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► Freestylers - Past, Present , and Future (EP Review)
Freestylers – Past, Present and Future EP
By Kerry Osborne
Track 1- "Cracks"
This first song draws you in with over lapping layers of sounds, coming together to form the basis of the track, the first of which is reminiscent of The Prodigy's Charly (Alley Cat Mix). The song moves in a pattern, ascending and then retreating from you, hinting at something a little bit dirty around the corner. Unfortunately this is an understandable but false assumption. If anything, as the music breaks the song becomes more melodic. The song also features an unexceptional female vocalist, creating two contrasting themes in the song - The fast-paced, "this is going to be heavy" prelude and the gentler "this is a summer sing-along" crescendo, which makes the track feel akin to a drunken, last-minute Las Vegas wedding - As separate people, they may have gone on to achieve great things but as a married couple they are poorly matched and only manage to hold each other back.
Track 2 - "This City"
The beginning of this song is a simple electro beat, followed by a familiar bar of piano music and seems like a hail back to hardcore. We then hear a female vocalist who is of a greater calibre than the first, and sounds much more "Freestylers." The song wibbles, wobbles and warbbles along at a consistent pace and features many different samples that all appear to get along famously as they play together merrily throughout this summery track. Unlike the first track, the listener is not left disapointed after each break. They are left wondering what is going to pop up next and thus are eager for more.
Track 3 - "Bounce to This"
Continuing along that summery path, journeying perhaps all the way to Jamaica is Track 3. This upbeat song, with reggae undertones is fun and catchy - a pleasure to listen to. Faster paced during the chorus than its predecessors, this track makes for ideal dance-floor shimmying. Again, it borrows samples from other familiar music, particularly the vocals of reggae artist Baranton Levy. Sampling isn't something which itself is an ingredient for a poor song, in fact it works very well in this one. However when all three of the songs appear to be using them then I feel that unless this is the aim of the album, as with DJ Yoda's "How to Cut and Paste" Volume's 1 and 2, the artist is guilty of sample abuse and perhaps needs to revise the concept of originality.
In summary, the E.P. is certainly worth a listen however you may be left feeling as though you've heard the songs before, and this isn't purely down to the use of sampling. These three tracks aren't somewhere I'd go looking for originality, but they have left me interested as to what the rest of the album is like and certainly contain enjoyable music in their own right. However, considering their "Adventures in Freestyle" album, as well as the fact that the Freestylers have been dubbed the "Godfathers" of break music, I am somewhat disappointed as they appear to be trying to follow recent trends in order to succeed commercially as opposed to setting new ones.
Retro's grade: 2:2
