- The fact that El-P's instrumental mix series bears the ponderous title Weareallgoingtoburninhell implies that the man doesn't take himself too seriously. Another sign would probably also be the promo voiceover featuring a young boy signing off each track with the line "goodbye poopoo-heads!" Consider them shreds of the aburdist humor that El used to show off back in his days with Company Flow. A gifted lyricist, El spits tricky, polysyllabic rhymes that betray more than a hint of intellect that, with the release of Funcrusher Plus in 1997, became standard-issue headphone fare for the backpack-rap set.
The megamixx series sees the man back in instrumental territory, though, a region he first explored on Funcrusher follow-up Little Johnny from the Hospital, and it's further proof that El is as inventive with a drum machine as he is with a microphone—another transmission from one of underground hip-hop's more singular talents, who for whatever reason long turned his back on the spotlight, preferring all the comforts of the dark. The production sound is more sizzling electro than Coflow's brilliantly blunted atmospherics, but nonetheless remains steeped in futuristic grit, evoking a world of b-boy science fiction that seems a parallel universe to that conjured by drum & bass and dubstep.
Megamixx 3, the first of the series to get a proper release, has a one-take straight-to-tape vibe, with most tracks being sketchy, percussion-heavy workouts. With the vocals out of the way El can let the beats do the talking. They're amped-up and nasty; a lot of fun was clearly had smacking an Akai MPC in a smoke-filled Brooklyn basement. A macho, robotic air predominates: think big nasty synth stabs, militaristic snare fills and air-horn blasts—a sound exemplified by "Secret Police Man's Ball."
The mix takes its strength from minor variations on this recipe. "Drunk with a Loaded Pistol" adds shreds of guitar and a vaguely spaghetti-western sense of atmosphere, while "He Hit Her So She Left" stretches out the mix's sonic palette, adding space and menace. As track titles such as these might reflect, El-P's mix brandishes a morbid, aggressive air, content to stomp its way down a dark and piss-stained alley in the near future, insolent and unafraid.
Tracklist 01. Take You Out at the Ball Game
02. Whores: The Movie
03. Meanstreak (In 3 Parts)
04. DMSC
05. Drunk With a Loaded Pistol
06. Time Won't Tell
07. Secret Police Man's Ball
08. I Got This (El-P Remix) Redux
09. Jump Fence, Run, Live
10. He Hit Her So She Left
11. Driving Down The Block (El-P Remix) Redux
12. Honda Redux
13. How to Serve Man (Stripped)
14. Contagious Snippet (Wilder Zoby Feat. El-P)
15. Eat My Garbage 2