Coldharbour Rocks

Recorded for Howie B's Pussyfoot label (and featuring a guest appearance by him on "Buggin' & Breakin'"), the Headrillaz' debut has a simple goal: to get you out on the dance floor. To this end, the trio mixes live guitar, bass, and drums with programmed break beats, dub effects, and Saul's fluid rapping to produce a punk rock-techno-hip-hop hybrid not unlike Prodigy's, but with even more adrenaline. The Headrillaz proudly list the beats per minute for each of the eight tracks on the album--"Trepanning" clocks in at an amazing 155 b.p.m.--but they're smart enough to know that all that energy would be wasted if the grooves weren't paired with melodic bass lines and cool synth and sax samples that will keep you listening even after you're too exhausted to move any more. --Jim Derogatis