Bringing together drum'n'bass-style breakbeat percussion, a down-tempo sense of Latin rhythm, a jazz approach to arrangement, and a deep dose of funk, Robert Jan Meyer's Minus 8 project originally resulted from his years as a bass player in funk bands. Perhaps more notably, though, his music resulted from his urge to present an alternative to the sped-up "plus eight" style of dance music sweeping across Europe during the early '90s (a reference to the positive and negative pitch adjustment on turntables). Meyer first made a name for himself as a DJ, touring with many of the U.K.'s drum'n'bass elite: Grooverider, Bad Company, Goldie, and Krust, among others. DJ Cam then released Meyer's first Minus 8 productions on his Paris-based Inflammable label. The second Minus 8 full-length, Beyond Beyond, appeared on the U.K.-based Higher Ground label, and the prominent Munich, Germany, label Compost released Elysian Fields, the third and most celebrated Minus 8 album to date. His second release for Compost, Minuit, confirmed his move away from the drum'n'bass motifs that had characterized his late-'90s work. ~ Jason Birchmeier, Rovi