| Rhythm Killers | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 1987 | |||
| Recorded | 1987 | |||
| Studio | Quad Recording (New York) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 35:32 | |||
| Label | Island | |||
| Producer | Bill Laswell, Material | |||
| Sly and Robbie chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Rhythm Killers | ||||
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Rhythm Killers is an album by Jamaican musical duo Sly and Robbie, released in May 1987 by Island Records. By the time of the album's recording, Sly and Robbie had transitioned away from their prolific work in the reggae genre. They spent the 1980s experimenting with electronic sounds and contemporary recording technology on international, cross-genre endeavors, which influenced their direction for Rhythm Killers.
Sly and Robbie enlisted producer Bill Laswell and an ensemble of musicians to record the album at the Quad studio in New York City. Along with their live instruments, the duo used electronic recording equipment such as the Fairlight CMI synthesizer and electronic drums. The predominantly funk and dance-oriented album is arranged into two side-long gapless suites of songs. Other styles featured on the record include hip hop, hard rock, worldbeat, and downtown music. Laswell's densely layered production incorporated electronic grooves, hard beats, string synthesizers, and cross-rhythms produced by turntable scratches, African and Latin-influenced percussion, and percussive raps.
Rhythm Killers charted in four countries, including the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number 35. It was promoted with two singles, including the UK hit "Boops (Here to Go)". The album received positive reviews from critics and was ranked in year-end lists by NME magazine and Village Voice critic Robert Christgau, who named it the seventh best record of 1987. Encouraged by its success, Sly and Robbie continued their digital direction on subsequent albums. Rhythm Killers has since been out of print.