Snow

Toronto's very own white reggae "star” hasn't made much of an impact since his 1993 heyday with "Informer” — though this is his fifth full-length — but he's still trying to convince us how hard he is. Never mind the bio references to "troubled young thug,” Darrin O’Brien's brief, decade-old prison stint, this album, like his last, is aimed directly at radio programmers, not hardcore heads. The record ranges from abysmal (the power ballad "Missing You”) to bearable (kick-off track "Black & Snow” features a nice cameo from guest rapper Chris Black) to even almost enjoyable ("That’s My Life” has a wonderful bubbly pseudo-bass line), but nothing here sounds remotely eventful. "Informer” is his cross to bear, but as long as he's unable to recapture the admitted genius of his breakthrough single, Two Hands Clapping is pretty much wishful thinking, as there is very little here good enough to inspire any applause at all.