X:144 - "Scribble Jam Battle Beats"

X:144 - Last Sample Rounder (Nonsense 2007)

X:144 - Scribble Jam Battle Beats / Nonsense

You know what happens when we assume, so here's a little about Scribble Jam for the uninitiated. Held in Cincinnati every year since 1992, the festival attracts thousands of people annually to see the best and brightest mix with the up-and-coming hip-hop stars. Famous acts who've graduated or passed through the Scribble ranks include Slug, Murs, Sage Francis, Blueprint, and arguably the greatest freestyle battle ever in 1997 between MC Juice and some kid named Eminem. I'm personally entertained by this one between Justice and Thesaurus (2006)... And of course, everybody knows this guy. So you see, Scribble Jam sets the stage for not just the best masters of ceremony but some of the finest turntablists on the planet as well. DJs and MCs alike flock to Ohio every year to see who's packing the sonic heat.

This year, the organizers introduced something new. In addition to competitions on the deck and the mic, Scribble Jam included a Production Battle Championship. The man behind production company Transparent Dark is an MC who's been working hard out of Orlando, Florida to make a name for himself. X:144 first came to national prominence last year with a critically lauded but quiet debut partnering up with Berlin-based scratcher SPS. M.E. was easily one of my favorite hip-hop records of the year, and not just because of X's lyrical dexterity. The beats were incredible, fusing jazz together with rap together with dance together with crate-digging funk. It was sadly ignored on a lot of year-end lists, but it's good to see that he hasn't given up the ghost in O-Town. If anything, this six-song set showing how he progressed through each round at Scribble Jam is a reminder that X:144 is not just a sharp MC but easily one of the best producers out there.

It's not like he was coming in to the competition as an unknown quantity. X has competed in and won DMC's South Eastern and Regional Championships as well as Orlando Music Awards' best hip-hop solo and producer of the year awards. He's got some bling for the shelf, but Scribble Jam is one for the well-lit trophy case.

Here's how it works: Two weeks before the competition, each producer is sent an acapella of Brother Ali's "Pedigree." With only 14 of the original 32 contestants showing, the elimination round was skipped and it was on to the remix. That's the first round and it's featured here, a reworking that duly won him the acclaim and support enough to carry him through to the next round. The sample and remarkable live rounds follow, the latter a totally off-the-cuff recording that is possibly one of the best on this short-player. Busta Rhymes' "Woo Ha!" is included here towards the end with muted, retro bleeps and bloops providing further entertainment.

The final round, the main stage, is where the magic happens. "Four crates of records, two producers, and sixty minutes to make history." That's the "Last Sample Rounder" here, a cut-up mixture that he actually didn't get to play all of because the judges cut him short by 20 seconds. Nevermind as it didn't matter. Good enough to win, X:144 had already made history by the time his kill was supposed to come.

For the average hip-hop fan, listening to what basically amounts to an EP might not engage you from a lyrical standpoint. But check out his recount on the Numark website and you can almost feel the excitement and the pressure of being on that stage, of digging for the right beats at just the right times. This is the thrill of being in one of the most competitive atmospheres in all music (Take that, "Rock of Love"). X:144 has flown below the radar up to this point, but it is my sincere hope that a Scribble Jam title will aid in vaulting him to the national pantheon of underground hip-hop's elite. Someday, maybe we'll be able to look back on this and say, oh yeah, Scribble Jam? That was just another stopgap to greatness.