by Jonathan WidranIt may have seemed presumptuous for Gregg Karukas to call one of his most popular recordings You'll Know It's Me in 1995, but back then his sugary, ultra-melodic, kick-back-with-a-dash-of-funk keyboard style was truly identifiable from the first few notes of any song. Since then, however, he's pushed the rhythmic and stylistic envelope in so many exciting new directions that the Karukas of 2000 isn't quite the same guy; 1998's Blue Touch lived up to its title by going in what he calls a "bluesy, funky, greasy, and organic" direction, and his NCoded debut, Nightshift -- named, like his 1987 debut, The Nightowl, after his propensity to work vampire-like in his studio all night -- moves even further in that direction. His melodies are still as instantly hummable as ever, but he varies their surroundings to include Crusaders-inspired retro-soul elements, snazzy horn sections, and more Latin and Brazilian percussion patterns than ever before.As always, Karukas chose to work with sidemen whom he