Dubstep charts

Review: Former Grid member and now ambient superstar Richard Norris delivers two new oracular divinations for his very own Group Mind label, the imprint formed in and after the COVID-19 lockdowns to help mindfully assuage the creeping anxieties of the age. A six-track 12" limited to just 30 copies - numbered and signed by the artist himself (move quick, hares) - these six tracks segue between dub and deep listening, fronting the bass and keeping percussive elements spread and panned. Best on the obverse is the A3, 'Mystery Dub', whose endlessly delayed stabs and cutoff conga samples well convey a vacuum-of-space vibe. The B-side moves into snake-charming dancehall territory, the punning, chordophonic 'Rockers Sci Fi' and the vocal blissout 'Stronger Together' being the ethereal highlights.

Review: Of all the artists past and present who claim to let their music do their talking for them, Burial is one of the elite band of whom this truly is the case. In fact, so reluctant is he to engage with the cult-of-personality hoopla that surrounds almost every modern producer and musician of merit, that he remains a genuine recluse; he has never appeared live, only one obliquely-angled publicity photograph is known to exist, and the number of interviews he has given can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Yet despite this, his music speaks loud and wide, and the world has been listening ever since his 'South London Boroughs' EP debut on Hyperdub in March 2005. His eponymous album, which began life as a low-key release in May 2006, is now widely regarded as the benchmark release of the ever-widening dubstep genre, picking up unanimous critical acclaim along the way, and ending the year heavily featured in many 'best of' polls. Now Burial returns with 'Untrue', a new record of weird soul music, which lovingly processes spectral female voices into vaporised R&B and smudged 2step garage. Vocal lines are blurred, smeared, pitched up pitched down and pitch bent until their content is cast adrift from their original context and they whisper their saccharin sweet nothings into the void. The album continues with the debut's crackle-drenched yearning and bustling syncopations, haunted by the ghosts of rave, but also reveals some new Burial treats with a more glowing, upbeat energy. Kicking off with the skittering 2step syncopations and vocal science of 'Archangel', 'Near Dark' and 'Ghost Hardware', before long it descends into a space of radiant divas and ambience. Where 'Burial' first was humid, suffocating and unrelentingly sad, 'Untrue' is less sunless. Many of the tracks are so sweet, they become toxic, underscored by the almost geological rumbles of growling basslines. Unlike the overpoweringly melancholic prevailing mood of before, Burial's sound is now better defined as a downcast euphoria typified by the epic, muted optimism of the album's last track 'Raver'. Forget central heating the radioactivity of this album is all that you'll need to keep you warm this winter. 'Untrue' is available as full 13 track digipack CD, including recent underground hit 'Ghost Hardware', and 9 track DJ friendly double vinyl set, from which some of the beatless pieces have been edited.

Review: Ghetts is undoubtedly amongst the top tier of British MCs - a grime legend famed for being a genuinely dextrous lyricist. As On Purpose, With Purpose proves, he's also an artist whose output has evolved considerably since he emerged in the late 2000s. While his raps and rhymes are as sharp as ever, the beats he's working with are far more diverse, polished and - whisper it quietly - deeper than many may expect. For proof, check the r&b and hip-hop-soul influenced of 'Double Standards (featuring Sampha)', the sub-heavy punchiness of 'Laps (featuring Moonchild Sanelly), and the jazzy, head-nodding hip-hop warmth of 'Twin Sisters (featuring Skrapz)'. Throw in nods to Afrobeats and Amapiano, and you've got a set that will surely feature in many 'best of 2024' lists later in the year.

Review: It might come as a surprise that dubstep favourites Kahn & Neek have only just gotten round to releasing their debut album, but their repertoire has spoken for itself over the years, so this is more than deserved. Translating from the Latin phrase "the wolf and the bear", Lupus et Ursus draws heavily on the image of the pair's occupation of the top of their very own hierarchy; the carnal apex predators of bass music. That in mind, the music is just as alarming, as if we were mere bunny rabbits at their mercy, as a barrage of complex, earthen, and arid grime and dubstep is flung our way, with all the favourite MCs - Rider Shafique, Riko Dan, Flowdan, Mez - joining in for a due exchange of bars.

Review: Nova is a new signing for the Infernal Sounds crew and the artist has saved some of his best work for the occasion. He opens up with 'Bonafide,' a dark and heavy wobbler with a busy, oscillating low end that is full of menace while some subtle pitched up vocals hint at the rave. 'Single Fuse' is a noter one to loosen the bowels and melt your face with its lumpy, leggy rhythms and tripped out watery effects. It's 'Fivers' which then gets more tight and tense with an edgy synth hustling in the background while jittery snares keep you on edge up front. 'Intricacy' closes with a heavyweight bottom end and plenty of reverb to get lost in.

Review: One riddim track, three hugely distinctive voices; Dub-Stuy continue their riddim series with "Santa Muerte Riddim". Loose, spacious, mystic and led by cold steel string twangs, Jonah Freed's beat sings on its own merits but each vocalist adds their own touch. Rider Shafique takes the lead with his signature smoky tones and poetics, Jahdan Blakkamoore contrasts between his gravelly spoken word and musicality on the chorus before Pupajim lets the beat breathe a little more before going full harmonic ham. Holy moly.

Review: Nadia Struiwigh's Pax Aurora was a standout ambient techno LP in 2022, and now Nous Klaer Audio have returned to the project to commission a grip of remixes which respond to the source material in distinctive ways. DJ Nobu takes a delicate, mesmerising approach to 'Nana', while Jakojako plumbs the depths of immersive, feathery techno. With Om Unit and Julia Gjertsen representing with equally hypnotic, elegant versions on the flip as well, this is the perfect example of a remix EP which truly adds weight to the original release.

Review: Sleeper man Alex Fox debuted the GRAMZ alias earlier in the year via a two-track 12" on Sentry Records built around paranoid sonic textures, serious bass-weight and rolling 140 BPM beats. For this 10" outing on Crucial, Fox has taken a deeper approach, ratcheting up the smoky atmosphere while retaining sizeable low-end pressure. "Joken" and flipside "Get Them Bags" are hazy, ultra-deep dubstep workouts, with both doffing a cap towards hip-hop and grime (check out the manipulated MC vocal samples on the latter, in particular), as well as the crackling sonic textures of Burial. "Joken" rolls along nicely while remaining pleasingly subdued, while "Get Them Bags" has a little more sonic strut. Both, though, are excellent.

Review: There was much talk ahead of the release of Darkstar's debut album as to whether the London based outfit could live up to the promise of their stunning breakthrough single "Aidy's Girl Is A Computer" on Hyperdub in 2009. The answer, in short, is yes. In the course of the past 12 months Aiden Whalley and James Young have morphed from a production team into a band, adding vocalist James Buttery along the way, and North, the fruits of their labour, is a fragile, delicate and beautiful record. Tracks like "Gold" and ""Dear Heartbeat"" showcase an 80s synth pop sensibility, forming the backbone of an album that is steeped in worry and melancholia. Buttery's vocal talents add an extra layer of depth to the music, particularly on the poignant, piano driven opening and closing track "In The Wings" and "When It's Gone". There is much to explore on North, which will go down as one of 2010's most affecting electronic albums.

Review: Hyperdub kick off the vinyl side to their ten-year celebrations with this weighty four-tracker from some of the leading lights from the label's story. Mala is in a strident mood with "Expected, Level 10" carrying through that extra touch of melody from the Mala In Cuba LP. DVA cuts loose with the leftfield scattershot groove of "Technical Difficulties", reveling in tonal experimentation and jagged rhythmic flair to a stunning end. Still locked into the sci-fi trap tangent that characterised Severant, Kuedo turns out the haunting "Mtzpn" and Helix pops up for a remix of Kode9's "Xingfu Lu" that strips down to bare essentials with a little starlit soul rubbed into the framework.

Review: Over the years, Modeselektor have forged a reputation as fearless innovators, neatly sidestepping genres and frequently confounding critics. Given their tireless touring schedule and the fact they run two prolific labels it's perhaps no surprise that it's been some four years since the last full-length Modeselektor album. Monkeytown flits effortlessly between skittish 140 BPM bass music, clandestine electronica, sludgy hip-hop and even warehouse-flavoured tropical rhythms (see "German Clap"). There are some real standouts, including a dreamy, slo-mo pop outing with PVT, two collaborations with Thom Yorke and a droning Anti-Pop Consortium hook-up. Must-check.

Review: Having initially sprung into life back in 2005 to provide an outlet for dubstep productions by members of Bristol's bass music community, Tectonic has since developed into a must-check hub for heavyweight floor fillers across a range of bass-fixated genres. The label's shift in recent years is amply demonstrated by this latest Tectonic Plates collection, the first since 2009. Demonstrating label boss Pinch has lost none of his deft A&R skills, this quadruple vinyl has some relatively traditional dubstep from the likes of Tunnidge and Ginz rubbing shoulders with typically juke influenced 808 pressure from Addison Groove, while Goth Trad indulges his inner acid. Elsewhere Hoya Hoya alumnus Illum Sphere brings some electric warmth with "Promise A Secret" whilst 2562 and Kevin McPhee continue their efforts to frustrate the genre police with excellent results.

Review: Torsten Profrock’s T++ project has continually spread its wings since conception in 2005. Championed by fans of techno, dubstep, experimental and drum & bass alike, his latest EP for Honest Jons (and rumoured to be his last under this monkier) showcases the amalgamation of styles and sounds that has earnt the German such a far reaching fanbase.



If it does prove to be the final T++ release ever, then the alias will have left us with the most expressive and energetic of his works. Adding a real sense of personality, Profrock unearthed a handful of samples of the singer and ndingidi player Ssekinomu, recorded in East Africa in the 1930s and 40s in the label’s vaults for this release. Skilfully, the producer works these snippets into the complex rhythm structures, giving his music a human touch that has never been seen before. Profrock looks to the radical fringe of UK garage for the snapping 2 step vibe in these rhythms that remain central to all four tracks on the EP. This results in a clutch of tracks that take on an immensely tribal and subconsciously innate feel. They morph new structures from the forms of 2 step, techno and drum & bass around which Profrock wraps twisted FX and weighty sub bass to create one whole, throbbing organism.
So with quite possibly his final release, T++ leaves us, rather fittingly, with a record that sounds at once both ancient and modern. It has a totally unique tone, like a form of tribal language that can only speak to and be understood by today’s culture through these sub-heavy, atmospheric sounds.

Review: Alex Green and Damon Kirkham's debut album has been a long time coming. It follows an action-packed decade that's seen them morph from drum & bass punishers to dubstep fusionists and, more recently, bass music experimentalists. With such experience behind them, it's perhaps no surprise that Resolution 653 is an eclectic set. What's more surprising is the expansiveness of their approach. Within the album's 13 tracks lies glass-clear electronic futurism, brain-warping acid tracks, murky dusbtep, slo-mo 4/4 sweetness, hard edged electro bounce, off-kilter IDM and, naturally, 140 BPM bass bangers. As a summary of where British bass music's at in 2011, it's unsurpassed.

Review: To mark a century of releases, admirable Bristol imprint Tectonic has served up something rather special: an EP of future bass business that sees long-serving grime MC Riko Dan adding his flow to fresh beats from some of the label's heaviest hitters. Check, for example, the woozy "purple" synths, ragged sub-bass and stepping beats of the Joker-produced "Hard Food", the indsustrial-strength grime assault of the Pinch-produced "Vibration" and the sparse, clandestine rumble of "Hungry", where Riko Dan's gruff patois flow rises above a skeletal groove. Elsewhere, the Ziro-helmed "Alright Then" sounds like a club anthem in waiting, and Walton's remix of "Big Slug" - a previous club cut from Pinch and Mumdance - is an ethereal, string-laden treat.

Review: Woof! Hyperdub bring together two of the most recognisable and enigmatic artists of recent times on this 10", as Zomby and Burial square down ahead of the former's new album for the label. Zomby's Ultra LP is undoubtedly one of this year's most anticipated albums and "Sweetz" suggests it may be a very moody affair indeed. Whilst rooted in UK dance, Zomby and Burial do look elsewhere for inspiration too. Just under seven minutes long, "Sweetz" veers through various sub-heavy soundscapes with intermittent rhythmic patters and a distinctive looped vocal sample whose pitch changes with dramatic effect.

Review: Zomby returns to Hyperdub with his first album in three years, trailed in high profile fashion by that Burial collaboration "Sweetz." That particular tune is one of Ultra's headline attractions, alongside eyebrow-raising collaborations with Darkstar, Banshee and Rezzett. What really impresses, though, is the skewed, left-of-centre nature of the mask-wearing producer's heavy, post-grime rhythms, sparse but sparkling synth work, and the breathlessly cut-up R&B vocals dotted throughout the set. Interestingly, there are subtle nods towards new wave synth-pop, ghetto-tech, spacey ambient and alien IDM, making Ultra Zomby's most intriguing and consistently on-point album to date.

Review: This is how it all began! Coco Bryce and Saturate take us back to 2011 with this deliciously wacky 80bpm halftime couplet. 'Honeymoon' takes us on a wonky MIDI mission with stacks of drama and feeling while 'Wonk' is pure off-the-wall bleep art. Never before released on vinyl, both cuts carry a certain sense of late 2000s nostalgia while remaining so unique they still bump hard today. Feel the love!

Review: Little is known about Gent1e Soul besides the fact they have been on Fast Castle before (with the exemplary 'Silk Armour' EP), they make remarkably addictive, super-gloopy, trippy, funky beat based music and that they're probably quite nice and considerate, considering their alias and all. Generous, too. Each of these five cuts tickles a different corner of the breakbeat/dubstep/club hinterland as they guide us from the old school Benga-like pushes and swagger of 'Siege Ram' to the WNCL-flavoured percussive hypnosis of 'Woads' via the pounding technoid rolls of 'Fortified Walls' and beyond.

Review: We've been saying for a hot minute that a dubstep reveal is due, if not already here - even though, as is the case with any revival, the purists will say the sound never went away. We would like to submit as supporting evidence this reissue of a stone cold classic split 12" from 2009 from serious dubstep heavyweights Loofah and Coki. It came on the pioneering Deep Mehdi Musik label and some 14 years on still has plenty of dark late night allure and killer low end wobble. Two definitive tracks that we can't wait to start hearing out again on loud systems.

Review: The superb Om Unit label has assembled a mighty fine crew of subheads to serve up their own interpretations of a load of Om Unit originals for this great new double album Acid Dub Versions II. Stylistically this is as diverse a collection as you can imagine given all the tracks operate within a similar dub grounding: some artists like Yushh keep it deep, cavernous and empty, while Hodge lays down his pumping rhythms and runs them through with echo hits and driving acid. VIVEK's take on 'Bristol Theme' is another dubstep doozy that rumbles along with the smell of THC thick in the air and the Nadia Struiwigh remix of 'Electroacidspringwater' is an eerie way to close a fine collection.

Review: Around the world in 12 wubs; Alix Perez's superlative 1985 continues to dig deeper and deeper into our psyche with the third volume of their faultless Atlas VA series. As always, the tempos are set to flexible as we slide and glide between the style and speeds courtesy of some incredible names... Cesco brings some proper dark UKG on 'Superstealth', Sir Hiss gets angular with the electro funk of 'Shower Man Time', Visages go all slinky and futurist on 'Margit' while the bossman Perez and GLXY link up for something truly sexy and soulful with 'Green Lane'. All this and so much more, from Rockwell & Scepticz to Settle Down to Eprom, this is yet another exceptional adventure from the 1985 crew.