Kane, Percy P., JuJu, Kool Keith.
Producers: Cut Chemist, DJ Nu-Mark, JuJu, SA-RA.
The chorus of "What's Golden," the first single from rap collective Jurassic 5's second record POWER IN NUMBERS, talks of going "back to the days of yes y'allin" and "holding on to what's golden." "A Day at the Races" features shout-outs to Kool G Rap and Kool Moe Dee while Big Daddy Kane guest raps. This gives a hint of merely one side of a band that embraces and embodoes the old school while infusing it with bits of all that's come since. J5 contains four DJs and two MCs, and the many cooks, far from spoiling the Jurassic stew, allow for many different perspectives and the fullest of sounds.
On their 2000 debut QUALITY CONTROL, J5 had to contend with over five years of expectations fueled by touring and heightened by a hailed 1997 EP, yet released a solid, if not earthshaking record. With POWER IN NUMBERS, the hip-hop sextet hits its stride, both lyrically and musically. The four starkly different voices layer richly textured stories, piling one on top of the other, dissolving into a mosaic, an MC battle revealing another piece of the ongoing story of life.