Earlier today I interviewed DJ Z-Trip. We talked for over an hour, touching on everything from his residency in Las Vegas and why he left, the solitariness of djing, what it means to be a hip hop dj, working with LL Coo J, and much more. Like I said, we talked for more than an hour. We also talked about “mash-ups”, as Z-Trip is credited by many as the forefather of the “mash-up” genre, a label that I would he say he is cool with, but a maybe a little puzzled by. For Z-Trip, a DJ is supposed to mix. A DJ is supposed to take sounds and flip them in new ways, so in a sense, any good DJ is a “mash-up DJ”, making the term and the genre a little redundant. Anyway, what started it all was 2001’s Uneasy Listening, which he created with DJ P. The way the Z-Trip and DJ P pushed the boundaries and created something totally new makes this an essential for any music head. The mixtape was limited to 1,000 copies, and is very hard to find in physical form. It does live on the internet, and is available for free along with a lot of other mixes from Z-Trip on his website. Listen and download it below.
Also, Z-Trip hits Chicago on July 29th at The Congress with De La Soul. Tickets and info here.
DJ Z-Trip: “Uneasy Listening” Pt. 1
[audio: http://rubyhornet.com/media/rh/music/z_trip_uneasy_listening_vol1_pt1.mp3|width=180]DJ Z-Trip & DJ P / Uneasy Listening – Against The Grain Vol. 1? Year: 2001
Track Title
1. This Is The First
2. Of A Series Of Projects
3. Dedicated Not Just To ?
4. Pushing The Envelope Open, ?
5. Rather, Ripping The Envelope ?
6. Up Into Little Pieces ?
7. And Throwing Them In ?
8. The Air.
9. No Title ?
10. We Think After ?
11. Hearing It, ?
12. You’ll Understand. ?
13. No Title ?
14. File Under: ?
15. Megafresh B-Boy ?1
6. Body-Rocking
17. Not-Your-Standard Hip-Hop ?
18. Mixology ?
19. No Title ?
20. Strictly Limited Edition. ?
21. Only 1000 Copies ?
22. In Existence.
23. (2001 Release)