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Alternative PressThe collaborations produce some occasional gems, but midway through the disc one gets the impression the X-men are no longer "in their own session." [Feb 2002, p.82]
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But for all the high-level assistance the group receives, what keeps Built From Scratch consistently interesting remains the fantastic fours work on the wheels of steel.
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Just like an album of guitar solos, an album of battling fancy-fingered trick-pony turntablism is an utterly artless endeavor.
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Built From Scratch is a sharp ode to old school hip-hop that focuses on the roll of the turntable rather than the vocals of an MC.
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Although it is an immensely enjoyable experience featuring often breathtaking dexterity and turntable trickery, it rarely deviates from a strictly old school template.
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On Scratch, they masterfully explore breakbeat fusion, flowing smoothly from scratch to hip-hop to rock and everything in between.
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These collaborations reveal one fatal flaw in the album's formula: All the imported noise makes the X-Men's delicate routines of cutting and juggling seem hopelessly obscure.
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Purists might object to Built To Scratch's overt commercialism, but the four-man crew succeeds in making turntablism accessible to a mainstream audience without sacrificing the kinetic demolition at the heart of its music.
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Each cameo adds style, pizzazz (and most importantly, cool vocals) to the four-man crew's turntable acrobatics.
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While their lightning-fast deck skills evoke nostalgia, the X-men still sound like the freshest crew on the block.
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With no new scratches, no innovations, and an abuse of mere battle scratches, the X-ecutioners overcompensate for their overall lack of creativity by cluttering tracks with constant restatements of reaffirmation, forcing even credible MCs to become pawns of the ornamental obsession to their own greatness.
User score distribution:
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Positive: 1 out of 3
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Mixed: 1 out of 3
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Negative: 1 out of 3
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DankyMNov 27, 2005
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JackM.Mar 7, 2002This album kicks assiola!!! my favorite song was the song "Its Going Down" with those Guys from Linkin Park. Its Going Down (:]