The Upbeats touch down on Dieselboy’s Subhuman imprint with a monstrous slice of drumstep in the form of Predator. All caution and subtlety has been thrown to the wind here in favour of snarling bass danger and an absolutely stomping half-time kick/snare drum beat. Check it out below and grab a copy from your favourite digital outlet now!
Optiv & BTK return to Dispatch Recordings with a pair of stomping techy beats sure to move a few floors over the coming months. Tapout provides classic rolling techstep vibes in the signature Optiv & BTK style, but the real star of the show is Zero Tolerance, cooking things up with a skittering jungle-style beat and a deadly bass riff.
Check out the clips below and watch out for the release dropping from January 13th.
Matt McGowan returns to Brain Network with another top-notch release showcasing his impressive talents for progressive neurofunk. Over Zero kicks off with a ton of atmosphere on the intro, building the tension with brooding synths and a hip-hop style beat as the moving bassline starts to rise into the mix. The inevitable kick-drum crescendo lifts us into a meaty drop as twin basslines fight back and forth over the rolling beats before giving way to more melodic elements; epic stuff!
The Demon provides ample B-side relief with a more straight-forward balls to the wall composition – heavy beats, eerie pads and a bassline which is frankly just menacing. If you’re looking for subtlety you’ll find little of it here, but if you’re looking for dancefloor danger you’ll find it in spades.
With beats like these coming out of the studio McGowan is clearly one to watch for 2014! Check out the clips below and watch out for the release dropping via Beatport from Jan 6th and elsewhere from the 20th!
Amoss celebrate 9000 followers on Soundcloud with a menacing amen smasher in the form of The Kirbis. Weird mid-bass reverberations and hefty, angular breaks characterise the tune with creepy tones adding to the tension in the bridge…lovely. Check it out and grab yourself a free download!
Leeds label Transmission Audio return with their third release featuring beats from Victim and Skepsis. Victim delivers a tight, detailed techy roller on the A side but for me it’s all about Skepsis’ Wicked Devil on the flip; possibly the most savage tune I have heard from 2013’s releases, falling short of only Billain’s Boogie. Make no mistake, this is a relentless dancefloor pulverising machine! Check out the beats below and grab a copy from your favourite digital outlet now!
dBridge & Kid Drama (aka Jon Convex) return with the second of their Heart Drive mixes, coyly titled Empathy Reboot. Unlike previous installment Aut0mated L0ve, this time the tracklist is kept entirely secret…we’re guessing the tunes will surface over the coming months, but who can tell? As you’d expect the mix is full of cutting edge experimental beats, ranging from dark and growling to deep and soulful. Check it out below and grab yourself a free download!
After an exceptional 2013 Automate continue their push on the varied fronts of D&B with the third release on their Deep imprint from Australian producer Fuj. Pressure Plates proves as menacing as it is musical, with hints of dub layered into a mix of tribal halftime drum rhythms and growling bass. This may not be a full-tempo roller but it packs a mighty punch!
Over on the flip Terror Firmer dials things back a touch while amplifying the levels of tensions and gloom; ominous synths and deep sub bass pervade the mix with occasional swipes of distorted midrange reaching out of the tune to knock you off balance. The second half of the tune brings things full roll quite nicely, providing DJs with a useful weapon for switching between halftime and full frontal beats.
Fuj is definitely one to watch for 2014! Check out the beats below and watch out for this one dropping at all good digital outlets from Jan 20th.
Optiv & CZA continue their fine trend of hook-based rolling techstep with a pair of straight up dancefloor killers for Cause4Concern Recordings. Full-roll beats, dark modulated bass and that instantly recognisable C4C sound…there’s not much more to say really! Check out the clips below and watch out for the release dropping from Jan 6th.
Horizons Music round off a great year with a cheeky new EP of deeper beats from Need For Mirrors and HLZ. The titular Rotor provides a dubbed out atmosphere and brooding bassline for a tune that is all groove; simple, but perfectly engineered. Pantheon ups the ante with a plethora of percussion fills giving the main break urgency and bassline modulations adding to the texture under lush top end synth work.
Actress heads for darker territory, stripping back the pads and hitting in with agressive snares and punchy bass hits. Finally we’re treated to another groove-led production in the form of Broadwalk, with a precise break and a simple yet memorable bassline taking centre stage over a backdrop of subtle pads and swells. Check out the beats below and grab yourself a copy on vinyl or digital from the Horizons Store!
New label Addictive Behaviour launch their debut release with a selection of tight, techy beats from four of the hottest up and coming producers on the scene. Detail opens the salvo with Lost Time, a slice of robotic funk that takes a few pages from the book of Phace, without going in quite as hard as the German neuro don tends to hit us. Next up Eastcolors delivers the twisted, warped sounds of Mad Day. Eerie synth sounds on the intro give way to groaning modulated bass and a driving drum beat that keeps the tune rolling along with a fearsome precision.
L33 offers up some interesting sounds on Discrete, with what sounds like plucked strings blending nicely with a minimal yet techy composition. Finally Minor Rain takes us on an old-school tinted ride, modern neurofunk bass combining nicely with the classic synth stabs of early Virus Recordings material. Equal parts dancefloor sensibilities, technicality and attention to detail, fans of the cleverer side of techstep should definitely give this EP a look. Check out the clips below and pick up a copy now!