DKD

DKD represents the much-anticipated meeting of the minds of some of broken beat’s leading purveyors. Composed of Bugz in the Attic’s Kaidi Tatham and Daz-I-Kue, as well as Dego of 4Hero fame, this project on paper threatens to absolutely shred any of the boundaries established by these already envelope-pushing artists. In actuality, it doesn’t really do this. It might have something to do with the fact this record’s been sitting around for a couple of years, but nevertheless it represents a rather potent concentration of the trio’s skills. Initially, the album begins with mid-tempo fully-fledged vocal compositions. While Lady Alma doesn’t recreate her peerless work on 4Hero’s "Hold It Down,” the infective urgency of "Getaway” is nothing to sniff at; while Bembe Segue’s inventive vocal arrangements also propel the gorgeous "You Know It.” The theme of onward progress is prevalent in the lyrical content of these songs, yet as the album proceeds the traditional songs disappear, and this theme’s prevalence is manifested in the upfront restless percussive arrangements. The title track kicks the album into high gear with its warring funky worm keyboards and chanted mission statement that blends directly into the tribal "Nappy Head,” a methodically layered instrumental replete with cooing vocals. These admittedly lofty heights are not matched on "Super Amazing,” which fails to live up to its name and "Look Who’s Talking,” which suffers from rhymes that sound incredibly dated. It’s a shame really, given the otherwise futuristic and consistently inventive thrust of this project.