Mixmasta "D" - Hit Me!

If you don't know who Mixmasta "D" is, that's because you probably think of The Bizzie Boyz as being "Ski and... some other dudes." Well, one of those other dudes is Mixmasta "D." The rest, just for the record, were Fanatic, C.J. Smooth (lol he was the baby on the album cover), Move and Groove. ...Plus, Supreme DJ Nyborn was like an affiliate, down-with-the-crew guy.

So, anyway, after the group went their separate ways, Mixmasta "D" dropped the really tight, underrated Turntable Scientist EP in 1993 with an MC named Flipsyde. Well, now that EP is back in 2010, repressed on Dope Folks Records with three never-before-released extra songs from that same era!

The title of this EP comes from "Turntable Scientist," the CD-only bonus track on The Bizzie Boyz' album, Droppin' It, which was a killer DJ scratch track, showcasing Mixmasta's skills, bringing in a ton of fresh cuts and samples. Bizzie Boyz had a penchant for releasing house tracks, cheesy lonve songs, etc. but when they were on point, they were an example of some of the best hip-hop had to offer. And "Turntable Scientist" was certainly an example of the Boyz' top shelf material.

What's interesting about this is how... like Ski evolved into the Original Flavor crew, who had a pretty unique sound in '93... This EP has almost the same sound. Flipsyde would fit right in on Original Flavor's second album with his swift, tongue-rolling styles here. But where Beyond Flavor started to drag a bit after you got past the terrific single, this EP holds up all the way through... I think it's just a question of more consistent, and perhaps less commercial, production. Had the instrumental for "Lyve," for example, been used on OF's album - with it's funky, buzzing bassline, high-pitched screeching loop and great Onyx vocal sample for a hook - they would've definitely released it as a single. And "Strate Phrum da Krates part II" (what I want to know is: where was part 1 released??) is a massive collection of ever-changing samples and loops combined into one, constantly changing song.

So yeah, this has all four songs from the original, rare '93 EP (and they've remastered them), plus the "Shoutouts," which is set to a def, jazzy beat, so it's worth preserving. The only think they left off is the instrumentals (gotta track down the OG for those. But the price we pay for those instrumentals is, as I said above, three previously unreleased tracks. Can't argue with that!

"Da Weekend" sounds a little older, almost more of a classic Bizzie Boyz'-style song, as opposed to Original Flavor-style. "Scooby Dooby Wah Wah Wah" features a smooth but fun, old school jazz kind of groove with lots of vibes and stuff. Very 90's. And finally there's "Do Whatcha Do Best," which basically takes "Turntable Scientist" from Droppin' It, and turns it into a hype vocal track. This is probably the sickest track on the EP!

So, yes, this is limited. Dope Folks only pressed up 300 copies, but it's fairly reasonably priced at $20 and still available from the label. If you're interested, you can get at them via their blog, dopefolksrecords.blogspot.com. I have a feeling a lot of heads are sleeping on this one, but they're gonna regret it!