WRECKingCReW Yoru to Taiyou no DNA Mass of the Fermenting Dregs S/T Acidman Life Blotto Singles Collection 2004-2007 Boris Smile Electric Eel Shock/ASAKUSA JINTA Transamerica Ultra Rock/Sky ZERO Mugen Minus Shinda Hazu no Boku no Tabi BREAKfAST Classic Six Packs Sokabe Keiichi blue Pistol Valve Tsunamic Girls From Tokyo		DJ Kentaro On the Wheels of Solid Steel Released: 2004.12.04 (BRC108) Label: Ninjatune Reviewer: Chris McDougall (2005.09.13) Tracklist 01 - Introduction / Dj Kentaro 02 - Animal Chin / Jaga Jazzist 03 - King's Lyn / Wagon Christ 04 - Family / Animals On Wheels 05 - Brasilia Freestylee / Clifford Gilberto Rhythm Combination 06 - Scratch Yer Hed (Square Pusher Mix) / Dj Food 07 - Border / Cold Cut Feat. Silent Poets 08 - Timber (Dk Recut) / Cold Cut 09 - The Terrorist / Dj Vadim Feat. Moshun Man 10 - 8 Point Agenda (Version 2) / The Herbaliser Feat. Latyrx 11 - Chicken Spit/Up To Jah(Acapella) / Pest/Dj Vadim Feat. Demolition Man 12 - Centre Of The Earth / Dj Food 13 - Give It Up / Cold Cut 14 - Heard Yer Bird Moved In / Pest 15 - Deux Aus De Maia / Wagon Christ 16 - Sopping Shitty / Wagon Christ 17 - Dark Lady / Dj Food 18 - No Mind [The Zen Experience] / Happy Campers 19 - The Great Drive By (Flying Fish Remix) / Funki Porcini 20 - Atomic Moog (Cornelius Mix) / Cold Cut Review Though often neglected in favor of vocal MCs and studio production, turntablism is my favorite aspect of hip hop's four elements. It's like our era's jazz. Taking an item seemingly made for playing music, the DJ has since turned that item into a viable instrument, improvising sounds unheard of from a needle and some grooved vinyl. Though MC Lone Ranger has long been able to achieve mainstream success without his DJ Tonto, it's Tonto that gets people to move, employing mixes, beats, and the scratch to full effect. The DJ, like the MC, has had a history deeply connected with hip hop music. Grandmaster Flash and many others would pioneer the basic techniques. Grandmaster DXT brought the scratch to the masses in Herbie Hancock's "Rockit." However, it wasn't until the Disco Mixing Club (DMC) championships where many felt the the DJ could cut it on his own. Serving as an output with which DJs of all nationalities and races can gain fame and recognition for their art, the DMCs have exposed the world to many young turntablists who would add new rules to the game, such as Mixmaster Mike, DJ QBert, and Japan's own Okamoto Kentaro a.k.a. DJ Kentaro. Kentaro was the first person to ever achieve a perfect score in the DMC competition, which he did in the 2002 World Championship finals. Now he shows us why he received that score in On the Wheels of Solid Steel, his own special remix of artists on the Ninjatune label. From the beginning of the album it's easy to see why the man won the DMC World Championships, but On the Wheels of Solid Steel quickly deviates from the normal scratch record. To call Kentaro's style unique is a little bit of an understatement; rather than totally focusing on the scratch like many turntablists, drum'n'bass as well as other musical forms figure heavily into Wheels. Kentaro often prefers to blend his scratches with the music instead of having it totally be the music. Sure the man can scratch. One listen to the first track "Introduction" can attest to this. But how many DJs can seamlessly add in a maniacally scratched bridge to the loungy drum'n'bass number "Animal Chin," or add a tribal and Arabic flair to DJ Food's "Centre of the Earth?" It's this eye for blending unique musical attributes to create great musical alliances—then putting the scratches in the right place at the right time—that is Kentaro's greatest strength. However, scratch masochists looking for something on the same level as DJ QBert's seminal album Wavetwisters should look somewhere else. Though scratching figures into the music greatly—afterall scratching and cutting is a turntablist's greatest tool—DJ Kentaro puts the original music more into the forefront, offering a more palatable and danceable DJ album without resorting to the likes of radio station remix CDs. His melting pot style conjures up similarities to Mixmaster Mike, someone well known for throwing in all kinds of genres into his sessions, but it's an unfair comparison since Kentaro covers some entirely different areas of music while incorporating a playfulness reminiscent of Kid Koala. Despite the album's foray into uncharted scratch territory, On the Wheels of Solid Steel delves a little too much into drum'n'bass and ambient for its own good. It could use one or two more "traditional" hip hop sounding songs, or at least a few songs like "Scratch Yer Head," one of the best chill tracks I've heard in awhile that melds all its elements with the utmost grace. However, due to the fact that the record was done as a complete session—or at the very least made to seem that way—it's understandable that the overall balance is skewed. If anything the more drum'n'bass heavy songs succeed in arousing interest in the genre, which I've always appreciated but could never listen to with much fervor. But the middle tracks on the album are easily the best it has to offer with the artist's more colorful and whimsical mixes that keep the drum'n'bass breakbeats in check. Kentaro's eye for music has shown that the turntablist can still evolve past the scratch album by incorporating other less traditional and steadfast sounds. Assimilation and mixture is the easiest way to breed evolution, afterall. But this evolution is not like a transition from ape to man, but more like man growing a fish tail and learning how to swim underwater. back to reviews
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