DJ Krush
Code4109
(Red Ink/Sony Japan)
Fans of Japan-based DJ Krush’s frayed instrumental hip-hop on occasion bemoan the moments in his growing catalog when voices tread on his otherwise blessedly arid tracks. Who needs human tones when Krush’s machines — those tape loops and samples, sound effects and scratched vinyl — speak so persuasively, so seductively? Krush has teamed with expert rappers and DJs in the past, but Code4109 is his first proper mix CD (meaning a lengthy sequence of, mostly, other people’s material). Voices are inevitable in a 19-cut grab bag such as this, but few make it to your speakers without being stained by Krush’s sonic ink, like so many graffiti-coated construction sites. One boastful guest vocal sums up Krush’s modus operandi: “Slice ’em up, break it down, here we go.” Works by electronic favorites the 45 King and DJ Cam pass over his turntables and CD players, alongside street-level rapping and dreamy female vocalizing, but by the time Krush is through with the assembled, they all bear his signature: a dark, cinematic cast and a wiry, unstable rhythm track. (Other contributors include Eminem, Beats International, and Jazzanova.) One guest rapper may go on about “uncut product,” but Krush has leavened, marinated, and pounded into submission just about everything here.
This was originally published in the May 2000 issue of Tower Records’ Pulse! magazine.