Style Drum and Bass
Released 20/09/2019
Format MP3/320kbps
Label Innovate Audio
Cat INNOVATE005
There's something so, so nice about D&B that combines vocal loveliness with gully undertones, and that's exactly what KC and Christina Tamayo have done here. The title track starts off beautifully laid-back, with a simple piano line leading you in onto the rattling percussion and guttural, funky bassline. There's an old-school roughness to this that we're digging a lot. The flip is similar in its rough and tumble sonics, this time not dropping out of nowhere but slowly building itself up, the momentum finally releasing on the drop into a hail of energy and force. Tamayo sounds fantastic throughout, so shoutout to her, KC and the Innovate crew.
Style Drum and Bass, Jump Up
Released 20/09/2019
Format MP3/320kbps
Label Dutty Bass Audio
Cat DBA016
Review: We love the fact that Dutty Bass Audio are based over in Canada and you certainly don't hear about many D&B labels from the Great White North. This fact is made even more prescient by the quality of this little imprint, which consistently smashes it out of the park. Mystical Sounds is the latest artist to grace their release page and Reward EP is straight up dirty, spanning a cross-section of beat patterns but all nestling comfortably into the dark end of the spectrum. The title track has a superb steppy percussive feel to it that's punctuated by swollen bass pulses and guided by a genuine sense of purpose, there's a proper murky old-school feel to this tune and it reminds us quite a lot of Sub Zero back in the day. The rest of the tunes are all wicked as well - go cop this one.
Style Drum and Bass, JumpUp
Released 13/09/2019
Format MP3/320kbps
Label Zombie Recordings UK
Cat ZOMBIEUK037
Nick The Lot is definitely one of the most promising producers over on the jump-up side of the scene, with a load of releases on Grid that have been blowing people's socks off. This time though he's on Zombie Recordings with a deadly six-tracker, and if you love a good foghorn as much as we do, then this release will definitely tick your boxes. Final track 'Origin' is wicked just for its rhythmic diversity, with stuttering drum breaks all over the shop and grating, satisfying basses filling in the gaps. The title track is another highlight, as is 'Manners'. Overall, very sick stuff from Nick here.
Style Drum and Bass, JumpUp
Released 19/09/2019
Format MP3/320kbps
Label Sub-Liminal
Cat SLR058
Sub-liminal Recordings are a regular presence on these pages, their music is precise and damaging and they're back this week with a single from Agro. Timbuk 4 is a two-tracker that relies on its wavey concoctions of low-frequency movement to impress, with hard percussive knocks resting nicely underneath. 'Fair Trade' is the B-side and probably our favourite, with Chats MC doing some serious work over a very creative back end. Lovely stuff.
Style Drum and Bass
Released 19/09/2019
Format MP3/320kbps
Label Locked Up Music
Cat LKD014
Locked Up Music isn't a label that we know too well and Sust isn't an artist we're particularly familiar, but that makes how good this release is all the more true. With four cuts of rampant jungle to play with, Inside My Head takes the listener on a deep dive into the hard-knocking tones of breaks and basses. 'Legit' caters to the rolling crew, with a Sofa Sound-esque approach to the percussion, whilst 'Guide Me' ends the release on soaring, atmospheric jungle tip. Stonker of an EP.
