Prolific US experimental beatsmith Quentin Hiatus launches the fourth volume of his I’m Neither Quentin Nor Hiatus album series into your living rooms this week, so to celebrate we asked him to pick through his extensive musical catalogue and pick his five favourite beats.
IM:Ltd’s latest release sees Pennygiles’ Stories Untold getting the remix treatment no less than three times. Nymfo turns in a dank dancefloor refix which keeps the soul of the tune but bolsters it with a tough break and a hefty wall of sub bass, while the flipside of the 12″ sees Pennygiles teaming up with French liquid producer Redeyes for a typically deep and satisfying roller.
Out into the digital extras, Diffrent Music’s Arkaik twists up Stories Untold into a darker and altogether more angular form, while Robustus turns drops things down even deeper with a half-time rework and some nice glitchy touches. Great work as ever from the IM:Ltd camp – check out the clips below and grab this on vinyl and digital now.
IM:Ltd bring us a split single dedicated to breakups from Pennygiles and Phil Tangent. The A-side sees ‘giles delivering an impassioned deep liquid roller that’s characterised by soft pads and tough-edged breaks.
Over on the flip Phil Tangent conjures up lush, bountiful atmospherics with a hint of jazz on the intro before diving in deep with crisp, rolling breaks and warm, inviting sub bass.
Watch out for this one dropping on vinyl and digital from November 25th.
Gerwin’s excellent Lying Portraits single was one of the highlights of IM:Ltd’s output in 2012 so the news it was getting the remix treatment from none other than Zero T and Bungle was music to my ears, if you’ll forgive the pun.
Zero T “reprints” Lying Portaits to great effect, replacing the stepping beat with a rolling liquid break and dropping the 2Shy vocal entirely, leading to a deeper, more cinematic vibe, though retaining some of the bassline’s edge. Meanwhile on the flip, Bungle turns in a deep, dark rolling mix of Soul Truth, with the majesty of his work for Soul:R but a bit more oomph on the low end.
Check out the beats below and watch out for the release dropping on vinyl and digital from October 16th.
IM:Ltd keep the flow of quality releases coming with a top notch EP from Hibea. Title track White Owl is full of character, from the iconic chord stabs to the frantic steel tom syncopation when the break switches gear. Hitting a nice sweet spot between depth and dancefloor sensibilities, this is definitely a tune DJs will be reaching for time and again. Over on the flip Phil Tangent steps up for the remix duty and provides a characteristically soulful refix of The Form.
For the digital lovers, the packages also includes a couple of digital only bonus tracks, with the original mix of The Form and a superb Fade remix of White Owl, bringing the vibes with a techier bassline and a rolling jungle-infused beat. Check out the previews below and look out for this one dropping April 29th.
Gerwin follows up his superb Lying Portraits single with another tidy release for IM:Ltd. Against The Clock packs rolling techy vibes and some serious drum punch that brings to mind some of Octane & DLR’s stripped back numbers, while See Thru Me Eyes takes the drums down a notch to focus on some superbly engineered hollow, warping bass. Check out the previews and grab this one from your favourite digital outlet, out now!
We’ve covered some of the excellent material from IM:Ltd here on DnB Dojo before, and given the two excellent releases they have lined up for March and April, now seemed like a great time to do a little retrospective on the label. Started up in 2009, the French label has been busy putting out a slew of excellent digital releases from a variety of up and coming acts, and has found time to craft a few limited 12″ releases too. The quality and style of the labels output has always leaned towards the deeper, moodier side of Drum & Bass, often eschewing the dancefloor in favour of creating atmospheres better suited to the 6am after party. Favourable comparisons can be drawn to the likes of Data’s output for Horizons, such as Mortem’s excellent Stratos 12″ released back in 2011.
But don’t mistake the imprint for a one trick pony. Not everything you’ll find on show here is merely for the chin-stroking heads; while avoiding out-and-out tearers, the label has definitely put out it’s fair share of insistent steppers such as their releases from Future Signal and Paiton.
All of which brings us up to the here and now, and the impending release of the Aftermath LP. Showcasing a mixture of leftfield Drum & Bass and more downtempo, Autonomic-esque vibes, the 10 track release packs some serious atmosphere. Highlights come from Es.tereo and Marilyn with the sublime Winteria, Calculon who delivers a brilliant clap-and-shuffle floater with Hold Back, and Physical Illusions’ We Feeling What We Doing which features a seriously smooth, laid back flow from MC KryptoMedic.
As though that isn’t enough, IM:Ltd just delivered us some grittier numbers on the aptly titled Hunted EP which dropped earlier this week. The EP heads for decidedly heavier territory than some of the labels previous releases, with some seriously dark bass on show, particularly on Disept’s Course and Kuantum’s rather excellent Lost & Found.
So get over to your favourite digital outlet and check out the tidy back catalogue!
French label IM:Ltd have been going from strength to strength recently and their latest EP Junction 12 is no exception. Due at the end of the month, it showcases the sort of depth and versatility we’ve come to expect from the label, from dark steppers like Kantyze’s Tough Breaker and Quartz’ Armour King to slightly more leftfield vibes like Es.tereo’s autonomic-esque title track.
Check out the tracks below and watch out for this one dropping January 28th!
IM:LTD‘s latest release sees Gerwin coming in with two genuinely interesting slices of D&B that occupy a strange halfway house between styles, merging the growling basslines of techstep with the soulful melodies of deep liquid. It shouldn’t work, but it does! Opener Lying Portraits sees Gerwin team up with Nuage and MC 2Shy, who excels himself with a deep, well written rap vocal (which makes a change from the hordes of average gritty rhymes in D&B right now). Over on the flip Gerwin utilises a nice R&B sample to build the track before the growling bassline takes over.
Look out for this one at all good digital outlets from December 10th!
So much great drum & bass has come into the inbox this month, it seemed like a good time for another roundup post!
First up, Ingredients have been going from strength to strength with their recent releases. The 29th label release saw them release a quality wee EP in the form of Mis En Place Pt. 1, featuring some great tracks by Villem, Mark Recoil and Foreign Concept, alongside my pick of the EP, dBridge‘s smooth remix of Kodo‘s The Jackal.
Not content to rest on their laurels, the label are gearing up for their 30th release with a 12″ from newcomers Ruffhouse, with a very tribal feel to it. Fans of the recent Loxy & Resound album on Exit should definitely have a listen to this.
Shogun sister label SGN:Ltd are back with another beauty from Technimatic (formerly Technicolour and Komatic) and as we’ve come to expect from this duo it’s smooth liquid vibes all the way. Unfinished Business leads the release but it’s She Knows It on the flip that really caught my attention.
Utopia Music‘s 10th release sees legendary producer Break teaming up with Fields, label owner Mako & Villem on a heavy techy roller. The deep atmospheric intro lulls the listener into a false sense of security before the drop, all clattering toms and low end growl.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXyDs1UdFGc]
French label IM:Ltd are back with a new EP featuring a versatile selection of tracks from a number of relatively unknown producers. You can check out the whole EP below; my picks of the bunch are Nuage’s Above Time (a lovely piano lead deep roller) and Atmospherix’s In This Life, which features some beautifully crisp breaks and a warm, simple bassline that proves just irresistible.
Critical are back with another deep release, this time featuring collabs with the vocal talent that is Riya. A side Injustice sees Riya teaming up with Sabre for a beautiful deep roller while the b-side switches production to Foreign Concept for an autonomic style melancholy half stepper. Essential purchase as usual from the Critical stable!
RAM‘s new sister label ProgRAM are back with another chunky dancefloor number from Kove in the form of Iodine/Open Ground which does the business exactly as you’d expect.
Last but not least, Lifted sister label Breed 12 Inches are back with an absolutely phenomenal release from Memtrix, who at the young age of 16 is already setting the world of drum & bass alight. Mind Control and Slipper both deliver some seriously heavy neurofunk business…one to watch for 2013, definitely big things coming from this guy!