Review: A gent on the streets, a demon in the spreadsheets; Excel returns with another exceptional EP that's absolutely loaded with grot and slimy sonics. Following his 'Apocalypse' EP on Pick The Lock, he continues to hone a very particular strain of 'puking robot' bass that's evident in many of tracks, especially right here. Highlights include the coiled spring flexes and algae-covered bass on 'The Beginning' and the rusty robot scrapes and scratches of 'The Truth'. That's just half of it. Check it yourself... You might say it all adds up.
Review: We hate to break the news to you but, as doctors R!PT!DE and Ghee-K have officially confirmed: 'You're Dead'. Putting this 'ahhhhhhhhhh' into RIP, mourning will be rolled out in a series of super freaky, ultra sleazy, mega leftfield sound designs and textures. From the regimentalist solider orders of 'Rojah' to trippy, broken-spring finale fire of the title track 'You're Dead', this is one exceptional collection. Time to put your affairs in order.
Review: Bladerunner back on Philly Blunt baby! You already know this one is going to be special. Two massive cuts laced with big V funk and exciting, unpredictable twists, 'The Chronic' is an immense piece of work that's just as much disco as it is jungle thanks to some lavish synth blasts mid-way. 'Straight Up' goes for something even ruffer as the main bassline revs up a storm like a can of coke on your bike's back tire. Grizzly ain't even the word, this is savage. Go on Bladerunner!
Review: Man like Kublai returns to Total Science's label with some of his darkest, dankest, dirtiest designs to date. 'Big Talk' takes the lead with a big old b2b2b in the studio as Kubbie, TS and Minor Forms all get mucky in the action. Elsewhere 'The Imposter' goes for a classic wormy bassline tension, 'Trippin' is pure filth laced over scattershot drums (with more filth thrown in for good measure) while 'Sullied' closes the EP on a pranged out drone tone. Exceptional drum & bass craft here.
Review: Nick The Lot on Low Down Deep... Now this is a treat for the senses! Watch and learn as the Brighton bandit hurls out some of his most disgusting textures and techniques possible. 'Big Bad Bass' sets the scene with its oddball noises and sudden turbo synth thrusts. Unpredictable, weird and never taking itself too seriously, the rest of the EP is a riot and highlights come firing left and right and centre - 'Bermuda Triangle' is one of the most bonkers thing NTL has ever done while 'Waccy Baccy' melts us down to a psychedelic mess for the finale. More than your lot.
Review: Nu Elementz and Majistrate's Bites imprint hits the big five-oh right here with this heavyweight four-tracker from jump-up rising star Steryx. Following his 'Gas Pedal' EP on the label late last year, once again it's an all-out stamp session as he flings out some premium uncut grot. High frequency funk can be found on 'Self Destruct', weirdo wobbles and trippy twists are lurking in the shaows of 'Warmed Up' while absolute tear-up lunacy is coded into the heart of 'Twisted'. As for 'Witch Hunt'? Well buy it, download it, burn it to CD and chuck it in lake and find out. If it drowns, you'll get done for littering so be careful.
Review: 20 years old this summer! Basement Jaxx's anthemic string-drench good riddance anthem 'Good Luck' gets two incredible drum & bass remixes on Friction's Elevate right here. First is Circadian who continues to smash things up post Prototypes with this wild dancefloor turbo boost. Think Breakbeat Kaos with added diesel power, it's an absolute monster. Sri Lanka's IYRE meanwhile brings more of a housey type of touch with big filtered chords and a rising sense of momentum that pays off more and more with every 16. Good vibes.
Review: The most prolific man in drum & bass, Conrad Subs returns to Ray Keith's Dubplate Dread for the first time since 2020 with a humungous wedge of wallopers. Seven cuts in total, each one of them tailored for those magic 3am moments, big moments range from the gruesome growls and grizzles of 'Octavirus' to the pure raucous shreds and slaps of the title track 'Real Dread', a cut which really does live up to its name. Oh boy, this could well be Conrad Subs' mightiest EP so far, which is really saying something. Real talk.
Review: Melinki and Shodan on Rebel Music? Now this is a serious meeting of the minds! Proper adult tackle, too, as you'd expect. 'Revenant' is all about the boa constrictor like bassline slugging around the gaff, prone to crush at any minute, while 'I Don't Need' takes us more of a rampant junglised spree, all turbo breaks and a gritty sense of urgency. Finally we hit the sonic skids with 'Bleak'. Proper grumbly, grizzly moody drum & bass for late night basements. High grade.
Start Barkiing (feat Madrush MC - Serial Killaz remix) - (5:42) 174 BPM
T>I & Kontakt - "Format" - (4:29) 175 BPM
Tremors (T>I remix) - (5:48) 177 BPM
Review: Just when the sound technician at the club thinks they've got an easy night ahead of them, along comes Kontakt with 'Redlines At Dawn'. Overdriving your mixer with every sharp kick and gnarly bass texture, the whole EP is an absolute steamroller of a session and includes a few familiar faces... Serial Killaz flip 'Start Barking' into a whole dog pound of ruffage while T>I appears on the final two cuts... 'Format' sees him joining Kontakt for a dark and stripped back cut in the form of 'Format' while the EP concludes with a T>I remix of Kontakt's 2022 Richter scale ruiner 'Tremors'. Shake it baby!
Review: Back on Pick The lock for the first time in a long time, Kormz brings the storms with this almighty six-pack track attack. Taking off where he last left us with last year's 'Collusion' EP on Nemesis, it's an intense trip into the fieriest corners of his DAW and a place where some really grotty sound designs ooze out of the speakers. Vibes range from the bone-shakingly tearing and gnarly ('Stick') to greasy, deep and offkey ('Desolate') via strange other-worldly trippy funk ('Sh*t Connection') And that's only half of it. Shots fired!
Review: The legendary DJ Hybrid is back in business with another top quality collection, unloading four garage-inspired bumpers on this brand new EP. The title track 'Flex Ya Chest' takes centre stage from the off, exploring old school garage vocal overlays and hard hitting sublines to kick the EP off in serious style. Next, a 140 VIP mix of 'Big Four Five', utilising a hard hitting vocal line atop a bed of quivering LFO lines and choppy drum textures, before the super smooth sub notation of 'All For You' gives us another thunderous display in close pursuit. Finally, 'Area Code' ups the pace significantly with a dancefloor-ready rumbler, focussing on fidgeting synth lines and smooth pads to give us a slightly alternative closer.
Review: Montenegro-based rework maestro Mitiko (real name Sasha Mitich) has been a busy boy this year, with this EP-turned-mini album marking his sixth missive of 2024 to date. There's plenty to get the blood pumping and the feet moving across the seven tracks on show, from the lightly housed up vocal disco rush of 'Along With You' and the filter-sporting Afro-disco joy of 'Fungi Mama', to the slow-motion disco-funk headiness of 'Ghost' and the build-and-release excellence of the stomping, string-laden peak-time disco of 'Peak At You'. Those seeking mid-tempo thrills are catered for via 'Get Up and Boogie', while 'Latin Hustle' is a memorable revision of a Spanish language dancefloor gem.
Review: Belgian badness! Akai gets busy with his most comprehensive and accomplished EP to date. 'Trouble Shooter' sets the scene in all the best ways; to the point, sweary an loaded with a powerful siren style of bass rip. It's backed up all the way by three more supreme dancefloor flatteners; 'Space Invader' is loaded with all kinds of weird and wonderful bass textures, twists and turns, 'Ego Tripper' is an all-out slab of total and utter laser bass militancy while 'Throwback' balances the feels with a big vibrant EDM hook. What a package. Invaders must live!
Review: Kerri Chandler continues to mine the untapped depths of his musical vaults and here serves up a third dose of previously unreleased gems. Chandler first offers up 'Let It (Give Me Back My Love)', a typically joyful, hip-swinging and effortlessly groovy chunk of vocal deep house featuring Abbie Lee, before reaching for fluid piano motifs, super-soulful male vocals (possibly his own) and Kenny Dope style broken house beats on 'Another Dawn'. 'The Bassline (Kerri's Dark Mix)' is a moody, percussive and infectious slab of early morning house, while 'The Breeze (Original Mix)' is a drum machine driven box jam that deftly showcases Chandler's immense skill as a beat programmer.
Review: 2024 was always going to be a year of surprises, and the latest release on Rekids is testament to that. Man Power hooks up with the Paris-based Louisahhh for an unexpected anthem in waiting. The title track is an expansive deep house track. At its heart is a pulsating bass combined with Louisahhh's freeform narrative about the state of the world. As befits such a modern classic, Rekids has commissioned Deetron to deliver three remixes. The dub version is a joyous UR-style deep techno version, while the main version follows a similar trajectory, powered by thunder claps and outer space tones. Keeping the audience guessing, Deetron also delivers a 'Drum & Bass' version that focuses on high-paced techno, while the 'Bleep Tool' ends the release to the sound of glistening tonal bliss.
Review: Nick Curly showcases his mastery of the underground house scene with the "Come Right Back" EP, released through Cécille Records! Hailing from Mannheim, Germany, Curly's influence spans two decades, with his imprint 8bit shaping the city's distinct sound. "Come Right Back" kicks off the EP with Curly's trademark swinging drum groove, fused with a filtered disco loop and choppy stabs, crafting a dance floor-focused workout. On "Arkum", Curly delves into deeper, darker realms, blending organic percussion and gritty bass stabs with tension-building strings and spoken word vocal chops, resulting in a loop-driven, subtly unfurling peak-time tool with its subtle intricacies.
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