Tag Archives: Dispatch Recordings

Best Albums of 2014

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2014 has been a great year for D&B and another great year for LPs, so with the year drawing to a close we thought we’d run down our favourite full length releases this year. In no particular order…

Kimyan Law – Coeur Calme [Blu Mar Ten Music]

Kimyan’s debut LP impressed us greatly upon it’s initial release, and it’s an album that has only improved upon repeated listens. Blending influences from D&B with elements of soul, world music, ambient and plenty more besides, this is one of the most musical releases this year and a great start to what should be a promising career.

Tokyo Prose – Presence [Samurai Music]

Samurai’s reputation for quality and depth is legendary, and the debut LP from kiwi producer Tokyo Prose fits that MO perfectly. Featuring some excellent collaborations with the likes of Synkro, LSB and Lenzman, the album features a coherence and flow that many LPs lack, and some of the finest deep liquid tracks of the year. Essential listening.

Cern – Under Another Sky [Dispatch Recordings]

Cern’s LP slipped under the radar here at the Dojo on initial release, but thankfully we got the chance to catch up with it over the holiday season. The level of atmosphere and depth on show here is stunning, not to mention the precise engineering, intricate drum programming and overall detail that Cern has brought to the table. The album is an unapologetically dark, experimental release, with few (if any) of the tracks aimed at the dancefloor, and is all the better for it.

Future Beats: The Album [31 Recordings]

31 Recordings late entry to the 2014 LP battle has garnered near universal acclaim, and with good reason; few other compilations bring such a breadth of styles at such a high quality across such a massive selection of tracks. It’s great to see the label supporting new producers alongside old hands like Calibre and Klute, not to mention pushing the envelope with truly innovative sounds.

Ulterior Motive – The Fourth Wall [Metalheadz]

Last but by no means least, Ulterior Motive’s sonic journey through their experiences of Drum & Bass has provided both dancefloor anthems and deeper vibes. Tracks like Tape Pack and INTA-National have been killing floors at raves across the world since the LPs release, and the duos range has never been stronger.

Survival – The Unreleased Album [Dispatch Recordings]

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Dispatch present their latest innovation – a full album of previously unreleased material from Survival, available only on USB stick. Quite a fetching laser etched stick too – if you’re a fan of USB based DJing this should be right up your street.

The album proves a nice mix of material, with Survival’s usual gritty tech-edged rollers sitting alongside some more unusual beats like the deep, downtempo vibes of In Two Minds. Check out clips of some of the tracks below and head over to the Dispatch Store to grab one (or to grab a blank USB stick in the same style).

SCAR – Call It What You Want EP [Dispatch Recordings]

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SCAR continue their assault on the D&B scene with four fresh new beats for Dispatch Recordings. Call It What You Want heads straight in with warped bass and rolling breaks for an atmospheric tech workout that should have more than enough juice to move a dancefloor or two. Dank follows suit with a slightly more stripped back beat and some big squelchy bass rumblings driving the tune along.

Twice Shy is pure dancefloor fodder, with an old school set of stabs and a catchy bass riff giving the tune a good stomping rhythm. Last but not least Zero One switches things up with chopped up breaks and creepy FX combining nicely on the EP’s least conventional track.

You can check out the title track from the EP below – full audio previews and pre-order are available at the Dispatch Store. Look out for this on vinyl and digital from November 24th.

Dispatch Dubplate Series

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Dispatch have been making waves once again with the launch of their latest project, the Dispatch Dubplate series. Featuring new tracks, remixes and VIPs from the Dispatch Stable (including one vinyl exclusive track per release) and a limited press of 300 copies per release, vinyl fans will need to be quick off the block to lay hands on these!

The theme from the series so far has been no nonsense rolling techstep, with the first release featuring a big dirty Break remix of DLR, Hydro, Mako & Villem’s The Formula and DLR & Xtrah’s long sought after Direct Approach. Vol. 2 is no slouch either, with Survival serving up the Outlook VIP of Dub Soldier and the flip featuring two fresh cuts from SCAR, including a vinyl only VIP of Call To Arms.

Volume 1 has already sold out on the Dispatch store and volume 2 looks set to follow, so head over to Redeye or the Dispatch store swiftly if you want to pick up the vinyl releases; digital is set to follow from November 10th. The latest news from the Dispatch Facebook feed has unveiled the tracklisting for Vol.3 including Break & DLR’s Murmur VIP, a new VIP of DLR’s Tugboat and a fresh new DLR track in the form of Regeneration, while Ant TC1’s latest mix for Bassic reveals that Zero T & Alix Perez’s 2007 banger Ladders is set to finally receive a release via the Dubplate series.

Here at the Dojo we’ve enjoyed the first two releases so much we decided to put together a cheeky vinyl only Dispatch Dubplates mini-mix; check that out below (or directly on Mixcloud here) and head over to your favourite outlet to grab the plates while you still can!

[mixcloud http://www.mixcloud.com/DnBDojo/dispatch-dubplate-minimix/ width=580 height=300 hide_cover=1 hide_tracklist=1]

Freebie Roundup

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Time for another roundup of the best freebies to land in the Dojo inbox in recent days. So in no particular order…

Cern drops a meaty slice of tech D&B to celebrate the impending launch of his Under Another Sky LP for Dispatch Recordings. Check that out below and click the download arrow on the widget to grab a copy.

Diffrent drop a nice little freebie from Andy Pain ahead of the imminent release of their latest single – head over to Bandcamp to grab this one. Chunky beats and plenty of swagger.

[bandcamp width=100% height=120 track=1251034705 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false artwork=small]

Leeds tech outfit Transmission Audio have got a cheeky half-stepper from label boss Altered Perception and frequent collaborator Automate; once again you can grab via the Soundcloud player below.

One of the editors at NeurofunkGrid is kindly giving away the personalised VIP he won as part of backing Gridlok & Prolix’s Project Trendkill LP kickstarter last year. Fans of the album should definitely be all over this – grimey neuro vibes! Hit up Mediafire for this one.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCrPrPnw_Lo]

Last but by no means least Free Love Digi have not one but *two* great new freebies; first up there’s a dark roller from Kaset to celebrate his new single for the label (which is out on Monday), and label bossman Quentin Hiatus is giving away a collaboration with Thomas B and Ghast which pushes the boundaries at the edge of the 170BPM envelope. Once again downloads available via the Soundcloud players below.

Hyroglifics – Terra [Dispatch LTD]

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Fresh from his futuristic bass excursions for Critical’s new Binary imprint, Hyroglifics touches down on Dispatch as part of the latest release in their LTD series. Terra is all about the bass textures, with ominous pads and a solid techstep backbeat providing the framework for a hefty bass growl, powering the tune along with tons of sizzle.

Tize sees Hyroglifics teaming up with Kolectiv for another slice of dark, atmospheric tech business; this time the emphasis is definitely more on the beats with the tune rolling along to a fearsome kick/snare riddim punctuated by weighty sub and all manner of additional bassline stabs.

Last but by no means least, The Fear rounds off the release with another deep dark stepper. This time it’s a huge team at the controls as Kolectiv, Dexta, Maouq and Kyrist all get in on the act. Angular rhythms and more creepy pads are the order of the day here; one for the heads as much as the dancefloor, but weighty nonetheless. Check out the clips below and head over to the Dispatch Store where you can grab this now prior to full release on Monday.

Mako – Back To The Source EP [Dispatch Recordings]

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Mako continues to cement his position in the scene with a new EP for Dispatch Recordings featuring four tracks inspired by the classic sounds of 90s D&B origins. Utopia Music alumni and frequent collaborator Villem brings his studio skills to the table for the first track, bringing tonight intricate break-work, atmosphere and bass heft in the style that Mako exercises so well.

Planet Physical takes things in a darker direction, blending modern techstep bass and production sheen with the helter-skelter drum patterns of jungle. Vocal snippets interspersed in the track explore Mako’s obvious interest in philosophy; maybe a few ravers might scratch their heads in the dance a bit for good measure. Ya Know What I’m Sayin continues the drum workout, with simple sub hits and a driving energy giving the composition tons of pace.

Last but by no means least, There’s Nothing We Can’t Be brings huge reverbed snares and atmospheric synths for a softer, more melodic track full of quirky samples and musicality – a great swan song to an EP that feels like Mako really settling into his abilities as a producer and experimenting freely with the flexible form that is D&B. Check out the clips below and head over to the Dispatch Store to grab an early copy before the general release on July 7th.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-9LvJsaYIw&list=PLRcyxRjocmcCtoPBHd9sOtLmas0pnGnhR]

Zero T & Script – Guessing Games (Bailey Remix) [Dispatch Recordings]

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Dispatch Recordings get busy with a big 12″ featuring a pair of techy dancefloor rollers from some of the biggest names in the game. Bailey makes a rare production appearance to remix Zero T & Script’s Guessing Games, taking the atmosphere and heft of the original and turning in a tougher relick. Those drums! Punchy business.

Next up production wonder-duo SCAR return to Dispatch with Spectre, aiming for the chest with a rolling break and savage bass hits. This one’s sure to provoke a few gun fingers on the dancefloor!

Those of you who’ve kept your eyes on the Dispatch Store may already have snagged a (now sold out) advance vinyl copy. For the rest of you, check out the clips below and watch out for the full release dropping from June 23rd.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VX8sA240PoY]

SCAR – Call To Arms EP [Dispatch]

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Dispatch return with a storming EP from Survival and Script in their new SCAR collaborative alias. As you’d expect from both the producers and the label this is heavy tech D&B at it’s finest with every kick, snare and mangled bassline perfectly placed for maximum impact.

Burnside gets the EP off to a fine start with a precise yet raw slice of dark, rolling drum & bass. Call To Arms ups the ante with a seriously broody intro the builds suspense all the way from the initial snares, through the ominous stab samples and into the groaning bass of the drop. Screwfaces at the ready!

Out into the back side of the EP the duo get creative on Time Constant with some nice clattering breaks and plenty of tasty drum edits, while Dodgy Dalek aims for sheer groove and succeeds in ample measure. SCAR are clearly a duo to watch this year if this EP is anything to go by. Head on over to the Dispatch Store or Surus to grab it now!

Nickbee – Empty Your Mind LP [Dispatch Ltd]

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Nickbee is a producer we’ve been keeping a close eye on for the past couple of years here at the Dojo and 2013 in particular has seen him cementing his position in the scene with tunes on Noisia’s Invisible imprint, a single on Bad Taste and a huge EP for Jade’s Eatbrain label. It seems somewhat appropriate that his debut album sees him return to Dispatch Ltd, the label that put out one of his first releases in 2011.

The Ukrainian producer has taken full advantage of the scope of a full length release to explore other tempos, with interesting takes on Dubstep (Inspiration), Deep House (Kloe) and Garage (Subterra collaboration Black & White) appearing alongside the usual tough D&B rhythms. There’s even some downtempo on Moonlight, a track absolutely drenched in atmosphere and space, and album closer One More Breath.

The D&B doesn’t disappoint either, with highlights coming of the titular Empty Your Mind and Updown, both proving to be well produced slices of rolling techstep. The only criticism I can really level at the album is that the transition between tracks sometimes jars a little; some interludes or a mixed version of the album would have been a nice touch, but this is a minor complaint in the scheme of things.

Check out the clips below and grab yourself a copy on vinyl or digital now!