When De La Soul are good, they're kings of the hip-hop universe. When De La Soul are bad, they're a mess. Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump blends both sides of the old-school masters. From the throw-your-hands-in-the-air-like-you-just-don't-care lead single, "Oooh" to the silky "All Good?" and down to the dreadful "Words from the Chief Rocker" and "With Me," this 16-song collection has got it all.

Stepping back for a tick, it's not a total surprise that after four years De La Soul have opted back into the music world, it is impressive how fiercely they jumped back into the fray. A universe of hip-hop all-stars joins them throughout this release, including such current icons as Redman, Busta Rhymes (his "I.C. Y'All" is one of the album's strongest moments) and Mike D and Ad Rock of the Beastie Boys (their "Squat!" contribution is one of the weakest). On the flip side, Chaka Khan and Freddie Foxxx represent the, um, vintage aspects of the genre.

Musically the album runs the gamut, with a song like "The Art of Getting Jumped" blending a sample from "Jump To It" by Luther Vandross with a Brazilian-flavored music bed. Then again "Words from the Chief Rocker" sounds so decidedly vintage hip-hop that it's on the wrong side of the cliché.

Don't know whether it's good news or bad news, but Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump is the first of a trilogy of releases due from De La Soul over the next year. Let's hope the kings win out and De La Soul returns to their rightful throne in the hip-hop realm.