File this one under "can't wait for the full-length." The East Flatbush Project, a hip-hop collective of producers and MCs, have been kickin' it in Brooklyn for a while now, and it's evident on their first Ninja Tune release that they've got their shit down. These are guys that are gonna came what they came to say, and when they say it, it ain't gonna be about how they're better than other rappers or about how much money they have. I mean, I'm not saying that "Who'd you rather be/ The murder or the murderer?/ I'd rather be/ Tried by twelve than carried by six" is a positive message, but it's sure- as- hell effective.

This 10-track EP, featuring the original mix of "Tried By 12" and nine other remixes, is kind of a strange release for Ninja Tune, who usually jump at the chance to have jungle artists from their label roster come in and lay down a bunch of mixes. This time around, only one of the artists remixing "Tried By 12"-- The Herbaliser-- has a record out on Ninja Tune. The rest of the artists have homes on labels like Warp (Squarepusher, Autechre, Freeform) and Sub Rosa (Bisk). But as much as you might like to hear Amon Tobin or Coldcut's take on this track, the stuff we got here will certainly be interesting enough to tide you over until your next Ninja fix.

Not only is the original mix an incredibly strong rap track (rivalled only by their equally- obscure contemporaries, Seattle's Black Anger Movement), but the remixes are great, too, if only because they're so strange. Squarepusher, apparently still in the same kinda mood he was in on his last record, Music Is Rotted One Note creates some kind of hi-speed rap/ electric jazz hybrid-- and no, it's nothing like Us3's "Cantaloop." Autechre slow it down, laying streched- out and distorted vocals over one another for that whole demonic, underwater, broken- vocoder sound (you know the one).

The Herbaliser makes a predictable entrance here with a remix that doesn't stray too far from the Project's original mix-- he adds a giant, tunnel- reverb acoustic bass sample, and occasionally lets loose on the turntables. Funkstörung makes a nice entry here, fucking shit up like Jack Nicholson in "The Shining." His track's music is quiet and dream- like with layered, skittering drum tracks laid down on top of the mix. Nick Fury, on the other hand, gives the song a nightmarish organ part and minimalist drum trax.

The record definitely lacks continuity, which has come to be expected from remix throwdowns. And certainly, the same track repeated ten times, no matter how many different ways you cut it, is gonna get a little tiresome. So, for those reasons, Tried By 12 isn't worth much of your hard- earned cash. Luckily, it qualifies as an EP, so it shouldn't cost more than, like, $6, anyway. I say, "Go for it." You be the judge.

-Ryan Schreiber