Soulwax
members Stephen and David Dewaele inaugurated the alias 2 Many DJ's for a
series of radio-show mix sessions, few (if any) of which were recorded live;
with the magic of computer processing, the pair spent hours constructing
pinpoint mixes with editing software, deconstructing pop music of the '60,
'70s, and '80s with multiple layers of familiar songs. And as unlikely as it
appeared they'd ever be able to issue a proper album, 2 Many DJ's debuted a
full-length mix with 2002's As Heard on Radio Soulwax, Pt. 2, a feat of
licensing endurance and computer-aided mixing with few parallels at this early
date in the history of mash-ups. (It's available only as an import, fully
licensed and bonded for the notorious Benelux countries alone.) An hour-long
mix with nary a pause for breath, the disc balances late-period electro-techno
with some of the most hilarious one-over-another collisions of previously
unimagined duets in history. When the vocal on a pitched-up "I'm Waiting
for the Man" finally drops out, it's difficult not to be a little shocked
once you realize that midway the beat morphed into "Dance to the
Music," and Lou Reed's hip whine is replaced by an a cappella version of
"Oh Sheila." Sexual frustration (the Stooges' "No Fun")
competes with sexual release (Salt-N-Pepa's "Push It"), the wistful one-shot
"I Wish" by Skee-Lo sounds a bit more extroverted when pasted over
the Breeders' "Cannonball," and "Independent Woman, Pt. 1"
by Destiny's Child gradually gives way to "Independent Woman, Pt. 0"
-- that is, Dolly Parton's "9 to 5." There's as many incredible rare
grooves on this record as there are familiar shots, a sure tribute to 2 Many
DJ's as combination collectors/mixers/taste-makers than anything else. Most of
the ideas here really aren't new -- just talk to Grandmaster Flash or Kool Herc
about borrowing any records at hand to keep a crowd moving -- but 2 Many DJ's
have acres of talent and great ideas about constructing a mix record.
John Bush.
Allmusic.com
