Review: This fresh single coming from the Jungle Cakes crew has one of the best MC line-ups we've seen in a long time, with Trigga, Boomah, Specimen A and Navigator all coming correct for what is a fresh little roller with an old-school twist. Deekline is on production, and 'Duppy Destroyers' ebbs and flows with a comfortable sense of nonchalance, bassy stabs punctuating its sparse but satisfying percussive line and an overall feeling of ragga influence permeating every second of its playtime. Suitable for carnival season, this one.
Review: Now this most certainly is a treat as we jump into a fiery new compilation and mix project from the Hot Cakes team, who invite the sounds of Lady Waks inside for a feature length exploration into breaks and bass music. It's a truly all star cast for this one as we dive into original creations from the likes of Stanton Warriors, Jay Robinson, Them&Us, Benny Page, Deeklike & Ed Solo, Origin8 & Propa, alongside many many more. Featuring fifty-nine outstanding breakbeat epics alongside a full length studio mix from Lady Waks, this is a perfect showcasing of the breaks and D&B sound in 2021, with highlights including the smooth soundscaping of Firestar Soundsystem's 'Pressure', the intense vocal pressure of 'Trigger' from Phibes and of course the nostalgic drum rolls of 'Boom Baby' from Slip 187 & Rax. Incredible stuff!
Review: LA junglists Noah D and No Thing get AAA access to the Liondub vaults and are told to do their damage with their unique fusion of dancehall, digidub, jungle and bass. Subverting 11 of Liondub's wide-reaching releases, the album-sized results are exciting, unique and full of surprises such as the vocalised synth layers on "Control", the rich vocal focus of Bunny General on "Soundwar" and the out-and-out badmanisms of "Nuke A Soundboy". A really interesting remix concept that works just as well as whole as it does as a collection of serious floor-firers.
Review: Navigator recently dropped the dramatic hip-hop/grime hybrid Lyrical Warfare recently bringing much fire in the process. So successful was it that Liondub/ODT have decided to keep the party going with some seriously heavy remixes. First up Brian Brainstorm delivers some hyper DnB action with high bpms and even higher energy. Elsewhere Social Security fuse manic, scattershot beats with relentless ragga MCing (and a cool dub version too), but it's the precision of Submatic's speedy ghetto beats on his dub workout that win the day this time round. Dancefloors everywhere be warned!
Review: The "Junglist Sound Killer" remixes just keep on coming with nine more versions stretching further and deeper than the previous release packages. The warm reggae feels of the original "Junglist Sound" are highlighted in both Bluntskull's and Sticky Joe Roots' remixes. "Kingston 11" gets a nostalgic soulful Jamaican pingback to its 2005 roots while Macky Gee rips "Meditation Time" down and rebuilds it into something much darker, twisted and nigh-on impossible to meditate to. Finally "Chatty Mouth" gets authentic rolling jungle injections from Social Security and Raz Jungle. Widespread.
Review: Navi's soundsystem project undergoes the first of a version series as "Junglist Sound", "Kingston 11", "Meditation Time" and "Chatty Mouth", all enjoy major league refixes. Highlights hang off every twist and turn like a poor-fitting suit; Dirty Skank add a hardcore style hybrid bounce to "Junglist Sound", Sub Killaz add a robotic menace to "Meditation Time", Upgrade chew up "Kingston 11" and spit it back out as a sticky triplet damager while Kenji gives "Chatty Mouth" a crisp skank so sharp you could trim your whiskers with it. The jungle revolution continues.
Review: Usually known for being on the other side of the controls with a mic in his fist, Navi flips his role as producer with some very well respected names such as Liondub and Marcus Visionary. "Chatty Mouth" is owned by the harmonic tones of David Boomah, "Junglist Sound" takes us back to the genre's formative ragga melting pot days of the mid 90s, Aries flips the previously released "Meditation Time" into a Run Tingz-level razor-sharp jungle roller while Potential Badboy stamps a series of stunning subs and lush jazzy pads on "Kingston 11" giving it a classy early Full Cycle feel. Sound.
Review: Another huge release from Liondub - seriously guys, keep 'em coming. This little slice of nasty comes in first off with Code Red's remix of "Kingston 11", a track you'll have heard smashing up systems around the country if you've been stepping hard enough. Next up to the plate Code Red rips "Inequity Worker", another one with sub-heavy bass and dark weighty sounds fit to send entire cities into the dance. This is a monster straight from the underground ragga and dub influences of Kingston 11 dragged screaming into the harsh strobes of D&B - you're gonna love it.
Review: Who loves Liondub? We love Liondub, especially when they get as down and dutty as this little lot. "Sound The Alarm" is an explosion of flailing fiyah, raging hard and fast as naughtily as any old school ragga-flavoured anthem. Offering the radio edit and the instrumental which puts a blisteringly fresh new angle on the joint. There's nothing like a nasty raver like this to get a summer going off right. Turn it up and rip up the place.
Review: Time for a remix tip from Navigator as "Sound The Alarm" gets a working from some Liondub heavyweights. From the monster hench Serum remix to Lost City's dancehall wind and grind, and Brian Brainstorm's frisky, jump up interpretation, it's fair to say there's more than one way to bake a Navigator classic. Heavy ragga vibes with a focus on those battle cry vocals in Sticky Joe's remix is definitely one to look out for. Heavy.
Review: Navi and Junior Dangerous on the same jam? This spells trouble in best body-bumping way possible. Versions galore, we kick off with the digidub dancehall swagger of the original before a crack squad of players all sign up to the bang gang... Label boss Deekline goes all tear-out with a bassline that's not dissimilar D*Minds around 10 years ago, Potential Bad Boy flips it into a purring subby jungle roller while Aries reminds us of his bashy side with a proper tropical shakedown. Finally we body bang all the way to New York state for a springy sci-fi skanker from Liondub and Jah Boogs. Banging.
Review: We have a smashing combination up next from the ODT Muzik outlet, as they bring together the likes of Navigator, P Skinna and Mixmaster J for a weighty dancehall collaboration entitled 'Ghetto Strugglaz Lullaby'. Right from the off we are introduced to uplifting autotuned vocal lines of the hook, which then descends into more raucous lyricism and vocal flows. Overall, the tune is a delight and a good representation of where the future of dancehall and bashment lays, with the whole track being glued together by that super vibrant chorus.
Review: Cor blimey, Jungle Cakes aren't messing around with their Welcome To The Jungle series are they? Hot on the heels of Ray Keith comes another stone cold OG; Nicky Blackmarket. Digging deep across the classics and sparking up a whole forest of fresh fires, it's a 40 track, 2 mix, 10 FX tool trove of pure jungle magic curated with the wide-armed style you'd expect from an originator. With classic ranging from well known such as "Incredible" and "Pulp Fiction" to cult such as "Keep It Raw" and "Gangsters" and upfront jams flexing from all the right names (Serum, Aries, Serial Killaz, Drumsound & Bassline Smith), Blackmarket has absolutely smashed this out of the mark.
Review: Jungle Cakes always tend to put out music that rests on the foundations of UK underground, the cross-over influences of soul, reggae, jungle and D&B. it's always a fresh sound and it always brings up connotations of Boomtown, free parties and sunny afternoons. This is a monster album curated by Aries and Kelvin 373, who have taken tracks both old and new to form a banging compilation. Bou nails it on 'Music Takes Me Higher', a rustic revisit to classic jungle sounds; Aries and Nicky Blackmarket roll things out in a tight way on 'Champion'; and Chimpo slams the brakes on 'DidDieDoThat'. We don't know the answer to that, but we do know this is fat. Big ups.
Review: Link-up, look smart; we've connected with one of the most exciting labels in dnb for a collection of their biggest hitters, rising stars and highest sellers: Liondub International. Headed up by Eric Liondub in NYC, Liondub International have broken and nurtured more new talent than most put together, and these first few volumes showcase. First up come these 15 examples as the likes of Kumo, Bou, Jayline, DJ Hybrid, Saxxon and many more all deliver timeless heaters. Highlights include Sub Killaz' broadsword skank-up 'Murderah', Brian Brainstorm's junglised slash-up 'Kill A Drumpan' and Bladerunner & Johnny Osbourne's ever-sweet 'Night Fall Dub'. All this and plenty more; whether you've been following Liondub since day or you're new to their consistent onslaught, there's plenty to catch up on here. Selector!
Review: Lion Dub have reached a decade of activity. A decade! To put it in perspective, if someone was born the year Liondub started, they're about to enter high school/secondary school. It's a crazy achievement and one matched by the craziness of the music they have on offer to celebrate, a four-part journey through their past, present and future. This instalment is all about their past and it's exemplified best by Serum's VIP of Sound The Alarm, a Liondub classic, which Serum has flipped into a characteristically badboy, stabbing little roller. The vocals float above in a haze of reggae smoke, whilst the beat pulsates below. Awesome stuff.
