DJ Krush Milight CD

The follow-up to Krush's excellent Meiso was a slightly more unusual affair, consisting of a series of collaborative pieces throughout, with only one or two exceptions, and with each particular guest bookending their respective track with a brief reflection on what the future of the world will hold. The results are a touch mixed but still a fairly good effort, as always with Krush's brand of jazz-tinged, heavy, druggy breakbeats and scratches at the center of things. His style remains pure and fierce, if anything becoming even more effectively unnerving and atmospheric with time, as the lovely blend of nature sounds and keyboards on "Jugoya" shows. The first collaboration, "Shin-Sekai," also demonstrates this perfectly; fellow Japanese musician Rino lays down a pretty fierce rap while Krush's blend of shuffling but hard-hitting drums and mysterious tones -- pianos, sighing electric guitar, and other strange moans in the mix -- carry everything before it. Producer Shawn J. Period throws in a lot of additional music, subtly but with great effect, like a strange haunted house, on "Listen," while DJ Cam, in an echo of Meiso's DJ Shadow tradeoff "Duality," jams with Krush to create the slamming mini-duel "Le Temps." Guest MCs this time out include Tragedy and partner Stash, laying down a harrowing and saddening tale of crime and its consequences on the hard-hitting "Real," while cult figure Mos Def spins his usual magic on the quietly chaotic salute to Japanese hip-hoppers, "Shinjiro." One of the most inspired moves comes at the end: a cover of John Lennon's "Mind Games," with guest singer Eri Ohno giving it a good soul revamp over the steady, big-impact rhythms. ~ Ned Raggett

Recorded at Platinum Island Studios, New York, New York; Show-On Studio, Tokyo, Japan; Matrix Studio, London, England.

Personnel: DJ Krush (keyboards, programming, scratches); Shawn J. Period (vocals, Fender Rhodes piano, synthesizer, sound effects); Deborah Anderson, Eri Ohno, Aron Ifill, Bundy, Yutaka Tokue, Bill Junji Yasuda, Ken Ifill (vocals); Rino, Mos Def, Tragedy (rap vocals); Roy Ayers, Wayne Henderson (sampler); DJ Yas, DJ Hide, DJ Kensei (scratches).

Audio Mixers: Sean Coffey; Roman; Ken Ifill.

Recording information: Matrix Studio, London, England; Platinum Island Studios, NY; Show-on Studio, Tokyo, Japan.

Photographer: Barney Bankhead.

Personnel: DJ Krush (keyboards, programming, scratches); Shawn J. Period (vocals, Fender Rhodes, synthesizer, rain-stick, programming); Ken "Duro" Ifill (vocals, mutes, programming); DJ Cam, Eri Ohno, Deborah Anderson, Hideaki Ishi, Bill Junji Yasuda, Yutaka Tokue, Ikeda, Bundy (vocals); Rino, Tragedy, Finsta Bundy, Mos Def (rap); DJ Yas, DJ Kensei, DJ Hide (programming, scratches); Aron Ifill, Erika Ishi, Kotone Ishi (background vocals).

Entertainment Weekly (11/28/97, p.84) - "...As with his previous records, the hypnotic, noirish instrumentals are the main attraction. But rhymes by Finsta Bundy and Ken `Duro' Ifill rate, and when Rino busts it in Japanese, you hear the international hip-hop underground in full effect." - Rating: B+
Option (3-4/98, p.84) - "...it's no accident that trip-hop rhymes with hip-hop, and that's where Krush's heart lies....what makes the disc interesting is the variety Krush introduces via his wide mix of guest singers and rappers..."
Musician (4/98, p.90) - "...Krush's sparse beats, abstract melodic snippets, and insular atmospheres are a luminous surprise amid hip-hop's boastful gangstas and provocative female teasers....Krush plies old-school hip-hop with the experimentalism of the British trip-hop clan..."
Rap Pages (3/98, p.114) - "...this is Krush's finest and most complete album to date..."