Built From Scratch

03/12/2002 7:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Dan Leroy

For their latest trick, the quartet of turntable wizards known as X-ecutioners--Rob Swift, Roc Raida, Total Eclipse and Mista Sinista--show they know how to make all the right crossover moves to escape the DJ ghetto that’s swallowed many of their fellow travelers. They team up with Linkin Park for the rap-rocking "It’s Goin’ Down," they enlist labelmates Xzibit and M.O.P. to spit lyrical bullets--they even revisit the well-traveled hip-hop source "Genius Of Love," replaying the classic groove with the help of the Tom Tom Club themselves, instead of vinyl. But for all the high-level assistance the group receives, what keeps Built From Scratch consistently interesting remains the fantastic four’s work on the wheels of steel. That one of the best cuts of this strong collection is "A Journey Into Sound," where the X-ecutioners man their 1200s and go it alone, says something about the virtues of keeping it real--and about the must-hear skills on display here.