The Month In Dubstep & Bass: April 2010

Girl Unit

“I.R.L.”

(Night Slugs | NS003)
Styles: House
Purchase on Boomkat

Night Slugs continue their glorious 2010 hot streak with this new EP from Girl Unit, who drops three new tracks that sit firmly in the wonderful polyglot bass music category that regular readers of the column will know we totally flip for. Title track “I.R.L” has been doing the rounds lately, and it’s immediately obvious why it’s caught on so much, driven by those massive chords that come crashing through the roof and onto the dancefloor, tangling up with sinuous synth lines among the heat and the crush of bodies. Yet in true Night Slugs style, it’s not just about that big anthem moment. The drums shuffle underneath, winding themselves into intricately funky patterns, almost unaware of the chaos swirling over their heads, and there’s this little melancholy breakdown that pulses sad and lonely at its heart. It’s a killer track and worth the price of admission alone, but it’s followed up with “Shade On,” which starts with a percolating synth line and tightens it and loosens it over tropical rhythms, giving that same disorienting seasick feel as Bok Bok’s “Citizen’s Dub.” Halfway through the bottom drops out and we’re deposited into some eerie subterranean chamber, surrounded by dubwise bass hits and far off echoes of ghostly melody. Then he turns the screws again and the world turns to liquid. Finally, there’s “Temple Keys” which throws R&B coos, house piano and heat-hazed synth lines into the mix over this unstoppable funky rhythm. It has this wonderful warm glow to it and when you’re trapped in its sticky pulse, you’ll never want to leave.

But it doesn’t stop there – as is usual with the Night Slugs crew, they have dudes lining up to get their hands on the source material and bend it out of shape. First up is DVA, who takes “I.R.L” and turns it into a clanking industrial nightmare, a swarm of robots disassembling it into component pieces and building something almost unrecognisable from the ruins, rendering those anthemic chords as metallic screeches and giving the track a merciless pulse. On the other end of the scale, French Fries heats up the drums until they’re even more damp and tropical, cascading through the track and only getting out of the way to give those crushing keyboard hits room to stomp. Sure, it may strip it of some of the original’s subtlety but that clattery woodblock percussion is to die for. Dudes have done it again. [SO]

Joker

“Tron” / “Tron VIP”

(Kapsize | KAP005)
Styles: Dubstep, Grime, Synthfunk, Purple
Purchase on Boomkat

Joker makes his much-needed 2010 debut with one of his most hyped-ever tracks, the massive and epic “Tron.” It’s one of Joker’s most assured tracks, chugging along confidently as it undergoes several mutations along the purple river of funk as Joker sprinkles all sorts of fairy dust over it, cheeky chimes and lush, eighties-style pads. The track’s lead synth leaps and bounds, zero-gravity jumps and graceful floaty descents, occasionally breaking out into nervous palpitations when the energy buildup proves too much. It gets higher and higher with each ascent, freezing at the peak of its arc like a water droplet rising a bit too high above the clouds. It’s got a hard, vicious edge, and when it stays still for those brief moments the the toothy borders snarl and reverberate like a chainsaw. Admittedly, the track doesn’t really go anywhere, and the drops are coordinated with the percussion rather than huge moments of release — but its forward motion is so smooth that you won’t really care when you end up where you started. As if sensing the track would probably already have been all rinsed out by the time it finally got released, he’s backed it with a VIP for the digital release. The remix is wrong in all the right places, the synth crushed under the weight and bending in all the wrong places at all the right times, becoming even more snarly, angry from the forced detours. It’s a ‘wonky’ mess creating some welcome conflict and tension in the other wise silky smooth track, and is just as eminently playable as the original, same enormous grooves in a different, weirder outfit. Even if you’re sick of it, it’s still worth seeking out because I guarantee you’ll want to get lost in those cushiony contours again sooner than you think, and if you haven’t heard it, well… brace yourself. [AR] 

I.D. & Skinnz

“Offshore” / “Shimmy”

(Double Science | EMC002)
Styles: Funky, Dubstep, Garage, Breaks
Purchase on Boomkat

Bristol’s ever restless man-of-a-thousand-collaborations I.D. works with Skinnz for a second release, following up their Earwax twelve from last year with a surprisingly gentle stormer on the new Chemical-associated Double Science label. This one picks up where I.D. & Baobinga’s (fantastic) LP Bass Music Sessions left off, with some slight differences in style owing to the change in personnel, but the main focus as ever is on crisp breaks mired in deep, deep bass. The two tracks are quite different: “Offshore” is a low-frequency roller, dubby chords and snappy percussion navigating the constantly swelling bass wobbles. The bass sweeps vertically with an expanding trajectory, like it’s going back and forth in a halfpipe, reaching higher heights and lower lows until it finally crashes into the ground like a comet, smouldering and forcefully burning away the last of its energy. “Shimmy,” on the other hand, is much more percussive, and it’s flat-out one of my personal favourite tracks of this young year. Lighter than air, it floats on a cloud of perpetually spilling-over percussion, a miniature hurricane of metallic clink and thud; it’s quite astounding how it manages to sound so careful and balanced, a symphony of random noises making a perfectly organized flurry. As the track is padded by updrafts of warm bass, bent chords cut their way through like a gorgeous rainbow, all lush colours and perfectly smooth contours. I can’t tell if “Shimmy” is some sort of ballad or some sort of banger, but I don’t really care as long as that percussion is so delightfully tickling my brain. [AR]

Deadboy

Cash Antics Vol. 1 EP

(Well Rounded | WRND004)
Styles: R&B, House, Garage
Well Rounded Website

Deadboy follows up his massive Well-Rounded debut (also the release that inaugurated the young label) with this EP of cheeky refixes. If you’re smart you’ll know where these come from, but even if you don’t, rest assured these will tear your mind up just right. “Unofficial Girl” is Deadboy’s wooziest house barely able to support the chattering rushing vocals on top, while “Long Way 2 Go” pitches its vocals deep, deep down to a subterranean depth where gender is irrelevant and the sweaty bodies bumping against each other are just solid masses of flesh. Things soften up a bit for “Way That I Luv U” as everyone in the room gets teary-eyed, reaching dangerous levels of overheated, slowly-melting cheese. It’s absolutely essential, but my sources tell me this is a limited release so you better snatch it up quick, lest you be searching for it in five years on eBay. [AR]

Geiom / Headhunter & Invisible

“Luna” / “Luvdup”

(Soul Motive Records | SMR006)
Styles: Dubstep, Garage, Smooth Jazz
Purchase on Boomkat

Soul Motive’s first 2010 statement is a solid release with the latest in tropical-inflected rhythms and beats from the always reliable Geiom and the increasingly ubiquitous Headhunter. The man who suddenly blew up 2010 when it was least expecting it is first up with his “Luvdup,” a collaboration with Invisible. It’s a beautifully sun-baked Funky anthem, stretching out over seven minutes like a lethargic body tanned to a crisp, beats too saturated with sunlight and heat to give off the proper sunny vibes. The song struggles to find energy, too weighed down in its own thick layer of sweat and too mired in body heat, like thirty-five degrees (celsius, for all you confused yanks) at 5AM. But sometimes artificial light is just more satisfying, and the imaginary rainforest Headhunter creates is easy enough to be immersed in, as an exotic singer croons from some wooden stage as horns and voices squawk in the corners like strange birds in the trees surrounding. Geiom pulls us out of the humidity the tent for a quick rave with “Luna,” the artificial sunset to our artificial daylight. Again on the funky tip, Geiom interpolates a horn melody in one of the most adept jobs I’ve ever heard; instead of merely chopping it up and setting it loose on the jumpy beats, he instead works his magic around the horns themselves, creating a wonderfully fluid jam that bends itself to the contours of the horns as much as they ride the beats. Synthesis is a hard thing to achieve but Geiom has got it down pat, the perfect balance of too-perfect UK Funky percussion with humid latin horns. If Villalobos helped make them more palatable in European dance music, I think Geiom has pushed it over the edge, almost enough to make me interested in those sketchy Verve Remixed compilations. Almost. [AR]

Tokimonsta

Cosmic Toxication EP

(RAMP Recordings | RAMP030)
Styles: Brainfeeder, Bass, Collage
Purchase on Boomkat

In which LA-based Jennifer Lee aka Tokimonsta (ridiculous capitalisation optional, one would hope) drops her debut proper for the always fascinating Ramp Recordings and it’s all rather doped-out and splendiferous. Her music drifts somewhere between a beach bunny version of Boards of Canada or a more tooled-up Quiet Village, if they weren’t feeling quite so kitsch. There’s nothing entirely new here, but it’s all done so well that you’ll be hard pressed to resist it. “Playing With Toys” sees guitars prostrate themselves before her in lush, shuddering waves while glitching percussion bucks underneath it, chiptune melodies gleaming as the beat finds its footing just in time to have the ground swept from under it. “Doing It My Way” has a shimmering melody bobbing in a stormy sea, synth lines carefully picked apart and splayed open to reveal the glowing innards. “Smoke and Mirrors” has this lovely, shambling hand percussion that bubbles underneath melodic slush, playing itself into a coma of slack-guitar beachside bliss, while “Aching Nodes” is a bumping slow-jam with the vocals surgically removed, leaving only harmonic echoes and a gorgeous Eastern-tinged melody unwinding mechanically through the center of it. “Line to Dot” daubs some jazzy keys in amongst a bleared-eyed shuffle, a melancholy horn line echoing in the depths, among the sounds of the digital jungle. Like everything else here, it’s gorgeous, and the EP as a whole is a beautifully concise twenty minutes or so of downtempo dreamscapes. It unfolds in luxury, finally drifting off with the fluttering “Glaring Lights,” which waltzes drunkenly into the evening sun, singing softly to itself as the music rises and falls in dizzy jazz swells behind it. (Digital bonus track “Let Me Trick U” harshes the vibe a little with its doomy keys and buried vox, but it’s such a great track that you can’t blame them for putting it on here). In all its woozy splendour, it’s one of the most charming and disarming releases I’ve heard this year. Bonus points for the very cool cover as well. [SO]

Eprom

Shoplifter EP

(Bad Acid | LSD001)
Styles: Dubstep, Grime
Purchase on Boomkat

Eprom continues his recent hot streak with “Shoplifter” on the new Bad Acid label, who promise to show us a world where “bassweight meets psychedelic synth-work and b-boy swagger.” And as soon as that neon synth comes revving into view, you can tell it’s going to do exactly what they say on the tin. It’s tweaked and splayed, the beat blowing speakers underneath the darting melody lines until he unleashes the bass to plough this massive furrough in the earth, disrupting everything in its path. It all comes across as ridiculously lurid and sweaty but that’s before deconstructionist-for-hire Slugabed takes control. He’s on hand for what they call ‘remix’ duties, but it’s more like him going crazy on it with a machete. Everything’s torn apart into serrated edges, neon turned up so blindingly bright that it shatters the tubes. It twists and disrupts the groove, straining towards some distant apocalypse before he pulls out this brief moment of clarity, shimmering synth melodies suddenly appearing through the chaos before he gleefully tosses a grenade through it. Bad Acid indeed. This sound seems to be heading quickly towards its logical extreme, but it’s a fun ride while it lasts. All that’s left is for Eprom to close things out with “Bubbles,” which sounds like it’s going to take off on this high-speed journey before being interrupted by off-kilter beats. That initial riff can’t be held back for long – it returns bigger and sleeker, this undertow that can’t be derailed by the digital detritus he coats it with. It’s a nice shift from the hyperactivity of the A-side and shows he’s just as adept at the good trips as the bad. [SO]

Badness

“Nightmare”

(No Hats No Hoods | NHNH010)
Styles: Grime, Dubstep
Purchase on Boomkat

Badness returns after his kinda-hilarious, kinda-violent romantic spot on Starkey’s “OK Luv” last year with this single on one of the two best labels in grime right now, No Hats No Hoods. This one, aptly titled “Nightmare” and featuring fiery verses from Skepta and Lil’ Nasty, is far less passive-aggressive than that other track — it’s straight-up aggro all the way. Badness does a cheeky melodramatic hook sounding remarkably like Ian Curtis, and it’s utilized in different ways for each of the three remixes here. Mensah’s remix is prickly electro all the way, rooted in classic grimestrumentals, as Badness’s chants are splayed over the track in semi-transparency, like ghostly transmissions in old horror movies. BassBoy’s mix plays this to an even greater effect, stretching it out languorously over a carnival-tinged beat. The track dips into full-out rave for the verses, subverting much of the darkness in favour of pure party vibes; it’s a little disorienting but way too much fun to be a problem. The best is saved for last with Cotti & Coki’s nightmarish re-imagining, where the vocals (outside of that indomitable hook) are done away with and the track is subsumed by swamps of roaring LFO, undulating and swaying like a staggering drunkard. The duo show the new generation of midrange wobblers how this shit is done, and most importantly they don’t forget to put some mean sub-bass underneath — this is bass music, after all. [AR]

Ikonika

“Idiot” (Altered Natives Remix)

(Hyperdub | HDB033)
Styles: Dubstep, Chiptune, Funky, Broken House
Purchase on Boomkat

Well, you know we love the album, and its first proper single is just one part of its greatness. We said “it feels like the quintessential Ikonika track, rolling all her idiosyncrasies and specialties into one monster tune. An eight-bit synth carries the main melody, barely able to keep its head on straight with the notes tripping over each in pixellated flurries, while the clattering drums and prickly bassline play out almost independently. Everything merges into a loud, chaotic whole, and the title starts making sense as the track babbles to itself in about five different languages simultaneously. It’s the sort of gigantic outpouring of joy that anthems are made of, and it already feels like a classic.” Thing is, the Altered Natives remix on the flip might be even better: taking the technologic sheen off of the original and dirtying it up a fair bit, he twists the riff into knots and adds some all-important low-end thrum. The track rolls and spills out percussion at an alarming rate just like all good Altered Natives productions, and it’s a stunning remix in how much it asserts his own sound without losing the appeal of the original. You know, come to think of it, this might be my favourite track over anything on the album — and that’s a pretty high standard to begin with. [AR]

Various Artists (GetDarker)

This Is Dubstep Vol. 2

(GetDarker | )
Styles: Dubstep
GetDarker

Ah, so this is dubstep then. These compilations are almost never a good idea, especially in 2010 when ‘dubstep’ is essentially a series of multi-coloured pins stuck indiscriminately all over a map, oceans between them. It comes as a surprise that this compilation actually works quite well at what it wants to do — it’s not perfect, sure, and as it sets out to be appealing, it focuses more on the darker, monochromatic side of dubstep. You’ve got solid tunes from Distance, Benga, Skream, Noah D, and that ilk, as well as a bunch of average tunes by the likes of Fused Forces and Cyrus. The compilation is a mix of recent stalwarts and unreleased goodies; absolute anthems like Caspa’s remix of Breakage’s “Hard” and Joker’s stunning rework of “Could This Be Real” stand next to brilliant exclusives like Ikonika’s “Space Ugly,” a track much more industrial and efficient than the warm goo of her LP, and Numan’s “Stuck” which throbs with a gorgeous plucked string riff. Yeah, you’ve got a few nearly-unlistenable things from the usual suspects, but for the most part, this mammoth (40 tracks, 3-and-a-half-hours in its unmixed form) compilation is a treasure trove of interesting beats, with at least a few things for everyone to love. [AR]