We’re proud to present the premiere of a sublime deep liquid roller from Slovakian producer Changing Faces out today on Fokuz Recordings. Inside Your Mind brings together crisp breaks, soft melodies and occasional crunchy bass swells for an emotional ride which fits the Fokuz sound perfectly; blissful stuff.
You can grab the track (along with a rather tasty Calibre remix of Impish’s With You) from Beatport, or hit up the Fokuz Store to get it on 12″.
Time for another look at the best of the rest for the past couple of weeks with new releases from London Elektricity, No Rules & Torn, Hex and more…
After a short hiatus, Blu Mar Ten Music are back with more effortlessly beautiful music, this time from US producer Akuratyde. The Embrace EP occupies the same sort of musical space as artists like Kiyoko or Ulrich Schnauss; glistening pads, an air of melancholy and the influence of ambient and IDM characterise the recordings far more than the influence of conventional D&B, particularly on the EP’s first two tracks. Embrace and Lights In My Eyes both relegate beats and bass to a modest supporting role behind the swathes of reverb drenched chords and lush sonic imagery, creating a sense of distance and longing.
The second half of the EP sees a slight shift towards more beat driven compositions, with Time Left Behind exploring the halftime tempo with crisp but understated percussion under a warm blanket of sub bass and blissful echoing melodies. Sway closes the EP out with what could well be a love letter to Seba or Blu Mar Ten themselves, the release’s most “D&B” track. As usual Blu Mar Ten Music are right on the pulse, bringing us fantastically creative work from a new name we’ll certainly be keeping an eye on in future! Check out the clips below and hit up the Blu Mar Ten Bandcamp to grab a copy right now.
To celebrate the release of his brand new EP for Ingredients Records we’re excited to welcome Monika to the ranks of the DNB Dojo Mix Series! The London-based producer has compiled a fantastic hour long selection of tracks featuring exclusive dubs alongside cuts from the likes of Om Unit, Tokyo Prose, Sam KDC and of course beats from the Observatory EP.
As usual you can check out the mix via Soundcloud below or head to Mixcloud, Hearthis.at or iTunes to stream. You can also grab a download from Dropbox. If you’re enjoying the mix then be sure to hit up the Ingredients Store to grab Monika’s new EP right now!
Monika – ???
DjRum – What I Was Doing When I Was Doing What I Was Doing
Indigo – Condition
Nasty Habits – Shadow Boxing (Om Unit Remix)
Monika – Dusk Till Dawn
Stray – Queen
Alix Perez – Recall & Reflect
Tokyo Prose – Knucklehead
Halogenix – Soulide
Monika – ???
Tenor Fly – Rude Boy Talk (Toddla T & Melé Remix)
Data – Vice
Monika – Observatory
Clarity – Surge
Sam KDC – Erogenous
Theme – Scene 4
Monika – ???
Monika – Jaguar Knight
Monika – The Pulse
Tokyo Prose is a rare producer in the scene, a man whose creations never fail to put a smile on my face. While Sam Reed certainly wasn’t the first to ply the deep, melodic style of Drum & Bass, he’s certainly developed his own voice over the years and his latest work is amongst his best.
Following last year’s Presence LP was always going to be tough given the quality and diversity of that record, but the Dawn Chorus EP feels perfectly pitched in that regard; lesser in scope but finely crafted and showcasing that warmth and emotion that makes his work so special. Whether on the beautiful string section of Dawn Chorus, the effortless downtempo of Vanishing Point or the bright chimes and crisp breaks of Windtalkers, the instrumentation remains beautiful and evocative.
Anyone yet to be persuaded by the gentle depth of the liquid sound may not find anything new to change their mind here, but if you appreciate the more musical side of Drum & Bass then the Dawn Chorus EP provides four tracks you will lose yourself in again and again. Serenity and bliss, softness and speed, feeling and thought, all lovingly packaged at one hundred and seventy beats per minute; it doesn’t get much better than this.
Check out the clips below and hit up the Samurai Store to grab a copy on wax before it inevitably sells out.
SCAR are a perfect example of the whole being greater than the sum of the parts. While Survival and Script are both respectable producers with plenty of solid titles in their respective discographies, their collaborative material as SCAR is a level above, a fact that has led to their rapid ascent through the scene over the past year.
Their latest work for Metalheadz finds them on fine form, exploring deeper musical elements while retaining that rolling techstep heft that defined their first few releases. The title track exemplifies this perfectly, with lush musicality on the intro giving way to a punchy rollout in the verse, and punchy as hell it is too.
Elsewhere Your Move feels like a nod to the classic ‘headz tracks of yesteryear, bringing together chopped breaks and pad-based psychedelia for a fantastic drum workout drenched in muted euphoria and longing. Fall From Grace meanwhile takes an angsty turn, with creepy vocals echoing through the intro before a heavy angular drop, all meaty kicks and snarling reese.
Asides from their obvious talents for groove and engineering, SCAR are managing to inject more emotion into their work than is to be found in the wealth of bombastic but ultimately soulless dance music released every day. For that they should definitely be applauded, so check out the clips below and go grab the EP on vinyl or digital now!
Thing is a busy man. Between dropping tracks for the likes of Doc Scott’s 31 Records and Blu Mar Ten Music the Estonian producer releases a phenomenal quantity of music via his own Dubthing and Depthwise labels.
Thing has been kind enough to take time out of the studio to record our latest exclusive mix, and it’s quite a sonic journey. Starting out with experimental cuts from the likes of Moresounds, Survey and Sam KDC, taking in his brand new inSpace/Crickets single and finishing up with classic techstep from Lemon D and Dillinja, this is a perfectly crafted mix from a serious selector.
As usual you can check out the mix via Soundcloud below or head to Mixcloud, Hearthis.at or iTunes to stream. You can also grab a download from Dropbox. Don’t forget to check out Thing’s new single and his recent Collected Works compilation too!
J. Nomad & Crypticz – Downfall
Ahmad and Konfront Audio – No Escape
Moresounds – Etho
LX ONE – So Gully
Survey – Untitled
Sam KDC & The Untouchables – Alliance
Was a be – Carcosa
Ghost Warrior – Intruders
DAAT – Meat Grinder (Justice & Metro Re-Grind)
Monic – Habits (Monic Version)
DAAT – Fridge (Overlook Remix)
Ahmad – Dissident
Thing – Inspace
Thing – Crickets
Sonis – Killah Sound
Om Unit – Spiritwerk
Dj MADD – Brooklyb Rudeboy
Theory – I Saw You Girl
Mako – Let the truth be heard
Klute – Just What You’re Feeling
Overlook – Distant blues
Photek – Consciousness
Ed Rush & Nico – The Force is Electric
Lemon D – This is LA
Dillinja – The Angels Fell
Bay 6 have been impressing us a lot lately with their deep liquid output so ahead of their Back To Bay 6 EP we tracked down label owner Amphix to get the lowdown on the new release and the label’s plans for the future.
Fresh from some cracking collaborations with Red Army, Epilleptech brings his creepy halftime styles to Terra Null with four fresh new tracks full of character and atmosphere.
The running theme on the EP is definitely darkness, fear and danger, telling sonic tales of aggravation, withdrawal and isolation via the medium of heavy kicks, creepy pads and distorted bass. The results are impressive, making great use of intricate percussion and at times dissonant sounding chords. If you have a taste for the leftfield and an appetite for the darker side of human emotion, you should definitely check this release out.
Check out the clips below and look for the EP dropping from Monday at all good digital stores.
Denver label Plush Recordings come with a nice little slice of halftime jungle from Germanovski, and it’s not hard to see why these cuts have been getting support from the mighty Om Unit!
A suave combo of intricate slow/fast percussion and chopped up R&B vocals define Promise, giving it a hint of garage as well as the obvious junglist sensibilities. Confession meanwhile carries a far more tribal, hypnotic vibe, losing the carefree melodies for a more introspective ambience. Promising stuff from a producer we’re gonna keep an eye on! Check out the clips below and hit up your favourite store to grab a copy now.