Urban Dance Squad

Artantica (Triple X)
by Jon Sarre

They beat Rage Against The Machine to the rock’n’hip hop punch and were more funky to boot, plus they were from fuckin’ Dutch-boy-with-his-fingers-in-dykes country, Holland. Their “Deeper Shade of Soul” was the best example of this genre, with the exception of Beastie Boys’ Paul’s Boutique and was on MTV a whole lot as well. Why not give Urban Dance Squad their “props” or whatever, cuz they’re all right at what they do. Mebbe even forgive the sell-out Rageisms (and the line “limp like bizcuit” on the dance-hall flavored “Happy Go Fucked Up”) while we’re at it, as this Artantica is a good slab o’ funky greasy chicken fuck mess-up with rap’s lyrical spontaneity without the borin’ Funkadelic formality that makes me yawn thru the over-bassed “niggah” this’n’that shit that flies out the be-boys’ souped-up lo-riders on Friday nites. Instead, ya got that fascination Euro-types seem to have with rock’n’roll, tho’ that can be like playin’ with a wrigglin’ mass o’ baby rattlesnakes (hmm, mebbe those way-out tongue speakin’ out-there off-shoot Southern Baptists back in the ’50s had somethin’ there). That’s without sayin’ UDS only has one song on this record and they do it fourteen times: cool beat’n’breaks, tight-ass rhythm section, samples, scratches, the loudmouth out front runnin’ with it, droppin’ every name he can think of. Variations on the basic theme, ya know (with mebbe the “Hold It Now, Hit It” meets Public Enemy’s “Megablast” entitled “Craftmatic Adjustable Girl” bein’ an exception to the rule). Rage does the same thing, I figure, but they tend to bore the shit outta me everytime. Urban Dance Squad can still mix it up so ya wanna listen. Plus, if ya get restless, to mebbe misquote the Gories’ Mick Collins (cuz I can’t remember exactly what he said), “you can dance to it.” Shake yer booty.
(www.triple-x.com)