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: 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: 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: Hitting us like clockwork, every three months since last October, Exit 100 EPs have been an exceptional journey into the label and everything it's stood for since launching 21 years ago. Over the last two EPs we've had all kinda of beat wizardry and boundary burning but for this one it's all about the cutting edge drum & bass. Each cut is a highlight but Loxy & Resound's 'Tyranny' is a direct trip back to 97, Skeptical & Kid Drama's 'Scorn' is a hearty homage to Krust and Mark System's 'Chinook' is every bit the take-off tune you'd expect from it title. Get to the chopper!
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: 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: 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 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: 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!
Part Of My Soul (feat Rimarkable) - (7:27) 124 BPM
The Music - (7:44) 124 BPM
Radik'Hall - (7:45) 124 BPM
Cosmic Funk - (7:30) 124 BPM
Review: Franck Roger's "Cosmic Tree EP" marks a captivating journey into the realms of deep house, where Parisian finesse meets the legendary aura of NYC's Nu Groove Records. As an esteemed DJ, crate digger, and label maestro of Real Tone Records, Roger's prowess in crafting immersive sonic landscapes is on full display across these four tracks. The EP opens with "Part Of My Soul," a collaborative effort with Detroit luminary Rimarkable. Here, Roger's signature loop-based approach intertwines seamlessly with Rimarkable's vocals, evoking a cool downtown vibe that feels both timeless and fresh. From there, Roger takes the reins solo, delving into the depths of deep club weight with "The Music" and unleashing the percussive groove of "Radik'Hall." However, it's "Cosmic Funk" that truly steals the spotlight, serving as a sublime homage to the genre. Synthy basslines, vocoder rhythms, and ethereal trebles converge in hypnotic harmony, culminating in a transcendent listening experience.
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: 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: Jamie xx and Honey Dijon team up for a floor-filling heater on "Baddy On The Floor," coming hot on the heels of a string of Jamie xx releases over the past few years, including "idontknow," "Let's Do It Again," and most recently, "It's So Good" in January. The track is a disco house fusion, pulsing with a classic energy. Jamie xx expertly weaves a sample of Keni Burke's "Let Somebody Love You" into the production, creating a sense of nostalgic familiarity. Honey Dijon adds their signature touch, infusing the polished sound with a hint of underground club magic. 2024 summer banger!
Decisions (Glitch City Just For Fun Jump Up remix) - (5:08) 175 BPM
Decisions (Sero remix) - (5:56) 175 BPM
Decisions (Whisper remix) - (4:08) 175 BPM
Review: Raising money for MIND, Complex unleashes a breakthrough banger from his past and shares it liberally around a whole crack squad of new gen producers and compo-winning freshmen. Highlights include Fanatics' super wavey synths and switches, Glitch City's spiralling bass plunges that aren't dissimilar to Original Sin and the all-out tear-up session from Whisper who takes those iconic bass wobbles and flips them into pure shred mode. What a collection; the biggest decision is which remix you're going to play first.
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.
Review: Oh dear, it looks like L3MMY Dubz is going to kill us. Let's face it, with sound designs as intoxicating and venomous as L3mmy's, it was only a matter of time before some type of murderation was going to go down... And at least he's taken the time to warn us. What a warning it is, too. The title track is a big bucket of pure froggy grot and it's backed up by three more deadly blows: 'Bone Cruncher' lives up to its name its twisted bit-crushed glitches and sonic slaps, 'Gurgles' is so slimy and stinking it's now the new national anthem for all swamp people across the world while 'It's Horrible' closes the EP on such far out and freaky levels, he's already killed us. RIP everyone!
Review: Paul SG's soulful stable just keeps on serving up the good stuff as two long time members of the Jazzsticks crew roll up with two no-nonsense dancefloor gems. Carter dusts off his keys and trumpet for a silky smooth strut into sunset on 'Outlined' while Decon takes things back to darker, stripped-back ravey edge with some classic stabs and vocal samples on 'So Simple'. Two very different vibes for two very different times of the night; one crucial single. Big up the Jazzsticks massive.
Review: "Emerge" is a phenomenal debut album that cements Berlin-based producer Red Rooms' position as a rising star in techno. The LP seamlessly blends driving energy with subtle experimentation, offering a well-rounded listening experience for techno purists and newcomers alike. Red Rooms' signature sound is on full display throughout the album. Clandestine sonic textures and short, infectious melodies intertwine with the powerful, locked-in grooves that propel each track forward. The album boasts several tracks primed to ignite dance floors. "No Turning Back" is a prime example, with its rave-ready stabs and relentless energy. "Transcendency" offers a more alien twist, merging driving techno with otherworldly drum patterns that will leave listeners mesmerized, while "Cypher" showcases Red Rooms' understanding of minimalism, channeling the spirit of Robert Hood with its stripped-down yet impactful groove. A must-listen.
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