Search - Ultramagnetic Mc's :: Critical Beatdown

This edition should have came out 16 years ago

capaBILLity | Somewhere Out There, NJ USA | 10/04/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Oh,don't get me wrong. I love the 1988 edition of CRITICAL BEATDOWN with the shorten version of "Ego Trippin'",the fake remix of "Funky" and the lowly recorded CED-GEE solos "One Minute Less" & "Ced-Gee (Delta Force One)". It was 45 minutes of ULTRAmadness but it needed more,always needed more.



Now that more is here,somewhat. The tracks "Watch Me Now","Ease Back","Feelin' It","Kool Keith Housing Things","Ain't It Good To Ya","Give The Drummer Some","Break North" & the title track make the album unbelievably awesome and out there,but the added tracks throws ULTRA into super orbit,again!



Wow "Bait" is here,a song that was a promo for DJ RED ALERT,a New York City legendary DJ,this selection kicks this new edition to another phase completely. "Mentally Mad",a B-SIDE to the "Funky" 12"-the 808 grabs while the words are vaguely heard,"A Chorus Line" introducing TIM DOG,freestyle rhyming with KOOL KEITH rhyming last,now that's a first (go figure) which includes T.R. LOVE's famous quote 'hold the beat,stop the beat,drop the beat...'. Now those who know the 12" singles by ULTRAMAGNETIC will realize these 12" versions on the new edition have been tampered with. There's no 808-kick drum in the 12" vinyl of "Ego Trippin'" plus DJ MOE LOVE's scratching has been edited,the vocals are original. "Funky",on the 12" vinyl you can bearly hear them talking on the record between verses on the new edition,you can hear it clearer but the sample has been also messed with. KOOL KEITH's starting vocals to '...while I break off with ease' has been done over (sorry someone has to tattletale 'round here). Originals? Not quite but it still makes the album more refreshing though. "Traveling..." (Hip-House Club Mix) was not needed here. The remix radio version (the video version) was a better choice. It sample KRAFTWERK and AFRIKA BAMBAATAA & THE SOUL SONIC FORCE but I guess samples were not cleared. Bummer!



Overall,it's better than the 1988 release although we are missing joints like "M.C.'s Ultra (Part II)","Funky Potion" and the original "Traveling At The Speed Of Thought (1987)". Maybe in another 16 light years away there will be another edition. When the ULTRAMAGNETIC reunion is predicted (psyche)."

1988: Year Of Hip Hop Classics

Terrence D. Hillman | Colorado, USA | 11/04/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Damn! Took them long enough to do this one. It's still the same album, just simply adjusted for the Ultra fans. Nice touch replacing the earlier short version of "Ego Trippin'" (which cut originally into "Moe Love's Theme") with the full 12" mix. This album still kills a lot of the so-called standard Hip Hop records of today (hell, the crap they play on the radio nowadays is so filtered, all I listen to is Old-School...) These brothers came up from nothing and put their hearts into everything here. They didn't talk about sellin' crack or pimpin' hoes or money and bling-bling all over their albums. Ultra mixes reality with imagination and makes joints crazy enough to keep the listeners interested. My favorite part of the album is when they kick it into high gear on track 9, "Ain't It Good To You," but to this day I can't stop playing, "When I Burn," one of two solo joints for Kool Keith. The most impressive of this collection are the bonus tracks using the digital masters (who'd thought these tracks would be preserved so well after 16 years?!) Well, I have the same problem as the others, but slightly different. Why the Hip House remix of "Travelling...?" I wish they would have used the Extended Hip Hop remix at least, if not the 1986 version of that track! For the most part, You can't satisfy everybody. They still did heckerfresh work to this classic and, hopefully, Ced Gee stop bulls***in' and get back into production because the industry is in desparate need of his space-age groceries. Next mission: Funk Your Head Up: Remastered w/ 2 bonus tracks first time on CD! (Yeah, Right...)"

"A groundbreaking Hip-Hop masterpiece"!!

"Old Skool" Ran-Dee | "Da' Bronx" | 08/27/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is the "RE-MASTERED" edtion of the ultimate, groundbreaking classic "CRITICAL BEATDOWN". This is one of the top 5, best Rap albums ever made in the history of Hip-Hop music. Very few come close, or can be put in the same category. Ultramagnetic is so ill, I can't find words to describe their dopeness and uniqueness. The production by Ced-Gee (producer of the classic "CRIMINAL MINDED") is flawless! Kool Kieth kills it with his trademark outer-space, mad scientifical flow. The beats are incredible! And this CD edit. is loaded with extra tracks not found on the original release. A Hip-Hop masterpiece!! No self respecting Hip-Hop head would be caught with out this CD in his collecton!"