The Nocturnal Sound Krew's definitely been working hard, entering contests, doing a lot of flying and a lot of battling," says local hip-hop promoter Lucas Seno, referring to the accomplished, continent-hopping turntablist outfit from Hawaii, whose scratching and beat juggling techniques at the prestigious International Turntablist Federation DJ battle Sunday night will be closely monitored by fans and competitors alike. At Seno's urging, local chapter president Alex Aquino brought the ITF World Championships to Hawaii in 1999, which paved the way for a first-ever Hawaii regional competition last year. "At first, I think he was skeptical, wondering if Hawaii was up to their standards. I assured him we were and then Nocturnal takes the world team title in their first year. That put an exclamation on it." Turntablists wage brutal battle
By Shawn "Speedy" Lopes
slopes@starbulletin.comPerhaps no one has done more for Hawaiian hip-hop during the past 12 months than the Nocturnal Sound Krew. In 2001, NSK put Hawaii on the hip-hop map by beating out an international field to take the coveted ITF team division world crown and placing two of its members in solo competitions. While DJ Solution (15-year-old Kyle Cardenas) was named champion in the first-ever Hawaii regionals of the DMC American Battleground DJ contest last year, teammate DJ Deception (Tony Balbuena) matched the feat by taking first in the ITF regional and advancing to the ITF world semifinals, before yielding to world champ Klever. Although Deception, Solution and fellow NSK member DJ Jami are expected to enter this weekend's competition, teammate DJ Compose (a k a Jay Ablan) admits their defense of the ITF team title is first priority.
"Honestly, we're focusing more on the team competition right now," he reveals. Compose, along with the aforementioned turntable wizards, will go to Germany next month to defend their crown. "The competition last year was good and I think this year, it's going to be even crazier. I think this year we're going to have to work twice as hard."
Though busy for much of the past year with outside interests and gigs at Grumpy's and Blue Tropix, the group has been working diligently on the new team routine. "We've been creating more solid and more musical sets," he says. "Last year, even after we won, we saw our faults, so now we're trying to cover all the bases and just have a more entertaining, well-composed set."
So dominant are NSK locally that, in this year's Hawaii DMC regionals, Solution retained his title, Jami placed second and Deception took third. Solution then went on to make a solid showing at the DMC USA finals in New York and placed second at the Allies All-Star Invitational Beatdown in Los Angeles. It was a nice showing for the Radford High junior who faced 15 of the most respected names in turntablism. "He's just tight," Compose explains. "He doesn't do the craziest things, but all his sets are flawless and that's what judges look for."
Those who thrilled to the DMC regional earlier this year are expecting Sunday's ITF contest to be every bit as competitive and entertaining. "The ITF is known more for its head-to-head battle style, whereas the DMC is a six-minute show-what-you-got," reveals Compose, who adds that in heated competitions, contestants are known to insult their opponents through vocal snippets taken from obscure spoken-word records. "The ITF is more of a dissing style and it's fun for the crowd because (DJs) can get ruthless when they start calling each other out with personal stuff."
Where: Wave Waikiki, 1877 Kalakaua Ave. International Turntablist Federation South Pacific Regional Championships
When: Sunday, with a 9 p.m. registration and 11 p.m. beginning of battle
Admission: $5, 21 and over; $10, 18-20
Call: 941-0424
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