Review: This EP has a serious old-school vibe. It brings up imagery of breaking musical conventions and just doing whatever you want, of pirate radio and local takeaways. It's a jungle record and it's one with serious attitude, exemplified by 'Hey Women', which is given a sick ambience from its vocal, an atmosphere that's torn apart on the drop with a diving, pulsating back end that sits underneath some seriously heavyweight drums. What a sick release, we highly recommend this one.
Review: Ever liked the flavour of some D&B so much you wanted to lick it? Well, now you can, with Dublic's Selections EP. You can't actually lick it but you'll certainly like it, as Dublic has gone for a classic rough sounding approach that seriously lends itself to some underground listening. Just check out 'Alarm', with a classic sample you'll instantly recognise and a bassline that'll shudder your bones, it's a neat exemplification of the rip-roaring approach that's been attempted here. The other tunes don't disappoint either, with a sick vocal feature on the title vibes and more. Big EP.
Review: There's nothing better than a wicked collaborative EP, as two artists bang their heads together and get the most of out each other. That's what's happened here, as Dublic and Luk Peers join forces over on Dutty Bass Audio for a stripped back, barebones EP. 'Turmoil' rests on a solid percussive foundation, whilst an ambient soundscape is penetrated through by wispy basses that feel like birds in the foggy night sky. 'Within Me' is similar and is grounded by a cool vocal sample, whilst things get breaksy on 'Frequency' and tough on 'Down'. Cool work.
Review: Faysha is landing on Dutty Bass Audio with an unsophisticated but incredibly fun release, one which, if you hear out live, is certain to get you moving. There's a carelessness and a freedom to these tracks and it's a tangible sense of kinetics. The title track kicks things off in style but it's 'Hey Mr Policeman' that really takes the cake, a winding, foghorn heavy track that flips between wobbling shimmers and jump-up stabs. It's a wicked track and definitely the highlight of the release. 'Ting A Ling' is another absolute banger but one that's deep and bouncy in all the right ways. Sick release.
Review: From Bristol to the world, long-standing jungle collective Run Tingz wrap up 2020 with a serious jolt of positivity as they take in the internatty landscape and bring the full crew and many new faces together for this album rammed to the rafters with original - and largely vocal - dancefloor skank-ups. Highlights are instant as the opener 'Beautiful World' sets the vibes to stun. Elsewhere 'Lava Mouth' with Junior Morgan fuses savage breaks and disco stabs, Jinx and Deanie Rankin go for some proper gritty late 90s Dread vibes on 'Hooligan' and Cru newcomer Dublic dishes out a serious grumbler with the Total Science-style 'The Streets'. These are just the tip of the iceberg. Go global or go home.
Review: Gunfingers at the ready gang, Lickwood & Gunshot fire up the shots with their biggest release to date; a 20 track stacked banger bonanza from some of the sharpest new shooters in town. It's business from the off as Visuals gets busy with the cantankerous kicks and sing-along vocals on "Lights Out" and it continues to hit the target right the way through to DJ Direkt's skittering, paranoid finale "Too Hawt". Highlight heat can be found in every corner across the collection; Pablo G gets all slinky in the jungle on "The Rumbler", Jomari's "Yuh Na Hear" is a lesson in restrained ruffage, B-Plexx's "Remedy" soothes the soul with its breathy vocal and bubbly bassline, the list goes on... See you down the target practice.
DJ Monk - "I Spy (Eye Nu See)" (Conrad Subs remix) - (5:09) 175 BPM
Java - "Retreat" - (4:33) 175 BPM
Opius - "Naughty Call" - (5:51) 175 BPM
Pablo G - "Ya Dun Know" - (4:50) 175 BPM
DJ QT - "Guitar Lick" (remix) - (4:59) 175 BPM
Midway - "Kill A Bwoy" - (5:25) 172 BPM
Tribe Steppaz & Dagga - "Down" - (6:26) 58 BPM
DJ Monk & Tico - "Good Body Girl" (Stevie Sp 2019 Relick) - (5:37) 175 BPM
Review: KLP Records are turning 25, a crazy achievement that puts them right up there with Metalheadz et al, and so they're celebrating with a big compilation of tunes. Nicky Blackmarket, Klips & Outlaw kick things off on remix duties for DJ Monk's Touch Me, Tease Me. It's a classic combination of artists and the end result is equally timeless, with a sense of vocal softness descending into hard percussive knocks and grating jump-up synth work. It sets the tone for the rest of the album, which features contributions from Dublic, DJ QT, DJ Vapour and a load more. Unbelievable.
Review: From Span with love: South Yard one-up the dickens out their game with their first V/A album. 21 tracks heavy and packed with every skanky, bashy and rolling shade of jungle they've become known for during their three year rise so far. All the mandem present and correct, the likes of Veak, Vital Elements, RMS, Jamie Bostron and many more all join Kursiva for this major league brock-out with savage highlights hanging, swinging and leaping from every corner. Highlights include the flabby bass groans of T.Kay's "Oh! Dread", Kid Mix-A-Lot's euphoric dibby dibby dancefloor smasher "The Stopper" and Ricky Tuff & Brian Brainstorms teeth-baring tear-up "Las Teresitas". Adios amigos!
Review: From true jungle to the real jungle: new Bristol label present their first V/A and it comes with added weight and meaning as all profits will go to charities helping preserve the Amazon Rain Forest and its communities. A serious mission requires a serious rollcall so tracks come from the likes of Conrad Subs, Veak, K Jah, Vital Elements, Sikka and of course the label headhoncho Mixjah himself. Highlights include the raw warping wobble bass of Ly Da Buddah's "Lemon Punch", Jumanji's tunnelling jungle romp "Da Skillz", the classic Bristol-flavoured minimalism mischief of Vytol & Mixjah's "So Many Heavens" but that's just the tip of a massive - and highly worthy - iceberg.
Review: Deep in the Jungle know how to do jungle. The clue is in the name, really, and they're proving it again with this huge compilation of 40 huge jungle anthems from some of the best rising stars of the breaksy side of the scene. RMS, SL8R and DJ Hybrid all make an appearance, as do Kumarachi, Veak, Schematic and Epicentre. This is a very strong roster and its reflected in the tunes, with Schematic and RMS teaming up on 'Take It' to combine roughshod, vibrant breaks and moody atmospherics in glorious fashion. Check this one.
Review: Fifty tracks from Ghetto Dub. We'll repeat that; FIFTY tracks right here from the Bristol badassery stable! Fresh from the stashes of SR, Kumarachi, Aries, Vinyl Junkie, Conrad Subs, Octo Pi and many more on-point junglists across the generations, many of these tracks are brand new and all of them are heavier than a night down the Weight Watchers. Highlights include Conrad Sub's skanky groaner "Good As Gold", Jaguar Paw's utter filth session "Southside", Jay Aftermath's gnarly tech/soundsystem hybrid "The Jungle" and the pure rave purrs of Vinyl Junkie & Sanxion's "Outlandish"... But that's not even touching the sides of the fifty track attack. Dig deep and get rolling.
Review: Deep In The Jungle got picked out by UKF has one of the top labels of 2018 the other week and it's certainly well deserved, for they just consistently bang out some of the most vibey jungle around. They also represent forthcoming artists and we'll always support those who give a platform to people who otherwise might not. The album is a huge fifty tracks, spanning some well-known names like DJ Hybrid, SL8R, Conrad Subs, RMS and Kumarachi. The latter kicks off the album with a bang, 'Have You Here' sweeping down the range with its DLR-esque bassline and riotous attitude. It's a emblematic of the quality present on the rest of the album - check it out.
Review: Dutty business: Toronto's DBA crew lay down their second supersized V/A LP of the year and it's an absolute gully jamboree. Ranging from the wobbled-out slaps of Euphonique's "Sound Dead" to twisted drones of Tryptamine's "Gang" via the wily 96 skanks and bubblesome bass of ScattyOne's "Wicked Babylon", Tomoyoshi's funk flipping triplets on "Time & Space" and the awesome halftime sludge of DJ Hybrid's clever Drop Out remix of "Raised In The Jungle" there's genuinely not one even slightly under par track here. Dutty Bass Audio are absolutely smashing the game right here.
Review: From deep in the jingle, Deep In The Jungle arise from their Christmas chrysalis with their biggest album to date... 44 absolute beasts from some of their closest allies, freshest friends and long-time sparring partners. From the soaring synths and twisted drum switches of Kumarachi's "For You" to the classical rave feels of Demented Frequency's "Amens On The Nile" via absolute toxic gully from the likes of Galvatron, Didak, Veak, Redline, Epicentre, Sweet N Sikka, Conrad Subs, Martyn Nytram and the bossman DJ Hybrid himself this is a pure steel steal. Nothing short of essential.
Review: DJ Hybrid looks back over another successful and hugely prolific year with this massive 31 track compendium of Audio Addict slammers, bangers and a few cheeky exclusives. A great opportunity to get up to speed on the 170BPM clarity DJ Hybrid operates the label at, every single track guarantees heat. Notable shouts go out to Kumurachi's various inclusions (especially Octo-Pi's brand new remix of "Phatty"), RMS & Dcision's low-riding bumper "One Ting", Epicentre's slinky soul-touched roller "infamous", Agro's skank-slapped "Bust Dis Ting" and Swerve's maximum-boosting twist of Hybrid's "What Else". But that really is the tip of the double-A iceberg. It's been an exceptional year for the label, and this is proof.
