Review: Champion of dark, tough and considered dubstep, Distance provides the latest instalment in the much loved Dubstep Allstars mix series. It's fairly typical fare from the Chestplate boss man, with tough steady rhythms underpinned by that particularly distorted kind of bassline. There are a number of highlights, most notably Commodo's "Surveillance" which has a rolling break woven into the mix. Cyrus' "Looking Back" also impresses as it purrs away with a gorgeously warm, rich synth line. The biggest surprise is probably Distance's own remix of trance bods Above & Beyond. It's certainly as 'big room' as you'd ever imagine Distance getting!
Review: Making his debut on Tempa, multi talented MC, producer and one third of the Code 3 collective, SP:MC steps up with a couple of killer cuts on the legendary London imprint. "Oh My Gosh" is a slow paced, super sleuth of a track with low slung, undulating bassline, gently hissing hi-hats and clipped breaks with a retro edge. It harks back to the early days of dubstep, with a hint of Benga in there. Title track "Hunted" is another gnarly cut, with gritty, warping b-line, paranoid SFX adding further menace to the already darkened soundscape. Well worth checking!
Review: Now most of us will know of SP:MC for his heavy hitting work within the dubstep scene, always providing either a crispy new vocal assist or punchy original piece of production in the 140 zone. However we here see him expand into a more garage sounding area as we leap into this fantastic new project, courtesy of Sentry. We kick off with the smooth percussive pressures and groovy rhythmic twists of 'Vintage', which packs a serious punch. On the flipside we are given 'Slugfest', another tasty helping of crunchy drum designs and more organic sounding percussive twists.
Review: No other label can rep dubstep like Tempa. Many would argue it was the first label to truly herald and nourish the sound. Here they explore their vaults and dust off some of the most genre-defining, idiosyncratic tracks that have helped shape the phenomenon we know today. From SPMC's paranoid murker from 2008 "Trust Nobody" to a whole series of Skream sessions such as "WTF", "Wibbler" and "Vacillate", the collection is a reminder of how influential Tempa has been, how talented their roster has always been and, most importantly, how slamming and stimulating dubstep can be when nourished and developed by the right label. Recognise.
