Our latest premiere comes from Manchester-based THUGWIDOW as he drops some serious jungle vibes for Lifted Contingency! Old school break chopping and a hypnotic lead line alongside the vocals of Sarah Zad make for a potent combination; pure vibes with a 90s twist. Check it out below and look for the release dropping April 17th at all good digital stores.
Tim Reaper joins the Blu Mar Ten Music family with two sublime jungle outings, taking us back to the sounds of the early 90s in superb style. A-side All Right is pure euphoria, with a soft, bleepy melody and pitched up vocal hook layered over chunky breaks and warm sub hits for a disarmingly simple yet utterly beautiful track. This one evokes memories of simpler times…
Over on the flip Reaper joins forces with Parallel for the deeper, darker Innerspace. Hard amens, gunshot FX and classic ragga samples get things off to a flying start in the first half, while shimmering pads in the back end of the tune progress the vibes into a more atmospheric, faintly psychedelic ebb. Nostalgia for sure, but difficult to argue with when it’s done so well!
All Right / Innerspace is out now on Blu Mar Ten Music. Hit up their Bandcamp Store to grab the digital direct or start scouring Discogs if you want a copy of the vinyl…
Old school vibes on today’s exclusive as Lavance lands on Silent Audio with crusty tech rumbler 12 Inch! Loaded with crispy breaks, dirty bass and classic rave stabs, this is gruff techy business with a vintage junglist edge. Yes yes! Watch out for this dropping as part of the Breaking Point EP from Mar 23rd.
Eveson’s retro jungle alias Dead Man’s Chest returns to Ingredients with more crusty break chopping vibes, 90s style. The aptly named Trilogy is available as a double-sided cassette mix featuring material from his initial trilogy of EPs alongside six previously unheard dubs, which Ingredients have also dropped on three new limited edition 10″ singles.
Fans of the project will know exactly what to expect; crunchy jungle breaks, deliberately rough and ready mixdowns, psychedelic textures and more than a few nods to the iconic era of jungle and hardcore. As with previous releases, the new material on the Trilogy Dubs 12″s varies in tone. Fade Away and Fresh Nation draw on classic dub elements, Open Your Eyes and Rinsa feel darker and more break-focussed while Tears (Fantazia Version) is blissed-out rave euphoria at its finest.
Alex’s knack for capturing what made early rave music so special is definitely still present here, so if you’ve enjoyed the first three EPs as much as we have this is essential listening. What remains unclear is whether Trilogy marks the end of the Dead Man’s Chest project, or just the end of chapter one; time will tell. Check out the new Trilogy Dubs below and hit up Beatport to grab a digital copy of the mix. If you’re keen for a copy of the cassette or the 10″ singles, time to start scouring Discogs…
Old school break chopping goodness on our latest exclusive from Imanzi! The Norwich-based producer lands on Portuguese label Skalator Music on March 10th with the appropriately titled Ragga; on ode to the classic ragga jungle of days gone by. No prizes for originality but this one is still crispy as hell. Junglist massive!
The ever reliable three man production team that is G.H.O.S.T are back this month with another top EP on their self-run Goldman Records imprint and they’re presenting their biggest selection of tracks yet; four fresh cuts spread across two 12″ plates and a further two digital bonus tracks to boot.
Thankfully the 41:39 Deeper EP isn’t a case of quantity over quality; once again the break focussed, slightly old-school style on show is impressive, and the larger selection of tracks sees a range of atmospheres set to those funky drums. Caught Slipping and Jam sit well with previous G.H.O.S.T faves in the dark and moody end of the spectrum before Heavy Shoulders switches the mood, with soft, chiming pads reminiscent of classic atmospheric drumfunk from the likes of ASC.
Before Dust goes in deep, chopping the drums into piercing, staccato rhythms to an eerie, almost cinematic selection of pads for the last track on the vinyl selection. Morph 242 hits harder still, with tough breaks and modulating bass sounding like an ode to the late 90s birth of neurofunk, before that style got quite as clean and clinical as it sounds today. Last but not least Peaks lays down a straight-up spooky roller sure to light up the dance late into the night.
Another finely crafted release from a team who clearly love both D&B and the vinyl format dearly. True to their artform! Check out the clips below and hit up the Goldman Store to pre-order the EP ahead of release on Friday.
Before we proceed, if by some anomaly you haven’t heard Special Request’s sublime 2013 jungle revival LP Soul Music then you need to stop reading right now and go and listen to it. No really. Off you go.
Joking aside, the 2013 arrival of Paul Woolford’s Special Request alias saw new life being inserted into the jungle sound, as the classic vibe and spirit of 90s rave culture were combined with the power of the modern mixdown to create something that transcended mere nostalgia. These tracks are unmistakeably informed by jungle, but melded into something slightly different, and not just because of the obviously lower tempo of most of the productions.
Enter Detboi, much championed by Woolford and clearly tapping into the same vein with his releases for the likes of Keysound. His latest work for Metalheadz could be his best yet, featuring simple but rich analogue bass, chunky breakbeats, classic samples and tons of atmosphere. There isn’t much more that needs to be said honestly; the music more than speaks for itself so check out the clips below and channel your inner 90s raver.
The Joyride EP is out now at the Metalheadz store.
Our latest mix comes from London underground radio veteran Flava! With nearly two decades experience behind the decks and some really promising recent forays into production alongside the likes of Digital and Horrific James, Flava is definitely one to watch this year.
For her Dojo mix Flava has put together a stomping selection featuring some classic rollers alongside fresh cuts from Digital’s new Synthesis LP and a few dubs for good measure. Wicked! For more info on Flava be sure to check out our interview here.
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 Google Drive.
Digital & Spirit vs. Flava & Dissect – Primal [Function]
Genotype – Big Man Tumps [Horizons]
Hibea – The Form [IM:LTD]
Digital, Flava & Horific James – Lava [Function]
Response – I Don’t Want To Go Outside [Commercial Suicide]
Digital & Villem – Sunbites [Metalheadz Dub]
Kantye – Toughbreaker [IM:LTD]
Foreign Concept & Bringa – Cemetery [Shogun]
Theory – Buckshot [444 Dub]
Flava, Digital & Dissect – The Test [Commercial Suicide Dub]
S.P.Y – Alone [Inneractive]
Flava & Digital – From The East [Commercial Suicide Dub]
Drumsound & Bassline Smith – Fire [Function]
Digital – Dirty Money (Amit & Outrage Remix) [Function]
Digital & Flava – Retard VIP [Function]
Digital, Spirit & Need For Mirrors – Infinity [Function]
Fracture & Neptune – The Limit [Astrophonica]
Metalheadz have been on quite a roll for the last couple of years; after arguably a little bit of a lull their recent release schedule has seen a stream of quality releases that even other labels of similar heritage have struggled to match. Their latest offering from Total Science continues that recent trend, bringing five tracks of crisp, forward thinking D&B to the table in typical ‘headz style.
Opener Notes of Blue is undoubtedly a nod to the legendary Blue Note sessions from the late 90s that proved such a formative time for so many notable D&B producers. Eerie sound designs and the merest hints of jazz combine with deep dubby sub and beautifully processed breaks for a track that is at once playful and thoughtful.
That trend for “thinking man’s” D&B continues throughout the EP, with one foot rooted firmly on the dance floor while the other meanders off into less genre bound territory. From the soft vocal manipulations of Soul For Sale through the tough jungle breaks and dubbed out echoes of Contraband, the EP works well both as a DJ tool and a selection of tracks for the listener alike.
Digital bonus tracks All Massive and Man Down round the selection out with two odes to the classic era of 90s D&B referenced in the EP’s title; the old school samples and the style of break manipulation still sound fresh today, and those polished modern mixdowns give them some serious punch.
We were pretty sure that Metalheadz and Total Science would prove to be a winning combination but this EP outstripped our already high expectations admirably. Check out the clips below and hit up the ‘headz store to grab a copy now.
As another fortnight slips away it’s time for another roundup of the best of the rest from the Dojo inbox. Read on for fresh releases from SpectraSoul, Philth, Quentin Hiatus, Dead Man’s Chest and more… Continue reading