Reviewed by Mike Rimmer

Wait a minute, there's something seriously wrong here! A Franciscan monk who's a rapper? Aren't monks meant to pluck harps in caves and record acoustic music? Instead this Bronx-based rapping monk creates beats and rhymes that aren't afraid to deal with some extremely contemporary issues. The grooves on this 1998 release are in varied styles with plenty of dips into jazzy territory and standouts include "Zipper Zone" which explores chastity and "Lord Have Mercy" which at least sounds more.ahem.monkish. It has samples of Enigma-style Gregorian chant though the overall feel is definitely more akin to soul music. "Psalm 57" features a fabulous laid back groove and tasteful saxophone which provides an excellent space for Father Fortuna to do his thing. As far as I'm concerned, the three albums by Stan represent some of the most adventurous music to emerge from the Catholic church for a long, long time.

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