Wax Murdaraz

One thing is safe to say upon giving a casual listen to the debut album by the eight-person crew known as Wax Murdaraz...these deejays are not happy campers. Sound providers B-Money, Charlie Chan, (Da Fly) D-Ex, D.J. Finesse, D.J. K-Nine, Iceman, King IXL and Mocha Sunflower draw clear lines regarding their stance on various societal topics, both musically and vocally. In the realm of turntable music, best displayed by solid efforts such as the X-ecutioners guest heavy "Built From Scratch" and D-Styles gloomy cerebral "Phantazmagoria", Wax Murdaraz ".

.Killin' Spree" may very well be the first ever "gangsta scratch" album. This is not to say that the album is overtly misogynistic (though C. Delores Tucker probably would have been offended by the K-Nine solo, "Raw Dog"). However, there is a constant overtone of crime and violence that surrounds the project from beginning to end. What's also intriguing here is that unlike previously released "turntablism" albums, the lead vocalists are the deejays. While one may initially cringe at the thought of a deejay on the mic, it doesn't take long to realize that D-Ex and K-Nine in particular are quite advanced in the lyrical and verbal delivery department. Entirely self-produced, "Killin' Spree" is actually a bit of a chronological story in disguise. Disgusted with the deejay's back seat treatment within the modern day rap industry, Wax Murdaraz set out to assault all who play a part in reversing Hip-Hop culture's progressive cycle. Simultaneously while fulfilling their mission, the group deals with a number of issues that plague the communities of inner city youth. Depending on the listener's perspective, it can easily be argued as to whether WM are playing the roles of the bad guys or the good guys throughout. The actual turntable wizardry on the "...Killin' Spree" is highly technical with the group precisely cutting samples that would ordinarily not find a home on the average backpacker hip-hop outfit (Schoolly D, Ice-T, N.W.A., Geto Boys, 2 Live Crew, Compton's Most Wanted, etc.). The end result is an album that displays a very street-oriented texture in a not so conventional way. It's safe to say that former X-ecutioners member Rob Swift, listed as a "...Killin' Spree" executive producer, had a positive influence on the Murdaraz ability to craft a consistently flowing scratch dominated sound scape.