Review: Sully is back on Astrophonica, after his previous EP "Swandive", this time teaming up with the talented Manchester vocalist Salo for a truly unique soundscape. The track "Nights" showcases a surprising departure from Sully's signature style. Instead of the usual gritty Jungle breaks, he opts for a cleaner, sharper drum sequence that perfectly complements the stripped-down bassline. This minimalist approach creates a clear canvas for Salo's sweet yet melancholic vocals to soar, leaving a lasting impression. The "Not Just a Dub Mix" offers a contrasting perspective on the track. Sully infuses Salo's vocals with a classic "Tubby" treatment, bringing back the familiar Jungle breaks and pulsating sirens for a club-ready atmosphere.
Review: Oh gosh! Now this is how you start a new year... Kick off your label on a digital flex with two absolute jungle monsters. Bossman Sully brings all the certainty you need to melt faces and grind bones down to a bare nub with the 98-era Bristol style swashbuckle of 'XT'. Meanwhile fellow uncompromising jungle craftsman Basic Rhythm brings a little 'Woozy' wallop to the party. Molten, loose limbed, great fun. This is such a killer release!
Review: As always with Sully, we have no idea what to expect going into this brand new two-track display on Uncertain Hour, only that it's going to cause a ruckus regardless of its direction. First up, a junglist's dreamboat as 'Extant' lands with immediate impact, creating a stunning mesh of reverberated vocal samples and choppy drum samples, giving us an instant look into the vibe of the project. On the flip, 'Stop' switches the flavours up entirely, focussing on hi-ended breaks sample chops and an overall sense of eeriness, pairing off perfectly with the A-side to create a very well balanced drop.
Review: Sully's latest swansong has been stimulating murmurs of excitement over the last few months, the type of hype that you get rarely enough to know it means something special. Swandive has landed on Fracture's Astrophonica and the result is a four-tracker of potent creativity, a crashing jungle release that blends the genre's recognisable core with a heady dose of experimentation. Its title tune is the best example; a fractious melee of elbows and knees, a perfectly judged progression from spacey pads to all-encompassing percussive persuasion. It's really hard to describe this track as it's like nothing else you'll have heard before, but it lays down the law for the rest of the EP and 'Werk' is especially good as well. Unbelievable Jeff.
Review: Fresh his Keysound D&B opus Blue, Sully returns to Astrophonica with four pristine slabs of breakbeat science. "Flock" places the full strength melodic elements over the faraway amen echoes in a way that's not dissimilar to early Good Looking. "Helios" is a much colder flashback to the darker corners of jungle's formative dance; all breathy minor key chords and vapour trails of paranoia countered neatly by a precision dub vocal sample. "Crystal Cuts" recalibrates the focus to the drums by way of broad jazz chord strokes while "Hours/Miles & Still" concludes affairs on an emotional electronica tip where the breakbeats thanks to a beautifully arresting intro. Powerful.
Review: A cheeky game of swapsie: earlier this year Basic Rhythm and Sully went side-for-side on this lovely Full Cycle-flavoured double A from Basic Rhythm's label Musique Nocturne. Now time for the second half as the guys pass parts rebuild each other's monsters. Both succeed in a beautiful ways; BR adds Krust Warhead style push and development of Sully's swinging 'XT' while Basic Rhythm's 'Woozy' is chiselled into a menacing stepper by Sully. Two absolutely exceptional remixes of two already stonking originals. Essential.
Review: Sully is renowned for being amongst the best of the bunch in terms of new-school jungle music and the intricacy with which he lays down synths, vocals and samples before undercutting them with drums and basses is genuinely sublime. 'Dream Sequence' is a perfect example. The first two minutes consists of a rising crescendo of celestial synth magic, a bulging melody eventually collapsing into a bass-filled void of quick touch drums and atmospheric depth. The flip side is made of sterner stuff. You can tell right away, as a weighty synth crashes down the range amidst eerie pads and background suspense, the bass when it comes in growling, pulsing and fracturing the track but in a good way. Another startlingly good single from man like Sully.
Review: After dropping the fine tones of long player "Carrier" back in 2011, Sully is back on Keysound with a sizable package of jungle infected wares that give a lot of the break revivalists a run for their money. Working in some of those mystical chime tones favoured by label mates Wen and others, "Solitaire" rolls on a perfectly nailed jungle skank that harks back to the era when the sound didn't need to be aggressive but rather meditative. "Checkmate" makes an interesting job of reducing the breaks down to a bare minimum, while "Charms" gets more lively and playful in its demeanour. Throughout this eight-tracker jungle is the key influence, and yet the ideas flit around with the innocence and wonder of anything considered 'classic' in the genre.
Review: Following a thunder run on the likes of Black Acre, Rua and Railroad, Sully returns to Keysound with his third album Escape and from the moment the beatless intro whisks into the mix you know he means business. Ripping through his soundscape we're treated to snare-rattling sci-fi grime ("Casablanca") a two-part gully space trip ("Assembly 1 & 2") industrial strength 23rd century UKG ("Bullseye") and vicious, head-melting old school amen-snapping jungle ("Vanta") All sounds and ideas joined with signature consistency, Sully's showcase has never been sharper.
Review: Premiership stinker merchant Sully returns to camp Rua for a cheeky amen sesh on their Foxy Jangle imprint. "Soundboy Don't Push Your Luck" is a system killer with overwhelmingly savage choppage that rifles up and down the pitch spectrum like you're being massage by a cement mixer. "38ft High & Rising" flips the vibe for more of a classic Sully soul-out, all shiny guitars and positive vibes but still fully charged with an epic and precision detailed drum arrangement. No one is doing it quite like Sully right now.
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