When Coldcut spliced elements of Ofra Haza and 1960s hi-fi instructional discs into their legendary remix of Eric B & Rakim's "Paid In Full" back in 1987, they instantly established new borders for hip-hop. While rap remained a black American phenomenon due the requirements of keeping it real, white British kids brought all kinds of new influences to bear on this fledgling musical form. The excursions of Coldcut, M/A/R/R/S and others in the 1980s paved the way for everything from rave to trip-hop, yet we've never tired of juxtaposing sounds with turntables and samplers for the sheer joy of the bastard forms created. Coldcut certainly haven't: their Ninja Tune label supports the cerebral Cut & Paste of DJ Food and the playful turntablism of Kid Koala. Always too abstract to be classed as hip-hop, these kind of beat-based experiments continue to suggest alternatives to dancefloor stagnation.
