This came out in 1999 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Avant-garde guru Bill Laswell offers up some pre-millennium tension on the hip-hop tip on this set from his “non-group” collective Material.
With help from a variety of rappers — from old-schoolers like Killah Priest and Flavour Flav to new kids like Kool Keith — Laswell constructs a futuristic trip-hop dystopia of conspiracies, checkpoints and rodent robots. And while all the apocalyptic vocal freestyling is top-notch, what really sets Intonarumori apart is the music. Instead of the usual boring beats and one-finger synths, Laswell and co. — including P-Funketeers Bootsy Collins, Bernie Worrell and Jerome (Bigfoot) Brailey — lay down deep, fully formed flights of sonic fancy. Together with some inspired sampling and turntablism, they keep these 16 tracks grounded with hooks and choruses while simultaneously launching them past Saturn.
