Review: The Dreamers Recording, based out in Italy, always come out with creative fusions of drum & bass, jungle and halftime, and this EP from a collection of acts doesn't break that mould. It's a sonic feast of creativity and the trio responsible really hit their raving stride on 'Grape Hi', which steps with giant movements and lands with massive force on its halftime heels; big tune. 'Yuzu Hi' is just as good, with a hypnotic drum line and whispery, magical atmospherics courtesy of some well-placed pads and a strong attention to detail. One of the heads, this.
Review: The Dreamers have seriously hit the jackpot on this one as they invite in the enigmatic sounds of Samurai Breaks for six tracks of pure shellery, encompassing the perfect blend of modern jungle and juke throughout. We kick off with the oldschool bass tones of the title track 'Pump Up The Volume', which is followed by the wicked synthesis of 'No Need' and hardcore influenced sample twist ups of 'Party Starter'. The project then switches into somewhat of a half time funk up as 'Face Down' rolls into view, followed by the pumping 4x4 drum smashes of 'Hood Romance', rounding everything off with the potent sub pressure and catchy vocal slices of 'Attention'.
Review: Very few labels are as on the cutting edge of jungle and drum & bass as The Dreamers, a Turin based label who blend vibrant breakbeats, four-four influences and anything else just that little bit different. This time around they've got frequent label presence Samurai Breaks in for a four-tracker, and the result is something very special.'Supa' is a straight up breakbeat banger, as rhythmic patterns oscillate in and out of consciousness, heeding the call of some seriously cool ravey sampling. The title tune is a four-four stomper with a classic rave piano that builds hype in a way only rave pianos can, and this one might not please purist 170 nerds but will certainly hype up the rest of us. The most out there is 'Clappa', which reminds us of Richie Brains on a mind-altering substance. Oh yes.
Sentierum - "Breathe Me" (feat Naima) - (5:17) 172 BPM
Crimson & Ncamargo - "Flow" - (7:22) 172 BPM
Legal - "Pour Amour" - (4:28) 175 BPM
Neve & Crimson - "Let Me Groove You" - (5:36) 174 BPM
Phog - "Memories" - (4:35) 170 BPM
Lao Wai - "Who's Fooling" - (5:13) 172 BPM
Soul Beat Runna - "Get Loose" - (4:12) 170 BPM
CGRECO - "Massive" - (4:36) 160 BPM
Enjoy - "Deactivate N" - (6:03) 57 BPM
Lizard - "Easy Nuff" - (5:38) 165 BPM
Johnatan Thomas - "Ease" - (5:21) 170 BPM
Lyndon Jarr - "Lightweight" - (4:57) 160 BPM
Review: So, this is one well packed present to say the least as The Dreamers Recordings gather up their full strength for another exceptional compilation, featuring the likes of Sentierum, Krispy, Frame, HLZ, Lizard and more, who all combine for a stripped back jungle shelldown. The full project is packed with quality from start to finish, with immediate standouts being Lyndon Jarr's emotional roller in 'Lightweight' and the sharpened drum processing of 'Who's Falling' from Lao Wai. A special shout out also has to go to Yoofee on 'Glume', which is stuffed with cool harmonies and spicy electronic pads.
Samurai Breaks - "Pump Up The Volume" - (6:09) 170 BPM
Rinino - "My House" - (3:48) 162 BPM
CGRECO & Malou Morkeberg - "Fine As Fuck" - (5:51) 160 BPM
Treega - "Ppl" - (6:02) 150 BPM
Neve & Was A Be - "Keep It Up" - (4:11) 140 BPM
Kappasaur - "Hypebomb" - (4:47) 174 BPM
Jazzatron - "Don't Eat" - (5:24) 172 BPM
Alivia - "Ray" - (4:07) 173 BPM
Am:x - "Rectine" - (5:19) 172 BPM
Review: The Dreamers Recordings have been busy it work it seems, as they here assemble a goliath roster to bring us some of the coldest half time and neuro-inspired arrangements we have heard so far this year. We hear some incredible production work from the likes of 'Am:x' on the sub-heavy rolls of 'Rectine' and the percussive brilliance of 'Belly Dance' from Neve & Frame. Our highlights for this one have to be the high energy drum skips and sub pushes of 'Fine As Fuck' from CGRECO and Malou Morkeberg, along with the pleasing junglist flavours of 'Pump Up The Volume' from Samurai Breaks.
Review: The Dreamcatcher Recordings team have a real reputation for unveiling forward thinking and exciting drum and bass music, especially within this fabulous self titled compilation series which today lands it's fifth official edition. The tracklisting is stacked up highly with top quality names, with HABIT, Samurai Breaks, Neve & DNN leading the way. There are of course some notable highlights from the project, which in itself covers quite a wide spectrum of where drum & bass is at in 2020, including the hardcore chord progressions and jittering drum slices of Harka's 'Body Talkin'. As well as this, we couldn't help but notice the super smooth synth lines 'Agua Viva' from Qua Rush, alongside the glittering soundscapes of Levrige's 'Full Circle' original.
