Rating:
Genre:
Rap
Release Date: 06/11/2002
One/Three, the first
Dabrye release from
Tadd Mullinix, is white
funk lodged in a glacier. Clippity-clap-clack beats, inspired in part by
Jay Dee, and deceptively melodic bonk-zaps form the groundwork of the set, a perfectly digestible LP at 10 tracks and 35 minutes that forms an ideal bridge between the abstract
hip-hop of
Mo' Wax and the shivery busted
funk of early
Kompakt. Unlike a common gaffe of the
Mo' Wax stable,
Dabrye gains inspiration -- rather than outright grave-robbing nostalgia -- from
hip-hop production. You might hear a swift nod to something familiar, as in the latter half of the closing
"Hot Mating Ritual," however there's little to conjure images of unlaced Adidas and furry hats. Remember That Beat this isn't; there's a lot more imagination at play. And since none of these fully realized tracks exceed four minutes, no slick beat or hidden melody outlasts its welcome. It's a short record not short on unpredictable ideas.
"The Lish" would sound like a slow-motion
Zapp remix if it weren't for woozy wafts of saxophone. At the onset,
"So Scientific" sounds like it could shoot into
2-step and winds up wrenching out a Teutonic melody, flapjacking it on its back. The aforementioned
"Hot Mating Ritual," like a handful of tracks scattered throughout, has a summery '80s
R&B vibe, belying the innate stiff chill mentioned above -- the deep "ah-woo"s aren't to be missed either, just one example of the record's good humor. Lacking a dull moment, one hopes
One/Three won't go the way of
Urban Tribe's LP (the product of a flirtation between Detroit and
Mo' Wax) as a sorely unrecognized gem.
~Andy Kellman, All Music Guide
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