Review: When it comes to UK funky, there isn't a label that can really hold a candle to RKS, the structure within which the legendary Roska has been able to help push, shape and mould the UK funky scene over the past decade. This latest edition of their 'UK Funky Collection' series sees Roska invite the best in the business on board for a fiery selection, with heavyweight names such as DJ Naughty, Toddla T, SPD, DJ Polo, Jook 10 and more all landing with some seriously hard hitting contributions, once again re-establishing the RKS dominance factor. We also see the long awaited return of the legendary Hardhouse Banton with two highly anticipated heaters in 'Colonel' and Roska's remix of 'Reign'. It's a joyous collection of work, showing just how much life there is within the UK funky circle, with highlights including DJ MA1's percussive masterclass in 'Mutombo' and KTM's minimal majesty on 'Dark Knight'.
Review: What a thunderous collection we have on our hands here as the Durkle Disco crew emerge with a potent selection of remixes, unleashing a new lease of life to their extremely varied catalogue. The first thing that has to be said is just how many different direction this project is able to go in, from the dissonant synthetic drifts of Dusty Ohms on remix duty for Central Spillz' 'Deep End', to the pulsating tribal drum work of East Man's 'Bushmaster' overhaul from Fonzo & Riko Dan, then back to KOROstyle's potent 'On Sight' original with Emz & Jay0117, which receives a warbling recreation from Hayz & Nothingnice. This is Durkle Disco down to a T, powerful vocals, original sounding instrumentals, with our favourites including KRSLD's dizzying refix of 'Bad' from Logan & Kouslin, Jook's explosive overhaul of 'Bushmaster' and Dutchie's super smooth rethink of Ngaio's 'Green Eyed Queen'. Lovely stuff!
Review: London-based label eatmybeat returns this week with a new one from Will Shepard aka SPD, who drops his first missive on the label off the back of releases on RKS, Keysound Recordings and Bristol dubplate label ec2a. The Mind At Large EP explores the dark side of UK bass, techno and garage. From the deep medi vibes of opener "Ferment", or the lurking subterranean dubstep of "Mind At Large" to the hypnotic dub chords that meander throughout "B2" - there's also the addition of Bristol's Fonzo and London-dweller Debba on remix duties.
Review: Still reeling from the release of Burial & Blackdown's Shock Power Of Love EP, Keysound Recordings shifts this attention to some lesser known talent, in this case Spd. For the uninitiated, Spd's been skirting the nether regions of UK bass music for some five years now, hooking up with labels like Sustained Audio, Cut and Estranged to Roska Kicks & Snares. For Keysound, Spd turns in three rhythmically fluid cuts full of jittery percussion, tightly woven basslines and sporadic displays of percussion, dub and melody. "East" subtly threads a Italo-esque bassline into a dank cut of piano atmospherics and lost flutes, with "Computerised Images" substituting anything Italo for something more overtly dubstep. With "Pfhin" a good crossbreed between the EP's two other tracks only with an extra touch of eerie urban rave, London style.
Review: It's clear to see that after a string of very well received compilations towards the tail end of 2018 that the LW Recordings camp are back on the road meaning business. They therefore kick off the new year in like minded fashion, presenting us with this treasure trove of beauties as the 15th edition of their celebrated 'Sublime Bass' series. We here a range of styles involved, from the rolling post dubstep vibes of DGGZ's remix of 'Silked', to the more big room flavours of 'Fumble' by SP3CTRUM. Our highlights are without are the masterful future garage processings of Disperto Certain's 'Sudden Flames', along with the super groovy 'Archiva' from Soxx.
Review: For this full length LP project, we see SPD pull out all the stocks as he puts together 'Orange Yellow' for the Serene City imprint, a collection of tracks showcasing some serious cool themes. We begin in a great zone with 'Every Day', a blissfully sunny joyride through light chord progressions and fluffy pads over 4x4 drum designs. Next up the more UKG inspired rhythms of '877' before landing on the stunning soundscaping works of 'Need You'. To follow, we hear 'Always Hear', a glitchy futuristic techno piece, along with the lounge like composition of 'Lago Di Garda'. Finally we finish up tidily with 'Pages', a subtle spacious roller, perfectly designed to see this beautiful EP over the finish line.
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