Pounding Hip-Hop From Krush

Even though hip-hop has become a dominant commercial force in the U.S., it seems to get its real respect overseas, where practitioners study and worship the culture. One prominent disciple is Japan’s DJ Krush, who delivered a methodical, 75-minute turntable exhibition on Tuesday at the El Rey Theatre.

Krush, who has collaborated with such respected American rappers as CL Smooth and the Roots’ Black Thought, strung together a series of mostly haunting beats that easily could have served as the soundtrack for a movie’s torture scene. Piercing samples from wind instruments and spooky bass lines seemed to be combined more for mind control than for entertainment. The hypnotic feel of Krush’s music made up for the fact that almost of all the tracks he played were instrumental. When he included Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power” toward the end of his set, it was almost as if Krush were trying to snap his listeners out of the trance he had put them in.

Where many performing DJs bring some visual flair and physical excitement to their routines, Krush limited his movements almost entirely to switching the vinyl he was manipulating. He would occasionally contort his body while executing a series of scratches, but even those infrequent flashes were short-lived. While his pounding music was definitely appealing, his stage presence was hardly grabbing.