Search - Elixir :: HEGALIEN ZONE

A heady dose of urban cross-culturalism

Chris Meyer | Los Angeles, CA USA | 04/11/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Bill Laswell is an obvious starting/reference point, since he is the bassist here, and some of his cronies - especially DXT - appear. If you like Laswell, but have had a little trouble digesting his hip-hop crossover compilations, then certainly try this. It's a very nice mix of urban influences plus a bit of world (including vocals on one track by Umar Bin Hassan) that challenges but doesn't necessarily repel. It's also nice to hear DXT get a full-album workout; he usually just appears in enticing tracks on various Laswell compilations."

Ecstatic-ambient--hip-hop studio boys play with their toys.

daniel t. denver | New York, New York USA | 12/26/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Bill Laswell and his cronies are responsible for more of the New York studio-cave music than is posted under his name. This record is a case in point. A Bill Laswell creation in all but name, this is what those fellows get up to over some alternate substances and a mixing board.Samples of tabla and other easternalia. Washes of reverb. Drones. Decent and heady bass lines (a bit up in the mix.)Washes of reverb. Fairly respectable grooves, thrown around in a haphazard free-form way. Um, reverb.The whole beast is an aquired taste. If you love Laswell's Panthalassa or Bob Marley remixes, you'll like this one. Not exactly hip hop, but not really anything else either. Laswellination. Check out the listenable tracks from either of those records here on Amazon if you aren't familiar with the style to decide if this is your thing. Just a word of caution, this one is a bit less interesting than the others, mainly in that with the remix records those fellas are starting out with real Class A material. Here they are just riffing. Boys with their toys.Oh, incidentally, listen for the harp riff in track 3. A sample from 'Galadriel' from the record Chthonicthul, performed by Tara Skouson ... . A new experience, being sampled. It's like watching someone play you in a high school pep rally."