Every once in a while, a group comes along who has really shown what they can do in their genre of music. Well, that's exactly what Grits has done over the past 12 years. With 5 albums to their name, and two new records already out this year, Grits has proven that they have what it takes to leave their mark in the hip-hop industry. The biggest album they have had so far has been the release of The Art of Translation. Two years after the release of this best selling album, Grits has joined up with DJ Jay Mumbles & Liquid Beats Production to produce a full-length remix album, aptly titled The Art of Transformation.

Now, a warning to all you Grits fans. This disc is only available online, at audiogoat.com. It is an exclusive in a series of Audiogoat.com Remixes, which is set to continue with a John Reuben remix album, along the same lines of this one.

"Here We Go," one of Grits' biggest hits, is somewhat softer, and not as enjoyable as the original, as it takes on some Spanish influences, with an intro and outro in total Spanish. More heavy beats and R&B sounds fill up the new version of "Runnin'," whereas "Tennessee Bwoys" has been turned into a more enjoyable techno song.

One standout track is the remix of "Believe" featuring Jennifer Knapp. Seemingly the biggest change on the album, "Believe" has been changed into more of a pure hip-hop song, rather than its original R&B presentation. With the piano being incorporated more than the guitar during the entire song, it sounds much better than its predecessor.

The other standout track is the mega mix at the end of the record. Typically, a "Mega mix" is as a track where a full song is composed from many elements from all the songs on one album. DJ Jay Mumbles does a good job here, providing a very enjoyable mix, but the only problem is that the mix only features two songs from The Art Of Translation ("Here We Go" and "Get It"). "Hittin Curves" and "Bobbin Bouncin'," from the newer album, Dichotomy A are used in addition. The end result almost feels like a full remix of "Hittin Curves" at most points in the song. Featured rapper Israel puts in a good verse to round out the song, and a good finish to the album.

I enjoyed this remix album, and sometimes remixes can sound better than the original album. Most likely if you have the Translation, you will like this edition. A good effort put forth by the boys of Grits.

- Review date: 11/14/04, written by Justin Mabee