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This Ep comes out of that seemingly burgeoning Hip Hop scene of Australia and yes we were slow to get round to having a listen to this. At first I thought it was one of these producer led projects with a load of different MCs collected over the Airheads beats. As it happens each track is produced by different people and the record is more like a compilation. So I'm still left wondering who are the Airheads? This record comes packed with 7 vocal tracks, from complete unknowns (to me) like, Sinus & Sandro and Sleeping Monk & DJ Doi to big names on the Aussie scene including Celcius and Koolism and even J-Zone from the US, so again I didn't know what to expect. Side A opens with 'Some 6000 Sighs' by Sinus & Sandro one of new acts to me. The beats are crisp and fat, the track opening with some creditable scratching. The MCs go back and forth taking turns to rap one line at a time in an old skool manner. Refreshingly they use their own accents, which for me sound more akin to a UK twang rather than US making the track immediately appealing. Following on is 'High Priest' by Sleeping Monk & DJ Doi. Sleeping Monk lives up to his name sounding half asleep with little energy to his rap, which sounds more talked than rapped. I think he'd do better from turning the mic down therefore making him have to rap louder. This track is produced by Idiot Proof who again create a well engineered sound. Staying true to Hip Hop they have included some cuts, but they are a bit sloppy. Overall this track is OK and shows a lot of potential for the crew, but also shows they have a way to go before they live up to the standards from some of the other contributions. 'Now Or Never' by J-Zone featuring Melodramatic is perhaps the best track on the record and maybe isn't that surprising considering this guy's pedigree. A great backing made up from a variety of high pitched orchestral snippets over drum sounds you can't fault and a plucked bass line just add the appeal of the well delivered lyrics. The final track on side A is 'Outer Limits' by Mnemonic Ascent. "If you love Aussie Hip Hop tonight, take it to the outer limits". Produced by Raph, B.V.A. & Ransom the beat makes use of a nice distorted bass line and cleverly chopped trumpets to make up the majority of the melody. If you are into different accents these guys provide something different, whilst repping hard for their area. Side B opens with the sound of a music box heralding the entrance of the 'Head Hunters' by Celcius who had the cover on Stealth Vol. 2 Issue 1. Produced by Sereck the track at times feels like perhaps there is too much going on and maybe there are enough ideas and samples for two tracks. Still, it is original and experimental and doesn't follow your usual production formulas. Maybe the biggest name in Aussie Hip Hop - Koolism are next with a track entitled 'Targets'. By way of contrast with the previous track, this one takes us back to more simple classic production by Danielson & Hau which features a fat analogue bass line over a drum machine and little else. The final track 'Boom Boom Kids' by Reference Point makes sure the record ends on a high. The track has a long flute intro before the beat kicks in with a kick drum that would like to burst you speaker. The intro continues and had me wondering whether this was going to be an instrumental track, but finally the MC appears. Produced by Emesyue & Quiro they make use of live instrumentation alongside familiar and not so recognisable samples to create a funky groove. Overall this is a tasty piece of wax showcasing a wide variety of the best of Australian talent, perhaps the beats and production are of a higher quality than the MCs, but if you like to expand your horizons this is something to pick up. I believe there is to be a full-length compilation CD out soon which should be interesting too.
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Airheads The Dropping Science Experience Vol. 1
EP