Scratch, the soundtrack to a turntablism documentary by Doug Pray, presents performances from some of the best DJs in history, all the way from Grand Wizard Theodore ("inventor" of the tweak scratch, who's heard explaining its origins during the intro) through to Young Turks like DJ Faust and DJ Disk. In between lie over 20 years of scientific madness, much of it (overly) informed by the soundtrack's compiler/constructor/producer, Bill Laswell, who's acted as turntablism's most important (or most connected) flag-waver ever since his 1996 Altered Beats compilation brought together far-flung mixers from New York's Prince Paul to San Francisco's DJ Q-Bert to Japan's DJ Krush. Except for a few interview snippets throughout, Scratch focuses mostly on tracks from the very best in the business: MixMaster Mike, Q-Bert, DJ Disk, Rob Swift, and even the often overlooked Grandmixer DXT. Highlights include "Skin Cracked Canals," a duet freakout featuring DJ Disk with guitar menace Buckethead, and "Rockit 2.002," an all-star jam on the 1982 Herbie Hancock classic -- and commercial genesis of scratching -- featuring half a dozen current DJs (MixMaster Mike, Rob Swift, Q-Bert, Faust, Babu, Shortee) cutting up over the original. True to form, several tracks from Laswell-related projects are recycled here. Still, give Laswell credit for a tight, entertaining compilation: There's no dead air here and, as difficult as it is to sustain energy for a project like this over the course of 45 minutes, he accomplishes the mission. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide