Early in 2001 the Los Angeles club Root Down put
on their first of a three part series called “Sound
Clash,” organized & hosted by DJ Dusk. Based on
the reggae sound system competitions, this was a
hip-hop event - in this case featuring Madlib and
Cut Chemist - going head to head, beat for beat
for respect in front of a packed club.
Madlib was then unknown to many in the crowd,
and Cut Chemist was at the height of his success
with Jurassic 5. Each of the tracks had never been
released. Each of the three rounds saw the
excitement rise. The last round unleashed a
partisan celebration from the captivated crowd.
Approximately a year later, the Root Down
organized the round two, featuring Will.I.Am and
Thes One. The drama and controversy of Round
Two arose from the huge aesthetic differences on
display between the "combatants." The theatrics
of the evening - clothes being taken off, ludicrous
names and costumes - made the night a talking
point in Los Angeles to this day. And Will.I.Am
wasn’t a multi-platinum artist yet!
The last battle featured Oh No and Exile in 2003.
With a relatively dignified display by the youngest
pairing of the three, they closed the series with
good music and much respect.
Mochilla's Eric Coleman and B+ filmed all three
events, but never had plans to release this as a
DVD. However, since the tragic passing of DJ Dusk
in 2006 they felt it was important to honor his
legacy and share his gifts. This is for him, no edits,
no overdubs, no interruptions... just raw hip-hop
at its most exciting: vital and real.
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