If you asked me how the state of the world was, I’d probably tell you it was terrible. Nothing but a corrupt cesspool of greed and murder. Obviously, I would not be referring to the album from Tableturns. As you may have guessed from the name, Tablesturn is a label dedicated to the DJ. With “State of the World,” they have branched out and welcomed in the DJ’s counterpart, the emcee.
The folks at Tableturns have some of their own talent to showcase while reaching out to some indy heavy hitters. Invisible does a formidable job on his three offerings (“State of the World,” “Black Sheep” and “Streets Be Testin’ You”). As you might expect they both feature expert cuts and scratches (and nice beats for that matter).
Not surprisingly, the albums best results come from Slug, J-Live and Cannibal Ox. Cann Ox’s “Cosmos” could be better as the beat leaves something to be desired, but Vast and Vordul come correct as always. J-Live flexes his always impressive versatility as he rocks over a track uncharacteristic of his style. “Don’t Get It Backwards” would easily be the albums best track if it wasn’t for “Keep Steppin.” Slug dismantles the ill Spanish guitar loop with some excellent storytelling; “It goes job after job after blow to the self-value/he doesn’t get along with powerful people/the mind is a box kept locked/inside is the pride and the ego and he can’t find the keyhole.”
Well placed and frequently interjected are a series of DJ tracks showing off some considerable talents on the one’s and two’s. Some work better than others. “Tekwizardry” (Total Eclipse & Supa Dave) is good from a technical standpoint but could use an injection of charisma. “Bring It Back” by Roli Rho is much better from a listening standpoint. “Wake Up” by Supa Dave and “The Pledge” by Rob Swift and DJ Quest (World DMC Finalist) are even better as they convey a message through the precise jigga-jiggas.
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“State of the World” will appeal everyone from the average underground cats to DJ aficionados. It is a nice package of turntableism and mic skills, both in execution and packaging. This “State of the World” is no cesspool.
6.5/10
