The Art of Translation

1	Here We Go 3:20
2	Ooh Aah / tobyMac 3:53
3	Runnin 4:05
4	Tennessee Bwoys 4:05
5	Be Mine / Nirva Dorsaint 4:23
6	Ill Coined Phrase (Interlude) 1:08
7	Seriously 3:41
8	At the Video Shoot (Interlude) / M-Dubs 1:29
9	Video Girl / Knowdaverbs 3:51
10	Believe / Jennifer Knapp 3:20
11	What Do You Believe? (Interlude) / Antonio Phelon 1:34
12	Get It 3:53
13	Make Room 3:32
14	Keep Movin' (Interlude) 1:02
15	Sunny Days / Nirva Dorsaint 3:40
16	Lovechild 3:28
17	The Art of Translation (Interlude) 5:29
18	Here We Go / Nirva Dorsaint 2:59

Barnes & Noble

Hip-hop duo Grits aim their message at a market often overlooked by the Christian music industry. With melodious rhymes and a multifaceted musical approach, Grits produce music that is both refreshing and spiritually challenging. Mesmerizing lyric chants backed by Latin rhythms (as on the opening track, "Here We Go"), pop gloss (as on "Keep Movin' "), and even the occasional operatic flourish give this project an unusual polish and sophistication. Grits like to preach self-esteem and integrity as much as belief in the gospel, and Art of Translation offers both: "Video Girl" is a powerful work that tackles such hot-button issues as sexual exploitation in the entertainment industry. Unspoken but implied is the sentiment that it's nearly impossible for a Christian to emerge from this seedy world unscathed. Segue from that heady statement to the lilting and beautiful "Believe," a challenge that asks listeners to examine their beliefs, featuring the haunting vocals of label mate Jennifer Knapp. Grits are the rare Christian artists that have an authentic mission and the talent to spread that message out into the world. Lisa Zhito

All Music Guide

On their fourth outing, Grammatical Revolution in the Spirit not only comes up with the best Christian hip-hop album ever, but the Nashville duo delivers a Dirty South tour de force that only OutKast has matched. The difference between the two groups is that Coffee (Stacy Jones) and Bonafide (Teron Carter) ignore their Atlanta brethren's exotic P-Funk fancies (both lyrical and musical) in favor of plainspoken rhymes, driving bounce, and sledgehammer hooks. But that certainly doesn't imply that GRITS lacks innovation, as The Art of Translation has a sense of adventure that hip-hop's mainstream lacks. More importantly, the group's style-hopping is universally successful, seamlessly incorporating Afro-Cuban sizzle ("Here We Go"), metallic guitar ("Seriously"), and even angsty alt-rock ("Believe," featuring labelmate Jennifer Knapp on the hook) into big-bottomed beats with the help of mixer Serban Ghenea, who adds the hit-bound sheen he brought to albums from Jay-Z, N.E.R.D., and Musiq. Yet, great as the album sounds, nothing on it is more remarkable than the sound of two conscious and gifted MCs responding to hip-hop thuggery with marriage and Jesus, instead of a hopeless "reality" or revolutionary tripe. "When GRITS is hot they bubble," they note on "Get It." They're hot here, on the most potent antidote to hip-hop's parade of pathologies in some time. Dan Leroy