Tag Archives: Utopia Music

Mako, DLR & Fields – Old Soul [Utopia Music]

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With all his recent collaborations with head honcho Mako (and word of an album from the duo forthcoming) it seemed only a matter of time til DLR touched down on Utopia and their latest single sees exactly that. Old Soul proves another fruitful Utopia family jam session with Fields and Mako joining DLR in the studio for a big atmospheric techstepper that effortlessly blends soulful musicality and meaty basslines to great effect.

Over on the flip DLR goes in alone on Bridge The Gap, building tension with lush soundscapes on the intro before dropping into a crisp rolling break punctuated with tasty filtered bass stabs. The tune has all the hallmarks of a DLR composition but make no mistake, his style is in no danger of sounding formulaic. Check out the B side below and grab this one on vinyl or digital now!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjvTEQ2dzYk]

Fields – On Your Own / Colours [Utopia Music]

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Utopia Music continue their recent run of absolutely top notch releases with a solo 12″ from Fields, a name you should recognise from previous releases on Utopia and Symmetry. On Your Own kicks things off nicely with a tasty modulated bassline and a cheeky gangster-rap sample that brings to mind the classic 2005-era Techstep of Ewun or Evol Intent.

Over on the flipside Colours sees Fields deliver a stripped back, high energy techstep roller; forget melody, this one is all about drums, bass and sheer groove. If you like your D&B dark, techy and rolling this one is right up your alley. Check out Colours below and watch out for the release dropping September 30th on vinyl and digital.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwXnw22sShM]

Andyskopes – True Chord Redux [Utopia Music]

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Andyskopes combines the spirit of 90s jungle with the deep, ethereal vibes we’ve come to know and love from Utopia Music on the labels 13th single. Soft, floating pads give the tune it’s soul and mesh perfectly with the clattering, filtered breaks that drive the composition, giving True Chord Redux much of the vibe and atmosphere of old drumfunk records from the likes of DJ Trax and Paradox.

True Human Emotion goes in even harder on the flip, with rough and tough amens smashing up the track after the strings of the intro have given way to a choice sample from Michael Fassbender’s android in Prometheus. Every drum hit is perfectly positioned for maximum impact; one for the old school heads.

Watch out for the release on vinyl & digital from August 5th.

Sunchase & Detail – Nathnennia / Green Rain [Utopia]

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Mako’s Utopia Music delivers another top notch 12″, showcasing yet more proof of the labels refusal to be pigeon-holed to a single style of D&B.

Sunchase steps up first to deliver a super chilled, ethereal piece of 170 that would feel very much at home on Blu Mar Ten music. This one’s up there with Bungle’s recent masterpiece for Soul:R, truly beautiful music.

Over on the flip Detail comes in with a more dancefloor-oriented number, bringing growling low end and hefty kick drums, punctuated with double time distorted amen bars to keep the crowd on their toes. Beauty on the A-side…beast on the B-side!

October Roundup

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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!