Instrumental (East Coast)

New York will always be the birthplace of hip-hop, and nowhere else can you see the lasting impact it's had on the genre than in the world of instrumental hip-hop. Early artists such as Afrika Bambaataa and Steinski were not only pioneers for East Coast artists, but their work spawned subgenres that transcended time and region. Miami Bass was essentially an extension of the electro funk that Bambaattaa pioneered on "Planet Rock," while turntabalism (whether we're talking about the East or West Coast variety) owes more than a little to the early work of Grand Wizard Theodore and Grandmaster Flash.

As East Coast instrumental hip-hop began to develop during the '80s, it increasingly focused on the turntable as an instrument and became more of a live medium. The synth-driven funk of Mantronix was downplayed, while the turntable routines of such early pioneers as Cash Money and Jazzy Jeff (yes, that Jazzy Jeff) grew increasingly popular. Unfortunately, there is very little recorded history of this era, and much of it only survives through underground tapes, home videos and urban legend.

Realizing both the limitations and the possibilities of the turntabalism genre, DJs begin to focus more on touring and competing in competitions across the nation. They spread the gospel of Vinyl to the West Coast, where groups such as ISP and Triple Threat adopted the template laid down by the fabled East Coast DJ crews, perhaps the most popular of which was the X-Men (who, at Marvel Comics' behest, changed their name to the X-Ecutioners). Their emergence coincided with the late-'90s turntabalism revival, and albums such as The Ablist, released by X-Men DJ Rob Swift, and X-Pressions , put out by the entire X-Men squad, are considered classics in the genre.