(August 22, 2017) “If the love doesn’t feel like 90s R&B, I don’t want it.” It’s an expression worn on t-shirts and a belief describing how many listeners — those who were at least preteens in that period — feel about the smooth, yet hip-hop-influenced soul music that dominated the rides, clubs and (non-satellite) radio station playlists ‘back in the day.’ That’s why 112‘s latest single, “Dangerous Game,” is already being celebrated by their Bad Boy-era fans.
Although the title brings to mind boudoir-inspired acrobatics and other NSFW thoughts, “Dangerous Games” is actually about the slippery slope relationships can stumble upon once someone’s insecurities show up and compel them to think the other is being unfaithful (usually because, ahem, they’re already guilty of the crime). Q, Deron, Mike and Slim take turns dropping ardor and angst-filled verses over a swaying groove, promising fidelity because losing their ladies by not following the rules makes loser of them both: “I don’t wanna play ‘chess’ anymore, cuz’ everyone knows when your queen is gone/you don’t last long, so I keep myself in ‘checkmate love.”
Tender rather than tawdry, with the signature one-of-a-kind 112 blend, this new single will definitely gives fans that 90s feel they’ve been yearning for. And even for the folks just now discovering the quartet, all should be aware that “Dangerous Games,” is a slow jam better heard than lived.
By Melody Charles
112 – “Dangerous Games”
