Review: Aggressor Bunx hit hard in all directions with the poignant titled 'Freedom'. Currently operating in very bleak conditions, the Ukraine act are firing heavy shots on Eatbrain. 'Cybertron' sets fire to the senses instantly with its industrial strength tech aesthetic. It's backed up by more dark matter movements as 'System Crash' goes for an old mid 2000s style overdrive groove and 'Inner Line' pummels us into submission with an array of double kicks and gnarly Reese basses. Finally 'Freedom' closes on an emotional vocal tip. Very different for Aggressor Bunx but these are very different times. Massive EP.
Review: Oh our collective goshes! Eatbrain come correct with this humungous collection from an exciting range of artists old and new on this massive 'Divergence' VA. Highlights come in every shape and size as we burn and turn through the 26 track collection; AKOV goes in with some brooding severance on 'The Other Side', Redpill takes energy levels higher than ever before on the epic 'The Edge' while Metal Work makes his debut on Eatbrain with the swaggering grizzle fest 'I Told You'. Elsewhere we have Screamarts delivering serious goods on the creeped out 'Deviant', Zombie Cats bring some ruthless funk on 'Aus' and Mythic Image goes full-on intensity with 'Dymaxion'. A powerful collection right here!
Review: Paradoxical vibes abound as the currently unstoppable Screamarts continues his exciting vein of form with his first solo EP for Eatbrain. Taking off where he left us with AKOV on the label last year, it's another full-flavoured escapade as we romp from the sinewy staccato savagery of opener 'Are You Mad Yes' to the all-out full electrical textures and tears of the title track finale 'The Paradox'. In amongst these pillars we're jolted to the bones by the dark soul shreds of 'Don't Let Me Go' and rumbled into dense pressure rollage with the grumbling bass and stripped back dynamics of 'Ghost'. Scream if you wanna go faster.
Machine Replicate Your Body Language - (6:09) 172 BPM
No Light Will Shine On - (4:16) 172 BPM
Barbarian - (4:32) 172 BPM
Dark Age (feat Lifesize MC) - (4:28) 174 BPM
Dissent - (4:41) 172 BPM
The World's Spark - (4:36) 172 BPM
Review: Burr Oak is one of the several artists in the Eatbrain orbit who make weird and wonderful sounds, appearing in multiple, ever-shifting forms. This time around its hard neuro and, in true Eatbrain form, these six tunes are abstract but not overly so, with a grounding in that D&B format we know so well. It's all about the sound design and the complexity here, and we especially love the pitched-up synth work on 'Dissent' and 'Barbarian'. It's 'No Light Will Shine On', however, which has really grabbed us and it's partly thanks to the insane drum work (that snare!) that ensconces a broader approach at nastiness, encapsulated by bass flourishes and sub wobbles. Top work.
Review: It's the age-old argument that's kept croaky old junglists up past their bedtime for years: does VIP stand for 'this mix is strictly for very important people' or does it stand for 'variation in production'? In truth, it can mean either, depending on who made the VIP and who they intended it for. But now at least we know Eatbrain's stance on the matter as they ask some of their biggest VIP producers to go back over a seminal label release of theirs and give it a good overhaul, update and go-faster stripes for 2020. The results speak for themselves; the added grit and funk on L 33's 'Mafia', Jade's emotional dynamics on 'TV Says' and the complete subversion of 'Need' by Zombie Cats and Abis are just three examples of how very important these variations are. And they're made for you: the true VIPs.
