Review: As always, Sneaker Social Club have packed something special for us to enjoy as they welcome Foul Play inside for a 10 track LP, showcasing the full breadth of his production arsenal. From the junglist-inspired moog bass licks of 'Ricochet' to the experimental systematic reverberations of 'Dubbing You', we see a real grasp of the hardcore sound and it's inner workings. Highlight wise, we have to look at the computerized nostalgic sub switches of 'Feel The Vibe' alongside the system-busting bass pulses of 'Survival' which combines old school vocal slices with catchy melodic grooves to create something extremely pleasing indeed!
Review: We really hope everyone out there is enjoying this new wave of UKG as much as we are here at Juno Download. The sunshine flavours are extremely prominent at the moment, especially within this wonderful new release from Matt Jam Lamont and Echelon, who deliver a fabulous four track selection to the newly launched Undagrnd Freqz imprint. With these two featuring on every track, we are also given four guest features, the first of which comes from Aki on the incredibly vibrant sub rolls and vocal slices of 'Every Step'. This is followed by the wonderful Shosh getting involved on the more mellow moogy bass rolls of 'Let U Know' before Yemi arrives with a bag of melodic punch with his inputs to 'Treat Ting Me'. Finally, the ever-ready Smokey Bubblin' B arrives with a typically colourful sack of energy, providing the perfect touches to round us off in style!
Review: It's common knowledge at this point that Bicep really is a generational talent when it comes to production. The impact of 'Glue' was off the scale and it's clear to see he has no intention of slowing down as we dive into another monumental single, this time taking the title of 'Atlas'. As ever, we witness pure melodic mastery as we are greeted by an array of spacey, emotional pad textures floating around the background, whilst popping arpeggios and shuffling drum beats breathe effortlessly across the front of the mix. When this is then coupled with pulsating sub lines and stunning vocal switches drenched in luscious big room reverb units, we sure are in for an absolute treat.
Review: Sentry Records has put together some serious releases over the last few years, showcasing the latest and greatest in dubstep and its surrounding genres. We are therefore introduced to and absolutely storming compilation here as we reel off bangers from the likes of dubstep legends such as Caspa, Truth, Sukh Knight, Youngsta and more. For us, the highlights of this incredible compilation are quite clear, kicking off with the stunning production of 'Judas' from Nomine, who brings forward his uniquely metallic sound design on mass. Another absolute heater we couldn't forget is the spooky yet satisfying 'Crocodile' from Dayzero, packed with wicked drum flavours and haunted overtones.
Review: So at this point in time, it's hard to imagine Alix Perez making a stale tune, as he lands here on the wonderful 1985 music for another twisted collection of heaters. We kick this one off with a look at the spooky overtones and warbling synthesizer growls of 'Ravana', before the shivering LFO designs and glitchy melodic plucks of 'Lifeline' stutter into play. Next, 'Post-Mortem' arrives with more lethal reese bass action driving the stripped back drumwork forward in a blaze of system energy, before rounding off with the catchy arpeggiator flexes of 'Ends' alongside Headland. What a project this is!
Review: Four40's recent run of releases has been something very special indeed and this latest six track selection from MKII is a real look into how forward thinking the label has become. 'Roads' is a stunning three track journey, exploring the moodiest arenas of UKG through haunted pad textures and introspective harmonic layering, with MKII's ethereal production style being highlighted within this extended track format. It's a quite phenomenal body of work and when coupled with three fabulous remixes from MMEE, Earthnut and himself, it forms up into one of the strongest garage drops to grace 2020 so far!
Review: Well, it seems to be every week that we welcome a brand new drop from the Four40 team this year, however this latest drop is something truly special as the veteran imprint celebrates nine years of activity with a scintillating selection, showcasing some of their most important roster members over the years. The tracklisting is vast, featuring a colossal 51 tracks from the likes of Vital Techniques, Mistakay, PVC, Enigma Dubz, Tuff Culture, Earthnut and more. With such a stacked release, picking highlights is pretty tough, but for us the two stand outs boil down to super spooky drum twists and moody textures of 'You Or Me' from ZeroFG, alongside the classic Skepsis remix of 'VIP', originally featuring Hybrid Theory and Trilla.
Theoretical Medical Genitals (Russell E. L. Butler remix) - (8:11) 70 BPM
Lemme C U Squiggle - (5:25) 132 BPM
Review: Madison, Wisconsin's Ilana Bryne returns to Naive, the Portuguese label on which she made her debut early last year. Deep house from the leftfield side is the order of the day, generally - but purists and traditionalists needn't be alarmed, because none of the cuts feel experimental for the sake of it, and the emphasis is firmly on making booties shake on dancefloors throughout. Think early Chi-town house meets DiY, as heard through a 21st Century filter and with hints of bruk beat and juke thrown in for good measure, and you're somewhere in the ballpark. Forward-thinking house bizniss for sure.
Review: As dubstep and bass music in general continues to expand worldwide, we are starting to see more and more experimental selections come together, with this fantastic 14 tracker from the Cosmic Vibrations crew being just what the doctor ordered. They deliver an hours worth of smooth introspective soundscaping, with the roster including top names such as: Biome, Congi, Occult, Ill Chill and more. The whole tracklisting just breathes originality, with our favourites including the stunning UKG designs of 'Eyes Down' from the fabulous link up of Bonobo and Andreya Triana, alongside 'Nothing', an impactful piece of stepper poetry, crafted between the wonderful Rider Shafique and the ever-ready Om Unit!
Review: Badass vibes coming outta Client_03 again for Fracture & Neptune's Astrophonica label which delivers the artist in mentions second ever release solo. Landing somewhere between purist electro and grey area dubstep with tracks like "Input Reflector", its five productions weave through sci-fi atmospheres, distortion and squelch with hardcore drums, break beats and deeper rhythms. Seriously headsy stuff you'd imagine hearing at a Ukranian rave in an abandoned outpost somewhere to the mean streets of the UK or Berlin's edgier underground. At your disposal.
Review: It's time to dive into some delicious new breakbeat creations as Samurai Breaks land on Hardcore Energy for a very exciting four track selection, showcasing their breaksy brilliance. We kick off with the sounds of 'Putting In Werk', a smart roller, dripping in finesse and original breakbeat energy, followed by the more futuristic tripletted pulses of 'Rush'. Next, we move into the nostalgic realms of 'Bad Boy Beats', a super choppy, party ready rinse out, followed by 'Power Hour' as Private Caller gets involved on the perfect sign out track, laced with high energy drum manoeuvres and booming bass tones.
Review: We are absolutely loving what the team at Manuka are putting together far this year, with the label seemingly intent on exploring the swampier side of techno and dubstep. This latest selection Kahter definitely dives down that path as we explore the title track 'Metanoia', a sizzling metallic jamboree, stuffed full of unpredictable percussive lines and vibrant subs below. Next, 'Eostix' gives us a robotic throwback into stuttered synthesizer displays and breathy percussion. On remix duty, head honcho: Hypho steps up to unleash an 808-driven rethink of 'Metanoia', with Pluralist then slapping down some choppy rhythms within his computerized overhaul of 'Eostrix'
Review: So at this point it's difficult to find the words to describe Night Bass, who have pushed out one of the most relentless release schedules we have ever witnessed here at JunoDownload over the last 12 months. The 4x4 giants have here assembled what they believe to be their best releases of 2019 into one handy selection, featuring absolute stormers from the likes of legendary faces such as Taiki Nulight, Shift K3y, Bushbaby, Notion, Corrupt, Phlegmatic Dogs and more, including a feature from label founder and worldwide dance music legend: AC Slater. What a year it has been for Night Bass, and we can't see them slowing down.
Two Fingers & G Jones - "Zero Face" - (3:38) 160 BPM
LED Moon Rhythm - (3:03) 133 BPM
LALA Rhythm - (3:21) 86 BPM
Nuff Swizz Rhythm - (3:25) 86 BPM
Boss Rhythm - (3:26) 58 BPM
Two Fingers & Little Snake - "Unknown Trauma" - (4:49) 120 BPM
Review: What an incredible selection we have on our hands here as we see the Normark label boss and electronic music pioneer Amon Tobin A.K.A "Two Fingers" release his first album under his double-digit alias since "Stunt Rhythms" nearly 8 years ago. The tracklisting for this one is nothing short of phenomenal, with the styles ranging far and wide between the super experimental bass twists of 'Boss Rhythm' to the more conventional half-time synthesizer slaps and jungle-like percussive genius of 'Rockyou Feelit'. The project is a triumph in all areas and that is putting it lightly, with our highlights including the stunning sound design of 'You Ain't Down', the dynamic rhythmic expressions of 'Nuff Swizz Rhythm' and of course the title track 'Fight! Fight! Fight!', which deploys demonic basslines combined with quirky vocal lines and jangling drums with magnificent results. Amazing Stuff!
Review: The Glue EP by Irish power duo features two new tracks embodying the same dramatic and evocative vibes from their recent, highly acclaimed self titled album. The title track here unashamedly explores rave nostalgia, with its tough breakbeats, euphoric chord progressions and gated vocal samples taking you all the way back to '92. "Metro" uses phased acid house style drum patterns with roaring rave synth leads on this slow burning but heavily building dancefloor destroyer. Finally "DLR" soundtracks those divine moments of truth loved up in the chill-out tent, with this emotive ambient house cut with a nice tint of 303 acid for good measure that's reminiscent of classics by Orbital et al.
Review: What more can you ask for when it comes to half time link ups? For this saucy little number are thrilled to see a top quality link up between Fracture & Sam Binga, who combines their incredibly precise production styles to deliver a top quality two track creation on Astrophonica. The A-side takes the title 'On Right Now' and boy is it it a party starter. We are greeted by stunning synthetic arpeggio lines which glisten away above sizzling sub textures and flicking hi hat patterns to bring us a fabulous bag of grooves. On the flip-side, 'Chessington' delivers a secondary punch, built around a much more jungle-inspired set of rhythms, this one boasts meaty sub lines and a cheeky selection of melodic inputs, making it the perfect energy injection for any selection!
Review: Next up from the Livity Sound Recordings team we have a very tasty little number here from Bakongo, who brings forward three extremely well thought out UK Funky heaters, perfect for the closure of the Summer season. Firstly, we dip into the incredibly vibrant percussive power and compositional freedom of 'Momoweb', a stunning piece of original rhythmic mastery, chased up by more incredible drumwork with 'Disposition'. The overall feel of quality that the release boasts is then certified as 'Goulbap' continues with the fantastic work to tie this one up in serious style.
Review: Having recently celebrated their tenth release, Sheffield's Chip Butty have now rounded up the cream of their roster for Chip Shop Vol 1. There are nine bangers featured here, all promising 'hard 4x4 beats mashed with twisted basslines'. They're not wrong either: highlights include label stalwart Dr Cryptic's pounding garage-step sing-a-long "Dirty Dot", the doomily orchestrated wobbler "Marching Powder" by Sekt 87 and the menacing speed garage of "Rude" by Little Mesters.
Review: Next up from the Trax Couture imprint we see Sertone land for a very enjoyable four track selection, exploring the weird and wonderful realms of electronic sound. We begin our journey through this one with a look at 'Critical', a jungle-infused creation dripping with finesse, linking together a steadily expanding synth line with choppy drum structures, before 'Just Around' arrives with a much spacier approach, unleashing quirky vocal textures into the mix at will. Next, we dive into the hardcore chord progressions and trap-like drum designs of 'LoveEgypt94' before the title track 'Spectres' brings together a stunning rhythmic display or organic drum movements and plucked melodies. Beautiful work all around on this one!
Review: There ain't no party like an In The Face party, which is exactly why this latest scorcher hits so damn hard. We see the combined designs of Coxon, Krissi B, Jez & Jodie C link up for a big room bassline bubbler, packed with electrifying synthesizer manoeuvres and constantly evolving vocal layers. The remixes really are where this project levels up however as we first hear King Hydra deploy a more modernized 4x4 rethink, before Zemon unleashes a ferocious arrangement of carnival-inspired drums with his dramatic fix up. Finally, Hurtdeer delivers a super bouncy overhaul, incorporating fidgety drum work and violent bass designs to round off the EP with an In The Face bang.
Review: BSN Posse makes their second appearance on Defrostatica Records releasing footwork, juke, jungle and drum & bass outta Germany after remixing ghettotech originator Detroit's Filthiest on his release back in 2018. BSN Posse do their bit in mixing it up on this EP too, turning in slower motion downtempo and dubstep in "Magic Portal" to hi-NRG electro and footwork in "Burning Shoes". Housier vibes and liquid drum and bass still in "Southern Comfort", with a deeper, trance-tipped epic number in "Rituals".
Review: Ivy Lab's Halogenix invites into his wardrobe for a cheeky fashion parade on Perez's 1985. Riffling through his range of jumpsuits, he treats us to a range of outfits; first we have his And Alix's slinky skin-tight "Broken" which groans with such bass pressure it's hard to breathe, then we have the loose and floaty two-tone outfit "The Night" with Solah where light shades refresh each other with raw soul. Deeper down the rails we glide for a minimal low cut roller laced with rich wavy synths and a hip-hugging breakbeat. Finally the acid-bubbling, block-knocking title track is a bulletproof heat resistant jumpsuit; the likes of which are usually worn by superheroes... Heroes like you when you drop this to an unexpecting crowd.
Alix Perez & Monty - "Good To Me" - (4:54) 174 BPM
Bredren - "Swayed" - (5:56) 174 BPM
Monty - "Decisions" - (4:53) 174 BPM
Razat - "Simplicity" - (5:01) 172 BPM
Review: 1985 Music was founded by Alix Perez a year or two ago and, since then, has rapidly become one of the premier destinations for forward-thinking sonics that inhabit the 85-170bpm spectrum. With a fresh roster including Monty, Submarine and Perez himself, Edition 2 is a showcase of both the producers and sounds that Alix has in his orbit. There are too many outstanding tracks to recount here, but 'Drones' by Cesco stands out as one of the most creative: a subby, stepping halftime cut with an ingenious drum pattern. There's weighty rollers, too, including 'Swayed' by Bredren and 'Good To Me' by Perez and Monty, both of which are sublime examples in minimal construction. A truly sick collection of tracks.
Review: More Time and R&S linking up is always going to lead to something fantastic, and this latest four track selection is just that, as we firstly kick off the project with some incredibly vibrant drum work and percussive brilliance from Ahadadream on 'Melty'. Next, Bala Bala Boyz rise to the occasion with more high energy drum chops and vocal lines on 'Sieta' before Bryte brings the grooves with the irresistible switch ups of 'Ice Cream'. Finally, 'Bleep Test' lands from SNOW, putting a final touch of rhythmic bliss onto what we can safely say is an excellent body of work.
Review: These sure are unusual times around the world, but one thing we have gained from this state of worldwide lockdown is a flurry of top quality electronic music releases, with this latest drop Night Bass being a perfect example. They welcome back the crispy sounds of MNNR for three tracks of pure fire, kicking off with the super punchy drum slaps and shuffling rhythmic expressions of the title track 'The Party'. This is then followed closely by the more rawcus synthesizer designs of 'Thanks Officer', before the clicky bass inversions and unusual drum compositions of 'DAMN' round us off in style.
Review: It's been a little while since we last heard from Mikey B, but what a way to make a return and kick off 2020 as he lands on the illustrious CruCast for a spicy four track selection. The first track that rolls into view is the title track 'White Lies', which alongside the fantastic vocal lines of Paige Eliza sees Mikey unleash an awesome display of original niche flavour with flavoursome synth melodies and choppy vocal prowess, followed up gnarly bass tones of 'No One Else' and catchy harmonic slices of 'Highs & Lows'. Finally, we finish up this wicked selection with a look at 'Commander', a grit-heavy 4x4 roller, designed to turn any dance to a ruckus. Excellent stuff!
Review: After some down time spent in the studio, 2017 will see the British duo Dark Sky return to Monkeytown and present their debut album entitled Othona. Across nine tracks, the album 'is a return to the deeper darker realms of dance music from which Dark Sky emerged.' Heavy on bottom end with subtle melodies and emotive synths, this is Dark Sky's most dynamic and accomplished work to date. Highlights on this tremendous opus include the evocative IDM journey "Domes" which is decorated by soaring and spangling vintage synth flair, the simply gorgeous/pop inflected house of "Angels" and "The Walker" which is guided by angelic vocals and magical arpeggios guiding you triumphantly upwards to the light. The LP will in turn yield a new live show which we're all excited about: stay tuned!
Review: With Addison Groove being one of the most renowned names in UK dance music, his unique, clicky approach to rhythmic bliss is constantly yielding fantastic new originals. We see him land his latest album project on Gutterfunk and what a project it is. The album as a whole boasts a magnificent soundscape, from the experimental funky melodies of 'Rele Dawomey' alongside the wonderful Chouk Bwa, to the junglist switch ups of 'Dreamscape 12' and system basslines of 'Burning Spear'. There is also a touch of classic Addison throughout, through the clicky percussive blueprints of 'Bass Trips' and jukey switch ups of 'Out Of Nowhere'. We also can't get enough of the bubbly grooves of 'Brand New Drop', an inspired funky roller, personifying the organic energy of the project perfectly.
Review: Are there many better pleasures in the dubstep world than seeing a new Crucial Recordings drop? When we then see that Sleeper and Youngsta are back in collaboration, it becomes really hard to contain our excitement. We kick this one off with the jittery synthesizer pulls and spacious drum designs of 'Systematic Error', one hell of a title track and a perfect way to set the tone. Next up, the weighty sub smashes and eerie melodic moogs of 'Hello', followed closely the stunning harmonic structures and gnarly synthesizer grooves of 'Iridescence', which when coupled with subtle percussive rhythmic action provides us with the perfect outro. Lovely!
Review: Excellent release here from Deadboy on Glaswegian imprint Numbers, who returns to the imprint after dropping their first ever 12" in early 2010. The Brighton based producer serves up the epic "Wish U Were Here", which locks into a 4/4 pulse with euphoric Virgo-style synths and a deftly tweaked vocal snippet - solid end of night tackle right here! Up next you'll find "Here 4 U" and "Ain't Gonna Lie", with the former's rolling congas and snare patterns complemented by the latter's syrupy vocals, pinball percussion and straight up garage rhythms. Serious heat once again from the Numbers crew.
Review: As we've enjoyed watching Livity Sound mint an array of new artists to its label like Forest Drive West, Laurel Halo and Leif, it's also been fresh names like Toma Kami, Two Shell, and now Kouslin, that are keeping Livity's undercurrent in motion. Given a full debut, Kouslin emerges from the 2010s with 2020 Vision, supplying Livity Sound with four shaded bassline dubs, diving into various forms of sub-aqueous melody, tribal rhythms and far-flung, trippy percussion. Find touches of rave, trance and bleep culture in "Ice" with more references to dubstep and streetwise Bristol spook in the EP's lead track and "The Beast Of Bolsover". Clear.
Review: 1Forty set up here to continue their exceptional run during throughout 2018 by bringing together an exciting collection of artists for the second edition of their 'Funky & Garage' season. Having been previously premiered on the new Threethousand website, we see Killjoy and Smokey 'Bubblin B' lead the way with the super groovy 'Voices In My Head' alongside Shantie and the old school pulse rolls of 'Where's Larry'. We also get gifted a breaksy funky fusion as 9TRANE and Arridim team up on 'Plazma', whilst Cardinal Sound round off an awesome selection with 'Ayy', a carnival special set to turn any dance to a bruckout.
Review: What a fantastic selection we have for you here as we witness four of the most creative producers working within the underground dance music scene come together for a top notch project, courtesy of the 3024 team! We kick off course with the stunning yet minimal production stylings of Martyn, with his memorable original 'Frozen Bread Snaps', which is followed in hot pursuit by Sin/Grezlins & Jesta's tasty junglist roller: 'Door Of Guf'. Next up, Noire dives into the driver's seat for a helping of original funky with some delicious percussive power and chiming leads, followed up by Parris and the super delicate 'Dusty Glass Bubbles', a fantastic way to round this one up!
Review: It's time to up those rhythmic impulses as we dive into one the grooviest projects we have heard this year thus far, as Anunaku join forces with the 3024 team for packet of percussive panashe on their 'Stargate' EP. We kick off with the rolling drum work and the rhythmically led flavours of the title track 'Stargate', before we play witness to the fusion of eastern melodies and subtle breakbeat sampling in 'Teleported'. Finally, the project rounds off with a bang as the percussive influences are left to run wild once again on 'Atlas4088', giving us an incredibly vibrant sign out.
Review: Wah Wah? Woah Woah more like... Scrimshire & Dom Servini's evergreen funk/soul imprint digs deep into its vaults and recruits a whole rollcall of talented names for this massive remix stack. Highlights include pretty much every version on here but if you're a person on the move and time, to you, is money then you might want to invest all your stocks and shares on The Reflex's percussion chugging piano slapping twist of Henri Pierre Noel's "Funky Spider Dance", Books slinky uptempo twist on Dele Sosimi's Afrofunk gem "I Don't Care" and Steve Cobby's warm-as-toast twist of Soothsayers' "Dis & Dat". And that's not even scratching the surface. Look at the names on here; this sums up all of Wah Wah's musical strengths to their max. Essential.
Review: We love to see new pieces from the Instigate Team, especially long play projects such as this one. Taking the title 'Temples', this eight track, feature length LP gives us a fascinating look into the minds of it's collaborative creators: Extorted Minds and Catchy92. We are in for a spacey journey, from the calming, pad-heavy layouts of 'Night Skies' to poetic vocal patterns of 'Uncharted'. There is so much depth to this project as you tend to find with any high quality MC/ producer collaboration. The stand out track to us has to be 'Visage', which provides us with catchy stuttered vocal lines blended tidily with spooky eastern harmonies and we can't get enough!
Review: Sun People is the project of Simon/off from Graz in Austria, making his debut for London based Modern Ruin. He's had well-received releases on the likes of Through These Eyes, Alphacut and Goodstreet Records. Kicking things off on the Serenity EP is the mad stepper "Live It Up" which is liquid drum 'n' bass reminiscent of early legends like Calibre or Carlito & Addiction. There's some 160bpm deep dubstep styles of the most contorted kind on the paranoid "Cry", while the sensual and evocative half-time antics of the title track call to mind the grey area experiments of Instra:mental - circa 2010 when Autonomic was all the rage. Fantastic.
Review: It's always a pleasure to see new music from the legendary Plastician, a producer whose place in UK underground's history books is beyond secured. It's clear that alongside numerous live streams he has been keeping himself busy in the studio as he unveils 10 scorching new originals within his 'Deep In The Drives' LP, courtesy of his beloved Terrorhythm. The tracklisting boasts everything from the emotive harmonic structures of 'Alone Time' to the more classic grimey switches of 'Gully' and 'Magma'. Plastician's versatility is his strongest attribute, which is what makes this project so powerful, with our favourites including the old school snare chops and shifting melodic sampling of 'Resolution', alongside 'Jackal Riddim', which reworks a classic grime melody into something completely new!
Review: Up next on Holding Hands, we welcome the high energy combination of Baby Rollen & Gallegos, a partnership destined for greatness, who here unveil four tracks of pure rave power. First up, we take a look at the Gallegos solo contributions, with the acidic arpeggios and pumping drum designs of 'Blue Mountain' setting us off quickly, before the more melodic themes of 'Shouldacouldawoulda' provide us with some nice contrast. Next, Baby Rollen joins the party, firstly on the moogy drum bass tones and choppy drum rolls of 'Underwater Excursion' and then on the masterfully dispatched breakbeat themes of 'B45'. A very tidy EP indeed!
Review: Electro-deviant Jimmy Edgar has linked up once again with his JETS partner Machinedrum to launch the Ultramajic imprint, and he gets first stab at a release with this taut three tracker. "Hot Inside" is as unashamed a peak-time heater as Edgar has ever turned his hand to, sporting a riotous diva vocal hook and crisp house drums, but there's still a strong techno injection in the synth work and shifting phases of the track. "Strike" is a more abrasive affair with its metallic delay vibrations and relentlessly nagging jack, while "Shout" comes on all electro house in its fulsome bassline and shouty vocal snippets.
