Case Study

One of drum & bass's stealthiest operators, Naibu has been peddling the currently favoured melodic halftime/fulltime 170 stuff way ahead of most of his peers. Majestic, dreamy but still rooted in robust jungle principals, he's now on his fourth album and it's easily his best yet: from the sweeping, tearful strings on "Case Study" to the Dave Gahan-style smoky vocals on "Turn me Down" by way of the totally beatless bliss of "Five Pieces", this is a precision considered album that's loaded with restrained but isn't afraid to let go once in a while. Case closed.