Customer Reviews

Dead Ringer

5 star:		(44)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I bought this album largely because of the positive buzz that has surrounded it, and because in the past I've found that dj's from non-coastal areas can be less pretentious and a hell of a lot more fun than their counterparts. So why not a dj from the Rust Belt?

The comparison it most often draws is with DJ Shadow's Endtroducing. The reason is clear, given the complexity of the arrangements and the "soundscape" quality to a lot of the tracks. However, this album is both less intense and less eclectic than that milestone. Which isn't necessarily bad-- just different. rjd2's tracks tend to be more funk-oriented and less bass-heavy. Normally that would be a strike against it for me. I may generally prefer the dark, urban stuff, but this album works brilliantly. Effective sampling and just enough turntable trickery to please (well, almost enough) make this album (like Endtroducing) consistently good from start to finish. It's good to see that the "DJ-as-artist" trend is alive and well. This album should help convince some doubters that it's worthwhile musical terrain.

I discovered this CD in a local music store. I had never heard of RJD2. I picked this CD up on a whim and was very pleased with it. I have been a fan of Moby, DJ Shadow and all of the other DJ's and producers that RJ has been associated and compared to. With that being said, RJ sounds NOTHING like Moby. There are some tiny similarites, but they are not in the same class of style or genius. DJ Shadow and RJ don't really sound anything alike, at all. I don't see the comparison.
Being a producer/music creator myself(not a DJ), I can appreciate the style and creative force that RJD2 wields like an iron sceptor. Each song is crafted and laid out with tight beats and awesome production. All of the reviews on this spot seem to classify RJ as this or that. WEll, to be honest, he has his own style, RJ style. It sounds like no one else.
RJ seems to enjoy using samples, but his creative energy shines forth. This album is more "hip hop" oriented,, even featuring a few emcees who rock the mic right. I love this cd and I would recommend it to all who enjoy tight beats.

RJD2's music is a collage of cut-and-paste hip-hop that combines
disparate elements to make for soulful, moody portraits of the
world. Born in Eugene, OR, on May 27, 1976, he moved to Columbus,
OH, a few years later and was raised there. He first busted out onto
the hip-hop scene in 1998 -- a time when producers were emerging
from the shadows to seize the spotlight -- as the DJ/producer for
the Columbus-based group Megahertz. MHz had two 12" singles released
on Bobbito Garcia's Fondle 'Em Records and the group was mentioned
in Vibe Magazine's "History of Hip Hop."

In 2000, RJD2 produced Copywrite's debut single, "Holier Than Thou,"
on Rawkus Records. In the spring of 2001, he made his first formal
appearance as a solo artist on the Def Jux Presents... compilation,
proving he could hold his own alongside such luminaries as Company
Flow, El-P, Cannibal Ox, and Aesop Rock. RJD2's debut album, Dead
Ringer, followed on Def Jux in 2002. One of the best underground hip-
hop releases of the year, it melded dirty samples and a classic
approach to song structure for an end result that gave DJ Shadow, DJ
Spooky, and Moby a run for their money.

Let's get the requisite DJ Shadow comparison out of the way - shall we? Both RJD2 and DJ Shadow construct their musical compositions out of samples and both have the ability to fashion a very atmosphere/mood heavy piece. We'll leave it at that and just say that "Dead Ringer" was what "Private Press" should have been but wasn't. Also forget what you've heard about the Definitive Jux label - you might be turned off by the other chaotic dense sonic landscapes of producers of El-P or the bleak New York rhymes of Cannibal Ox that were touted so much last year and this, but "Dead Ringer" is a looser and funkier album - unafraid to strut its head-shaking grooves down the walkway like a hip-hop model wearing a chic colorful patchwork coat. The album kicks your teeth in right from the start with "The Horror" - which sounds like a blunt-smoking Snoop Dogg West Coast vibe set on reverb with a B-movie giddiness. It builds and deconstructs itself like Lego construction on a speed rush. "Smoke and Mirrors" marries an old long-forgotten voice from the historical vinyl annals with a beat - much like the Moby fixation - except it's funner than anything Moby's done lately. (read: 18?!?) "Good Times Roll Pt. 2" is that "feel-good" song, over rhythmic drums, fiesta sounds fire off, as an announcer cries out "Part two are you ready?" finished by the cheers of children. That's before it breaks out into an all out freakfest with scratching. The straight-up hip-hop songs like "Final Frontier" featuring Blueprint and "F.H.H." feat Jakki the Motormouth set the rest of the instrumentals in welcome relief. But the finest moment on the record is "Ghostwriter" which flips a Elliott Smith sample and speeds it up. (Recognize it? Hint - X0) The song builds on a simple acoustic guitar sample and then washes it over with snippets of dusty blues and soul harmonizing, and then transitions into a horn-driven fist-pumping joyous celebration. Believe the hype - "Dead Ringer" is the finest release of the year. Who's your favorite DJ savior? RJD2. (all respects to Shadow)

I first heard RjD2, alongside with Mr. Lif and The Gift of Gab, in Philadelphia opening up for DJ Shadow. Shadow put on a marvelous show, but the highlight of my evening was hearing The Horror live. The crowd was basically nonplussed after being smacked in the face by such a freakily galvanizing song. It was quite intense. Some other notable numbers he played live that made it onto Dead ringer inlude the haunting "Ghostwriter", the Mobyesque "Good Times Roll Pt. 2" and the super-sweet "2 More Dead". Thankfully, Rj is an artist who is capable of translating his thrilling, live sound to record, and Dead ringer is a fine example of a recording that possesses the vim and vigor of a live show and also the finesse and tempering of a good studio album. Running well over an hour, Dead ringer also manages to capture my interest for the entire duration of play. My least favorite tracks are those that showcase Rj's rapping label mates, but those numbers are kept to a minimum, so they don't detract too much from the overall quality of the recording. Other worthwhile songs include the peculiar, Orbital-like "The Proxy", the Shadowesque "Chicken-Bone Circuit", and the soulful closer, "Work". Real hip-hop is hard to come by nowadays, but Dead ringer is as firmly rooted in hip-hop mores as any good rap album of the last five years. If you're looking for a DJ who spins from the heart, RjD2 is you're man.

In 1996 DJ Shadow '...Endtroduced' himself with his debut wide release album, a compilation of sampled rhythms. '...Endtroducing' strived to create the perfect concoction between beat and melody, and succeeded, in a way. DJ Shadow relied heavily on the listeners' understanding of the intricacies of turntablism and sampling. To an average listener, the album might have seemed shallow and monotonous. It is unfair to criticize '...Endtroducing' for its simplicity though, due to the fact that in terms of complexity it ranks up there with the best of Q-Bert and Peanut Butter Wolf (with whom Shadow worked numerously). Yet when it comes to comparing Shadow's album to Rjd2's 2002 release 'Deadringer', it is necessary to point out that, though similar in their approaches to producing beats, Rjd2 adds enough variation and surprises to his sampling masterwork to please a wider audience.
Take the introductory 'The Horror', for example, which was released later as a single. Darkly atmospheric, the track contains no lyrics. 'The Horror' might even stimulate the desire to augment it with a freestyle (if you're not good at it, don't ruin the song and practice over Big Tymers instrumentals, brother). Its energy and structure brings to mind 'Midnight in a Perfect World' from '...Endtroducing'. Rjd2's lack of pretension and homing in on affecting simplicity distinguishes 'The Horror', along with distinctively excellent instrumentals, such as 'Ghostwriter' with its scratchy vinyl guitar that flows into an astounding trombone chorus; 'Cut Out to FL', which starts off quitely lyrical, builds up suspense and explodes with a helluva beat/scratching; and 'Silver Fox', that's bound to eerily dig its way under the skin with its jagged beat and hallucinatory Asian vibe.
Usually, experimental fusions with hip-hop don't work out. Uberzone's breakbeats on 'Faith in the Future' did not accomodate Beanie Man's freestyles well. AK1200's 'Shoot to Kill' was a major disappointment, due to the lack of energy Phife Dawg (of A Tribe Called Quest) exuded, along with other featured rappers, such as Last Empreror.
Those, and many more artists (Crystal Method, The Prodigy, Chemical Brothers, even Aphex Twin and Moby, oh God, Moby for SURE) should have stuck with their own styles, explored and expanded them. Instead, they ventured into areas that they didn't know much about. Rjd2 knows much about hip-hop. He's collaborated with Copywrite, Blueprint, Aceyalone, Murs, Aesop Rock, El-P, Jakki Da Motormouth and Cage. He's created beats in underground hip-hop that rival only master turntablist, like the aforementioned Shadow, Cut Chemist, and Spooky when he is at his least pompous. 'Final Frontier' with Blueprint, F.H.H. featuring Jakki, and the masterpiece tear-jerker 'June', which Copywrite enhances with his sporadic lyrics: all those tracks accentuate the album's superiority and Rjd2's knowledge of sampling piano, guitar, deep-rooted beats, and a truck-full of other sounds he digs up from various sources (even the KFC-ad tune is stolen by the sly DJ from TV with a tape recorder). 'Deadringer' is a fine demonstartion of sampling skills. It is, despite some unnecessary tracks, like the overly-sentimental 'The Proxy', or '2 More Dead' which starts off complex but ends up dull, a major step in expanding the limits of underground hip-hop.

Oh, and if the rapping does disrupt the intensity of the tune for the listener (couldn't have phrased it better, could I?), 'The Horror' single should be checked out, with the same tracks as instrumentals, and some decent ones added, like 'Bus Stop Bitties'.

HIGHLIGHTS: 'Final Frontier', 'Ghostwriter', 'Cut Out to FL', 'Silver Fox' and 'June'
LOWPOINTS: ' Good Times Roll PT2', 'The Proxy', '2 More Dead'.

Most of what I think about this exceptional album has already been said by other reviewers, but I didn't see any mention of the secret song at the end of the album (maybe I just didn't read enough reviews). At any rate, about two minutes after the last track has ended, a hidden track will play. It is, in my opinion, one of RJD2's greatest cuts. Be sure to check it out.

Being compared to DJ Shadow might have had an advantage for RJD2: I doubt that his affiliation with Def Jux would be heavy enough to translate into the success he has seen. Not to mention that he is not very similiar to DJ Shadow: sure, they both construct hip-hop based music from diverse samples, but RJD2 is admittedly more hip-hop, in small measure because of the appearance of three MCs on three songs. Of these, "June" featuring Copywrite is the best one: not only is his verse touching (a tribute to his dead father, who died in the month Write was born in), but the instrumental interlude is sublime, with classical guitar and synth. The other standouts include the opener "The Horror", with its addictive, menacing synth line that sounds like an alien invasion, and "2 More Dead" - not the gangsta workout you'd expect. No, it didn't "change the world" as El-P claimed, but it is a fine album on its own accord.

It is new and old, calming and at the next moment exciting. It is art that you experience. It sets a mood, leads you on a journey. It is music for meditation, for making love, for dancing, for cleaning the house. It is great! You will love it if you love DJ music, dance music, or Jazz. It combines so many things together but with smoothness. This album makes its very imaginative combinations seem natural.

'Deadringer' will probably make a lot of best album's of the year lists come december, and with good reason. With horns, drums, keyboards and the odd vocal placed seamlessly together, rjd2 has created wonderful compositions, with more coherency and feel than dj shadows 'private press' ...

anyways, the short version of my review goes like this: "some of the stuff i quite like...and i don't hate any of it". Best songs, 'good times roll pt 2', 'ghostwriter', chicken bone circuit' + the hidden track.

the long version of my review goes like this:

'The horror' - a good piece 'not to start with'...

'Salud' - the only interlude, thank god...

'Smoke & Mirrors' - smooth ... especially when the piano & vocals kick in halfway through

'Good times roll pt 2' - standout track, has a rolling, party feel (obviously). once again, a good use of vocal samples with scratching to boot, though i would've liked to hear a longer druim break with the 'heavy' drum if you know what i mean ...

'Final frontier' feat. Blueprint - the mc guestspots on deadringer aren't anything outstanding (they probably take too much focus away from rjd2's production skills), though this is the best of the bunch

'Ghostwriter' - mmmmm...magnificent, if only for the horns...

'Cut out to FL' - a scratching showcase as per the title, with some ... low mixed vocals. slows down nicely - laidback

'FHH' feat. Jakki - well ... it seems that a hip-hop album can't go without at least one spot of braggadocio. Some good lyrics, though Jakki comes off as trying a bit too hard. The only potentially disposable track ...

'Shot in the dark' - no, wait...another interlude...why? ...

'Chicken-Bone circuit' - for all 'air-drummers' out there. This sis a very satisfying song ...

'The proxy' - laidback little song as the album enters it's last third...best listened to on a sunny day

'2 more dead' - that vocal sample will be in your head for days to come ... A head-nodder.

'Take the picture off' - oh no, another interlude...wait, this one's actually nice...i would've liked to see him extend this beat into a full song...

'Silver Fox' - low-key, yet a nice, haunting song...

'June' feat. Copywrite - a long musical break in between the mc's verses...hmmm, interesting, but it works well. Smooth, with some fitting abrasive moments...

'Work' - don't turn this song up too loud, the scratchy quality of the sample might hurt your ears...

'hidden track' - have i mentioned the word 'smooth'?? ... absolutely brilliant.

give it a listen...