Review: Noisia's Division crew fire up the Partial machine for another time-bending trip into future beats. The third outing this year, the focus remains firmly on the most unconventional, provocative and forward-thinking ideas and sounds. Gullier than a night out in a sanctuary with the director of the RSPB, fusion highlights range from Noer The Boy's twisted broken glass bass scrapes on "Quarters" to the toxic distorted bass, wild drum shatters and sub-aquatic technoid murmers of "Shapeless Husk" via Samba's warped lolloping drums and spooked harmonics on "Blister". 100% unique and forward-thinking, few labels are investing in the beat game's most creative quarters as dedicatedly and progressively as Division.
Review: Hot on the heels of their first V/A halftime/beats-based EP, Noisia's Division serves up another deliciously leftminded multi-artist EP. "Nomad" says it all; screwloose bass, haunted elements and an all-round alien vibe, Noisia and Mony/Poly have truly killed it. Other highlights include the screeched out craziness of Posij's "Grab The Cookies" and the rave breaks and garbled sample abuse Bleep Bloop's "Recombine". Seriously forward-thinking, let's hope these Division EPs continue for the foreseeable.
Review: Noisia's Division operation deliver their very first multi-artist EP featuring far-out bass tests from the likes of Monuman (AKA northern D&B upstart Emperor), Signs, ARKTKT, Ponicz and JNTHN STEIN. Not a well-travelled road in sight; each act delivers something resoundingly fresh and exciting : Noisia & Ivy Lab get insanely lopsided, Monuman digs a filthy bass grave before lifting us to the heavens with evocative chords, Signs gets the motor running with an array of twisted engine samples while ARKTKT activates a spacey trap mode, all bouncy and gravity-free. Last but not least, Ponicz shreds up with a toxic instrumental hip-hop swag while JNTHN STEIN kidnaps a rainbow then pushes it down the stairs... In the same way Division push the envelope.
Review: With just one self-released EP behind her Dutch singer-songwriter Sofie Letitre explodes on to the radar with a thoroughly self-assured album that comes to light on Noisia's Division label. The brooding synth bass lines certainly fit her to the context, while the songs themselves tap into the same gothic pop electronica mentality that Snow Ghost and Emika revel in. As well as the richly produced original tracks, the digital release of Uncanny Valley comes laden with remixes from the likes of Think Twice, Infuze and Mono/Poly, making for a full-bodied listening experience to suit a wide spread of moods.
Review: D&B heads may recognise Sofie from her recent outing with June Miller. Here she is in solo form, on Noisia's experimental Vision off-shoot Division, and it's glorious. Sitting somewhere between Martina Toppley-Bird, Bjork, The xx and Massive Attack, her yearning, delicate tones instantly arrest over some really interesting sound design (which are a neat follow up to Two Fingers' recent EP). "Bare" is a heads-down complex cut with an almost mechanical flow to the beats while "Slip" is the end-of-night lighter raiser that's so emotional and smouldering you can feel your clothes slipping off as it builds. Remix-wise Jai Tee takes Bare into a rolling two-step territory while Steelan switches the hazy synths for a more minimal, heavier footed drum arrangement. A classy label debut from a songwriter who has potential to make serious damage. Stunning.
Review: Amon Tobin calls these six tracks 'rhythms'... Bit of an understatement; we would rather describe these cuts as pure evidence that there is still so much more potential and room to explore bass music, sound design and instrumental hip-hop than most people assume. But that's not such a snappy title. Bottom line: Each cut is right at the boundaries of various genres and oozes dense, uncompromising textures that show more and more layers on every listen. Highlights include the Radioactiveman style breakbeat sword-slayer "Adrian's Rhythm" and the daft counter play of bass tones and processes on "Cashew Rhythm" but, in all honesty, there's not a dull moment throughout. Welcome back Two Fingers... Don't leave it so long next time!
Review: Neosignal - aka Phace and Misanthrop - are probably the only two producers left who are making real, driving drum and bass cuts, but they appear here courtesy of Division Recordings under their Neosignal moniker - one left reserved solely for dark, sweltering semi-beatless dubstep. "Das Diktat" is a perfect representation of this recent work and its eerie ambience is both refreshing and utterly brilliant. There just aren't that many producers who are as daring as these two...
We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners who may combine it with other information that you've provided to them or that they've collected from your use of their services.