Review: It's always an exciting thing to see legends of the game drop new music, which is exactly why this brand new single from the immortalized My Nu Leng alongside Dismantle is such an intriguing one. Both known for their energetic and precise approach to electronic dance music, the pair combine with some real party starting power on 'The Flight' firstly, combining old school bassline warbles with lively drum work to kick us off in style. Next, we jump into two previously released singles, with 'Ascendance' alongside Flava D providing some spacey dancefloor flavour and the techy synth work of 'Crystal Clear' adding something very spicy indeed. Awesome work!
Review: It's always an exciting occurrence to see the legendary My Nu Leng duo link up with other heavyweights from around the scene, which is exactly what this fantastic new double drop on their own label: Maraki offers. We begin with a look at a very spicy new collaborative single with Flava D, showcasing the pair's fantastic musical relationships, fusing futuristic, exploritive melodies on 'Ascendance'. It's a top quality piece of underground dance music, covering a lot of different genre boundaries. On the flip side, a powerful collaboration with the ever-ready Bushbaby, who combines with the Bristol natives on 'Crystal Clear', exploring a more subtle set of influences, giving us a perfect follow up and rounding off the EP with a bang.
Review: It's been a little while since we last heard the most talked about duo in UK bass music unleash something new, which is why we were so excited to see My Nu Leng unveil their brand new 'Champion Sound' project. The title track takes influences from all across dance music, but primarily acidic techno flavours as moogy synthesizer runs and pumping 4x4 beats take the lead on this one, followed by the euphoric pad work and glittering soundscapes of the breaks-heavy 'D.A.S', which sends the EP in a completely new direction. Finally, we finish with a nostalgic twist as the throwback synth rattles and hardcore breakbeat action of '1 More Tune' take us back to the centre of rave culture. A fabulous return indeed!
Review: It's been a brief minute since we took in a drop from the Maraki team, who return to releasing here with the third edition of their hailed 'Spaces' EP series. We kick off with co-founder My Nu Leng joining forces with S.P.Y for a hardcore inspired melting pot of breaksy drum lines and pulsating bass stabs entitled 'Feel It'. Next, Freddie Martin makes his return with 'Do Your Thing', a typically raucous experiment, combining smooth drumlines with unpredictable melodic structures for excellent listening. From here, NuBass arrives on the scene with the metallic synthesizer fluctuations of 'Titanic' to add a different direction to the show, followed finally by the incredibly groovy bass sweeps of Tony Wonka's 'Break', a perfect ending to a well thought out tracklisting.
Review: Like some kind of Human Traffic soundtrack to 2020, Hospital's annual House Party VA has arrived. Fresh for a summer of social distancing, house parties and clandestine diversions, it's a soundtrack that will get any D&B head through the lockdown status, BBQs permitted. Top and tailed by the poppy, liquid, sample based and acoustic sessions of both Villem & Leo Wood's "We Had A Sing" and Whiney's "Better With You", find playful aggro in MC LowQui's "Middle Finger" to some hyper fresh material in Degs' "Pressure Cooker". Aggy half time once more in tracks like "Saturn's Strings" with gnarly basslines in Voltage's "The Prophet" and Logistic's "Playing With Fire" bringing the heat.
Review: Ah, what fantastic news it is to find My Nu Leng returning to their home imprint of Maraki as they lay everything on the table for their brand new five track project, taking the name 'Alter'. We begin with a look at the hardcore inspired chord stutters and well timed vocal samples of MC GQ on 'Spaced', followed in similar fashion by the gritty sub shivers of 'Echoes', which also features additional work from Takura. The more house influenced vibes continue as we dip into the rave-ready melodies of 'City Lights', before DRS joins the party for a grittier original in 'Sinking Sand'. We round off with the ballad-like structure of 'Signal', which rounds up a very mature selection from the Bristol based duo.
Review: As a label project, Maraki have gone from strength to strength over the last year or so, bringing together some top draw release projects from some of the most powerful artists working in and around the bass scene. Here we seem them introduce the legendary DJQ to the label, with his long awaited recreation of 'Senses' alongside the wavy vocal presence of Iyamah'. DJQ sends this one to the bassline chopper in typical style, pushing of lively synth leads and crispy drum arrangements, allowing Iyamah's vocal to shine. He makes a very welcome addition to the Maraki roster.
Review: As one of the leading forces in bass music in the UK, it's always a monumental moment to hear that My Nu Leng have put together a new release. This project sees them take a seat on their own 'Maraki' imprint, showcasing their multigenre influences perfectly. The title track 'Junctions' is a perfect example of this, bringing together pounding UK bass themes with crunchy breakbeat additions, perfect for adding a bit of flavour to any dance. To follow this 'Super 8' kicks back with a bag of moogy bass energy, before Takura and Holy Goof join the party for some tearout antics on 'Gully'. Finally, we hear Madi Lane join forces with the Bristol based duo on 'Turn Around', a breaksy roller, packed with spacey emotional energy and smooth harmonies, rounding off this EP with a touch of class.
Review: My Nu Leng are the guys right now, it doesn't matter what bass genre you reside in, everyone respects them. Since the rumours of the release started circulating it's has been something the dnb family have been looking forward to, and as the tracks started to surface there have been rumblings on the forums that this is one of Shogun's best releases for some time, we'll let you judge that for yourselves. 'The Terrace' see the lads join forces with the hugely talented SpectraSoul and the result is unsurprisingly a tough and techy, half time work of art. Partnering with label boss Friction sees a more dancefloor led direction with a thundering mutated sub at the helm, surrounded by crashing drums and catchy vocal. The lead track 'Portal' is a hard hitting and a complete smasher, with killer drones and well-crafted drum patterns, it's a big one. But our favourite track of the EP has to be 'Senses' for a start Iyamah's voice is stunning, but secondly it's just a perfect balance of soft, melodic blissfulness and hard, aggressive grit.
Review: From seminal YouTube damage to worldwide events and all sorts more, UKF continues to spin its own distinctive low-end yarn. Having made its presence known beyond the dubstep and drum & bass worlds in the last year or so, Bass Culture 3 acts as a pivotal release and shows the channel is far from genre-specific. Amidst the massive bangers that the brand is known for - TC - "Get Down Low", Must Die & Mantis - "Culture", Mob Tactics - "The Answer" - there are plenty of other corners explored, too. From the 808 allure of Buku's "No One Does" to the angular jacking of Three Bar's "Everybody" via My Nu Leng's unavoidable "Masterplan", this album represents some of the most exciting examples of bass behaviour in all styles of electronic music.
Review: Fledgling bass label LNUK return with another heavy-hitting missive from rising duo My Nu Leng. "Damp" kicks things off with a dark, swung take on UK funky styles, as tumbling snare rolls combine with woodblock percussion and deep bass subs, while "Waltaknocks" is similarly intricate cut guaranteed to build dancefloor pressure with its angular rhythms and dark chords. Remix duties fall to Last Japan, who increases the pace on "Damp" with his combination of techno stabs and D&B like percussion.
