Break! are accomplished dancers, but they couldn’t crack The Egg

ALBANY — The great thing about hip-hop, the factor that makes it so intriguing, is its unpredictability. Hip-hop art has an element of danger, a byproduct of wild improvisation, that reels in even disinterested parties.

Break! The Urban Funk Spectacular, seen on Saturday afternoon at The Egg, is an assemblage of dope dancers, along with a DJ, a beat boxer and drummer. And because these artists, all soloists, are so accomplished, one would expect them to crack open The Egg.

But, perhaps in an effort to appeal to all audiences, they came off as playing it safe with the large crowd that showed up for the concert. It’s not that the dancers and musicians didn’t hit hard, it’s just they were too scripted. So they had trouble crashing through the fourth wall.

Break dancing and music is best seen raw, up close and in your face. So it’s more difficult to get excited about beat boxer Kenny “the Human Orchestra” Muhammad from afar. The same is true with DJ Razor Ramone. Even if you like the sound of the repetitive scratching, the awe of agile DJing is deadened.

The heart-beating action depended on the six dancers who were not seen onstage for long stretches at a time. When they did step into the spotlight, for most of the second half they kicked it.

Certainly, Antoine “Doc” Judkins, Brandon “Peace” Albright and James “Cricket” Colter are phenomenal acrobats. They warm up their feet with a rocking gait that pitches them forward into flips, spins, handstands and upside-down poses in which they stand on their heads and elbows.

Kumiko “Locking Q” Naito, the only female in the crew, amazed with her robotic lock and pop maneuvers. She outdid the men, Deshawn “Jumping Bean” Sanders and Victor “Kid Glyde” Alicea.

The six wrapped their dancing into thin dramas — a street scene where they scatter at the sound of a siren (think “West Side Story”) and a war battle where the jungle fatigues kickboxed with the desert fatigues. These didn’t hold up as well as the straight-up dancing, where the performers simply laid out their most spectacular moves.

‘Old school’ music

The music they danced to was what hip-hoppers call “old school,” like James Brown and Earth, Wind & Fire, funked up with the DJ and beat boxering vocals. So it was great fun to listen to.

The program floundered by giving too much time to Ramone and Muhammad to show off their styles. Ramone was a sprightly rhythm maker. With his two turntables and a laptop at his table, he scratched with not just his fingers, but elbows and upper back. He also fingered the records, buffeting just the right grooves, with his eyes closed.

The most astonishing sounds came from Muhammad. With the microphone pressed to his lips, he created the tone of every percussion instrument imaginable, which he topped off with scratching and singing. It seemed like he was backed up by a band.

Despite their talents, their solos were too extensive. The crowd grew weary.

The room came back to life, however, every time the dancers came back. Break! The Urban Funk Spectacular must remember that break dancing, and rap, is what brought international fame to hip-hop. The DJs and beat boxers, no matter how finished, are just accessories.