DJ Smurf

DJ Smurf, one of Atlanta's best and best-known bass artists, kept his long-running career as a producer/DJ going in 2004 with The Mix Tape. The album came about a half-year after Smurf released an updated version of his Dead Crunk album from 1998 (reissued as Dead Crunk 2004). While Dead Crunk was an album in the traditional sense -- that is, unmixed -- The Mix Tape is a well-crafted DJ-style mix featuring some of the same songs. Both albums have their virtues. On the one hand, Dead Crunk 2004 may be preferable because it features more rapping and features the songs in full; on the other hand, The Mix Tape may be preferable because it flows better and emphasizes the music rather than raps and hooks (though there are plenty of raps and hooks here, too). Whichever your preference, it's hard to go wrong with Smurf. This guy's been on the grind for years, producing and DJing some of the bass music to ever emerge out of Atlanta (and some of the best bass music to never emerge out of Atlanta!). ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide