Urban Dance Squad
Life 'n Perspectives Of A Genuine Crossover

THE REVIEW

All musical genres inevitably present, as an approximation, for the use and consumption of critics and the public, useful for trapping and "framing" in some way the vast sea of rock music (and its derivatives), very vague and undefined boundaries, so much so that many come to criticize them heavily (the most evident case of all is perhaps the grunge, the non-genre par excellence), even going so far as to deny their existence. Well, crossover is another genre that lends itself well to misunderstandings and contrasting interpretations, also because essentially (and even literally translated) the term simply indicates the mixture of n genres (with n=2); ergo it could be said that even Miles Davis did crossover, while among metalheads this term was used to describe the first timid attempts to mix thrash and hardcore together.

Having admitted and granted this, generally most people frame this movement in a precise historical-cultural context, straddling the '80s and '90s, in which that tart that is rock music enjoyed flirting cheerfully here and there with the most various musical genres. And obviously, lascivious as it is (after all, it doesn't keep company with words like sex and drugs for nothing) it often didn't settle for yielding to the allure of a single suitor, but willingly indulged in impetuous orgies.

And it is precisely thanks to this incessant fornication that iconic groups were born which, for better or worse, everyone knows (Primus, Faith No More, Mr.Bungle, RATM, Jane's Addiction, Incubus...), whose sounds (at least in their most successful incarnations) weren't limited to a simple patchwork of styles, but created hybrid life forms, whose value surpassed the mere sum of the parts (and it's no coincidence that genetics also supports us here, confirming that "mongrel" offspring from crossbreeds normally present better characteristics compared to their "pure" breed counterparts). Well, just a bit behind these heavyweights there are realities, alas often forgotten, but often just as deserving or almost: besides Fishbone (run to listen to the double "The Reality Of My Surroundings"), another name to rediscover is that of Urban Dance Squad, a Dutch band, among the pioneers of the scene (and among the first to include a DJ in their lineup), active since 1986 and with this album delivers their masterpiece.

The sounds, compared to their debut, have become even more varied, see for example the final track which even features Indian sounds (meaning from India, therefore don't expect some Native American tribal dance!), but even listening to the remaining 16 tracks one surely won't risk getting bored, as it smoothly spans from the hardest of hard rock, to funk, to rap, and anything else that existed musically at the time (by the way, if you're interested in purchasing it, I recommend grabbing the reissue containing also a live performance of the group in Tokyo).

Having said all that, why only four stars? Well, as great as they are, personally I think that UDS just lacked that touch of melodic-compositional ability which instead allowed bands like FNM or RATM to write irresistible tracks, able to imprint themselves indelibly in the cerebral cortex after just a few listens, or the courage/ability to take their madness to the extreme limits (Mr.Bungle, Primus). However, if you're already familiar with the big names in the genre, don't waste your time and grant some of your time to this enterprising band, you certainly won't regret it!