Full Contact (BSI, 2000)

Dry & Heavy is a little Japanese group with a big sound that's starting to raise some eyebrows over here in the United States.  Officially, I think Dry & Heavy is a duo comprised of drummer Shigemoto Nanao ("Dry") and bassist Takeshi Akimot ("Heavy"), although there are a host of guest musicians and vocalists on Full Contact (of course; otherwise, it would be a drum 'n bass album, wouldn't it?).  Most notable is female vocalist Likkle Mai, who lends her wispy ethereal singing voice to 3 of the best songs on the album, "Lovers Explosion," "Less Is More," and "Dawn Is Breaking."  Particularly on the latter two tracks, Likkle Mai's pixie-like crooning proves a likable contrast to the booming bass-heavy music.  Although there are vocal tracks on Full Contact (5 to be exact), dub seems to be Dry & Heavy's forte.  They mold a thick, slow, rumbling dub sound well-grounded in the classic roots reggae style, somewhat reminiscent of another dub duo, Alpha & Omega.  Dubs of Likkle Mai's 3 tracks are included, but they suffer from the lack of her airy voice.  Better are the bluesy "Knife," "Landing," which has a cool jazz fusion vibe similar to Kool & The Gang's "Summer Madness," and particularly the funky electric guitar-propelled "The Smoker's Cough."  Although Dry & Heavy is something of a spin-off of dub experimentalists Audio Active, they remain true to the reggae sound throughout Full Contact, their third album, something for which reggae fans should be thankful.