There was for a short time a section of Disquiet.com called the 4D, which quickly transformed into the site’s long-running Downstream section. These are the 4D entries for August 19, 2003:
(1) The Earl is a SoCal studio DJ who crafts casual instrumental hip-hop with an ear for the space between the scratches. On Loaded Ensemble (Foot Long Development Records, footlongdevelopment.com), he’s pleased to let the beats carry much of the burden; with the exception of one actual song, the eight-cut set’s vocals consist of grunts, hollers and occasional catch phrases.
(2) Amon Tobin and Kid Koala‘s untitled mass of slowly looping strings, way-fuzzy drum beats and dreamy samples opens Tobin’s new Collaborations EP — and the track is streaming for free in the RealAudio format in its entirety, along with the rest of the collection, on the album’s page on the website of Ninja Tune Records, ninjatune.net.