Review: If deep, dark and moody D&B and dubstep are your bag then don't sleep on this new EP from Cardiff lad Elliot R Garvey, AKA Quartz. His work has previously appeared on Metalheadz and System Music, but here he comes to the mighty R&S with four cuts that will delight those of a red-eyed and headnoddin' persuasion. 'Lilac Cobweb' feat Selena Jones is all about the jittery, twitchy percussion, 'Deity Spear' itself is sparse, haunting and features barely-there Middle Eastern-style vox, the gnarlier 'Cosmic Horror' is aptly named and 'Switchblade Groove' brings hints of a dark, beats-driven psychedelia. Late-night, skunk-fuelled listening of the highest calibre.
Review: Under the Blocks & Escher alias, Phillip Smith and Will Hansen have been one of the most reliable drum & bass duos of the last few years, with their 2018 debut album on Metalheadz, Something Blue, being a must listen. The pair's first outing on R&S is naturally still rooted in drum & bass but could have appeal way beyond genre purists thanks to its frequent nods to classic jungle and the more immersive and saucer-eyed end of the breakbeat spectrum. Our picks of a very strong bunch are 'Dance Girl', a sweaty, enveloping chunk of post-jungle featuring what sound like cut-up live drum-breaks, the punchy, Exit-esque experimental D&B creepiness of 'Abyss' and the hot-stepping, horror soundtrack moodiness of 'Shot in the Dark'.
Review: Tale Of Us did it, Blawan did it, Special Request too, and many others at the top of their game find their hype bonafide with a silver & green plated R&S debut. Joining that list alongside other contemporaries like Djrum, Ada Kaleh and Benjamin Damage is rhythm, UK bass and percussive techno specialist Forest Drive West. Channeling a harder, slightly darker tribalistic and UK style for the rave-minded R&S, each track here sees deeper Italian techno in breakbeat form meet with shady Bristol rave and dubstep atmospheres. Throw in the splash of jungle in "Curved Path" and you've got a EP that covers what any R&S / FDW fan needs. Rave 2.0
Review: Rightly so, Paul Woolford sees his Special Request project stamped and approved by R&S with this fully sick Spectral Frequency EP. Lifting the title-track from the Zero Fucks compilation Woolford released last year, this insane banger of experimental jungle comes backed by a sidewinding beatless version in "Inverse Frequency". The EP sees two new numbers in the bassline driven bliss of "No Other Way To Say It" and the uplifting arpeggios of "Family Doggo" that offers some respite in techno from the bonafide mad breaks of "Spectral Frequency". Undeniably good. Tip!
Review: If you like things harsh and jungley, packed full of amen sounds and couched in the audio aesthetic of grimy warehouses and early morning smoking area haze, this is the release for you. Courtesy of Special Request via the label R&S, Spectral Frequency takes you on a journey up and down the spectrum of dancefloor frequencies. The destination? Jungle city, and it's a rough town that finds beauty in its disorder. This track climbs and climbs, distorted breaks forming the bedrock of its acceleration, before crashing onto the waves of amens which form its main body. It's perfect for the dancefloor and a seriously atmospheric method of transport.
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.