Los Angeles rapper and founding member of Freestyle Fellowship, Haiku D'Etat and Project Blowed, Aceyalone, is ready to make a return to music with a new project called Aceyalone & The Lonely Ones, which draws on Phil Spector, 60s girl groups, the J.B.s and a slew of raw, dirty funk for sonic inspiration.

After indulging his love of Jamaican music for 2007's Lightning Strikes, the musically diverse emcee brings his admiration for doo-wop, blues and funk to the forefront. On the title track, finger snaps, falsetto choruses and Rickenbacker guitar dominate the production, a sound closer to Phil Spector's Wall of Sound than today's by-the-numbers beats.

"I'm not from that era, but this is my ode to it," Aceyalone explains of the album's feel. "I'm just putting myself into that character as a showman and bandleader. But I can still rhyme with the best of them. Artists are going to experiment and go different places and I love that whole era anyway."

According to the rapper, on Lonely Ones, he along with producer Bionik, strike down sonic boundaries and throw the listener back to a time when music was pure, energetic, and fun. He says fans shouldn't be confused, it's not just a collection of songs, but an album where every part is essential to its meaning.

While he's received critical acclaim for his past work -- including his 1995 debut solo album, All Balls Don't Bounce -- the rapper is still a work in progress, he admits. After nine solo albums and more to come, there's still a whole novel to go.

"You might say I'm prolific," he says, "but I'm still a work in progress. I'm just a conveyer of what’s already out there and people just don’t see it. I just interpret it."

Aceyalone & The Lonely Ones is slated for release March 31.