Review: Released last year after a long lockdown incubation, Scar's third album Road Less Travelled was one of Metalheadz most notable LPs in recent times, proving once again that Survival and Script are an certified album act who can whip up epic narratives without losing any dancefloor punch. Here they remind us once again with a series of VIPs from themselves and friends such as Zero T and Nookie. Highlights include the sweeping thunderous sub on 'Losing Your Mind', the slippery, bad ass space funk twist on the VIP of 'Conductor' and Artificial Intelligence's creepy flip of 'Caterpillar'. Keep it scenic.
Review: Following massive albums 'Orkyd Project' and 'High Fives & Devil Eyes', Script and Survival return with their third LP and it's an absolute hoot. Maintaining their high benchmark for journey-like experiences that are rich in emotion and soaked in big references that celebrate the last 30 years of D&B culture, 'The Road Less Travelled' is a whirlwind trip around some of the most exciting and uncompromising corners of drum & bass. 'Caterpillar' doffs its cap to Virus, 'Bravo Tango' is all about the big old bruising classic Bristol sound while 'Santa Cruz' winks saucily at movements like Creative Source... these are just three examples. Complete with a range of interesting and experimental skit-like shorts, there's a real flow and timeless feel to this. The way an album should be!
Review: Dubplate damage: Dispatch let rip with another killer exclusive bounty featuring three of its most talented artists. DLR & Script's "This Is Bristol" echoes with the city's rich jungle heritage as jazzy motifs, cosmic textures and glacial drums fuse full circle in the darkest-yet-dreamiest way possible. Script appears on "Burnside VIP" too as one half of Scar with Survival as their earliest collaborative release, "Burnside" gets a ruthless interrogation and a dank night in the choky. Banged up.
Review: Survival and Script's project has developed such serious momentum over the last 18 months, for many SCAR is now bigger than their individual personas. This four-track return to Metalheadz is a fine example; "Better Than Me" is all about the eerie cries and moans laced over rattlesnake beats and distinctive Headz motifs on the fills. "Runaway" switches the cries and moans to breathy calls and spine-melting pads while "Shadows" is one of the duo's first full vocal tracks... And, unlike many vocal cuts, it loses none of its full strength punch in any way. The real highlight, though, is "Liar". The climax session of the EP, the bass is so rugged and metallic you could actually make a bullet proof jacket out of it. Uncompromising.
Review: Quashing rumours that they're named after the devious evil baddie in Lion King with every single scud they fire off, Scar return with their first EP of the year. After two trample sessions on Dispatch, they're back on the motherlabel with four more gnarly quashers; "Leave Off" punches with a big swathing hook and bone-snapping kicks while "Out Of Perspective" rolls with such immense steel drum gusto you won't need to shave for a week while "Born Again" takes us right back to Blue Note era otherworldliness. Made to damage the dance and push the DJ to mix creatively, this asks more questions than it answers. Finally "Close My Eyes" completes the circle of life with a blissed and blessy soulful switch up graced with the soothing dulcets of Martyna Baker. Natural born (again) killers.
Review: Only two years have passed since Survival & Script unleashed their Scar project but already it feels like they've been part of the D&B landscape forever. Their grand scope of heritage and shared futurist vision has ensured each document is as weightier than the last... And their debut album The Orkyd Project is set to be so heavy we may need a new server store it. Tuck into these three sampler tracks for proof: Naomi Pryor's vocals get two stunning deep night contexts while "Yours" and "Punch Drunk" both slap with industrial glee. Bring on the full album!
Review: Second albums are meant to be difficult but you tell that to Survival and Script and they'll laugh in your prudy little face: Scar's follow up to The Orkyd Project is another remarkable body of work. The first of a three album deal the London duo have with Metalheadz (the first ever deal the label have ever offered any artist) High Fives & Devil Eyes is a powerful jolt of timeless D&B that dig deep into every corner of the genre. From the alluring intro of "Circle Of Trust" to the deep, introspection of the finale "Eternal" via the wonky-assed "Pauline", the scuzzy gritty bass of "First Sound" and trippy funk of the album title track, the only difficult thing about this second album is working out which tune you want to play in your sets first. High fives all round!
Review: After what feels like an eternity of samplers and social media teasers, Metalheadz drop Survival & Script's debut Scar album.... And the wait has been completely worth it. Ranging from space-aged halftime grime ("Your Mistake") to incredible vocal-laced drum drama ("Renegade Kicks") by way of 23rd century cosmic soul ("Temptation") and straight-up gritty steppers ("Fractions"), skippy breaks ("The Rocket") and jazzy, funkier workouts ("You Were Here Again"), this completely compounds all the duo's successes so far and puts them on a much wider map. A serious album with depth, dynamics and soul. D&B albums like this don't come round very often...
Review: Almost four years have passed since Survival & Script first got together and the beats continue to keep flowing at a staggeringly consistent and a-class rate. Capturing the raw, rolling essence of drum & bass with every production, here are four more examples of their on-pointness: "Twisted" is a tunnelling slab of 1999 with a bassline that purrs from here to Omicron Persei-8, "Break It" is straight up tribal funk while "Native Girl" is a shaker-rattled roller with beautifully alluring vocal textures. Finally "Wake Up" bids us cheerio with a twisted two-step and a rampant technoid slap. Scarred for life.
Review: Since making their debut on Dispatch Survival and Script have gone on to genuinely scar the D&B landscape with their unforgiving, unrelenting dynamics. "Palermo" is the latest chapter in this next-level narrative; all bendy bass that groans and moans with disturbing demonic textures, it's one for the latest of hours. "Over Easy" is a little deeper as the bass sits back a touch and allows the crisp drums to take up a little more of the spotlight. Finally we hit "Screen Test", the most subversive track of this razor-sharp trio, the drums switch and step with pristine precision while another demonic bass message makes itself clear. Massive.
Review: We've been waiting for this since Doc Scott fired up his old ThirtyOne machine just over a year ago. A 24-track collection of stone cold exclusives, this bucks any expectations of the label and its remit and celebrates the very best creativity in all shades of drum & bass. Littered with the best names in the game (Calibre, Nucleus & Paradox, Bungle, Loxy & Resound, Scar, Marcus Intalex and many many more), each cut pushes the bass and riddim envelope with stark, uncompromised creativity and production muscle. The ultimate document of where the best D&B is at, this is nothing short of essential.
Review: If your immediate reaction to the news that Horizons have released a 17-track behemoth to celebrate their tenth year in existence wasn't total joy and amazement, you might not have a pulse. As a heavyweight label at the centre of the darker end of the scene, this LP has attracted mainstay names to come and show support, resulting in the most enviable roll call of the year. Kicking off with Break, artists as diverse and as legendary as Mako & Hydro, DLR, Need For Mirrors, Skitty and NickBee all come forth to spread the deep, dark, and at times industrial, love.
Review: Whether you've been following the artistry of Horizons Music's endless supply of incredible artists for years or you're new to its way of running things, this selection of the freshest 2014 cuts is going to float your boat. Featuring lush tones from Calibre and Grimm, pared-back ferocity from Digital and huge underground anthems like "Nevada Ghost" and "Half Truth" coming from Cern and Overlook and need For Mirrors, Dabs and HLC, it's hard to believe this much came from just 12 months. Not only that, but it emanated from just one label powerhouse. Horizons, we salute you.
Review: Three years have passed since Horizon last rallied up the troops and embarked on a dead-night brain-burgling Dreamthief parade. As always it's an all-star cast with the likes of Amoss, Break, Naibu, Digital, Mikal, Mako, Need For Mirrors and many more cooking up some of their starkest, uncompromised and innovative cuts: the tight conga hypnosis of Breaks "Headway", the turbo piano rolls of Invaderz "Dukes Drift", the sublime cinematic jazz soul of Hydro & War's "Jam", the cascading, twinkling textures of Naibu's "Time Out", the neck-snap amen mechanica of Digital's "Spark Cut"... If this is the soundtrack to our innermost stories being syphoned from our heads at our most vulnerable sleeping states then sign us up and take the lot. Sweet dreams of thieved of this.
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