Drum & Bass Recommendations April 2016

Review: Sneaky under-the-counter bootleg business, as two popular R&B ballads undergo the breezy 170 BPM rolling soul treatment. Alicia Keys and Drake's "Unthinkable" gets the A-side with Alicia's voice working perfectly over the tempo and delicate piano emphasising her emotion. Meanwhile on the flip Jhene Aiko's "The Worst" enjoys some classic amen power with lavish synth washes and syrupy subs. The best.

Review: Last spotted piddling on the BBC's public decency guidelines, producer, DJ, broadcaster, label owner, two-bit animator and all-round Manchester legend Dub Phizix drops two slices of steppy science out of the blue. Both lean and dubby, "Do One" carries one of those mix-friendly riffs on the intro that tease the cascading molten sounding drums (think "I'm A Creator" for 2016) and fit DRS's lyrics perfectly. All tribal and thumpy, "Doberman" is darker again. Ward 21's demonic mic command ensuring certified nightmare dancehall status. Woof woof.

Review: Long-time cohorts and confidents, Alix and Ivy Lab are the consummate bass supergroup. Each player complementing each other's perception of soul, subtlety and total grit you already know this is going to be an impressive adventure even before you press play. From the grumpy, sludgy halftime vibes of "Stop It" to the hazy soft-focus vocals and rattling snares of "Arkestra" by way of the concentrated gully of "Tell Dem", the foursome represent the whole time and space spectrum of D&B perfectly.

Review: 12 years deep, 100 releases strong, Friction's Shogun imprint continues to spread the strong words with what's shaping up to be a very exciting series of exclusives. For the first EP we hit paydirt from the off as Ulterior Motive play the consummate robot charmers on "Radian". Cousins in crime Icicle and Proxima follow with a dagger-sharp tete-a-tete two-stepper while Technimatic provide essential contrast with the rainbow soul "Transference". Finally Alix Perez returns to Shogun for a cheeky minimal twist of Friction and Fourward's "Battle Scars". Gold on gold on gold, Shogun aren't messing around with their 100 series.

Review: Now The Future sees the return of Ram's heavily tatted neuro-monster Audio, offering up his first 12" salvo of 2016 for the drum and bass juggernaut and boy does it pack a punch! The sinister tones of the title track take you into the mind of Audio's twisted vision of the future, percussive elements ticking away under petrifying atmospheres, building up into an unstoppable bassline offensive. Complementing this, is the spine chilling "Drop It Human", a track that thrusts into a sonic array of growling mids and low end sub grit, delivering a devastating blow. Audio's precise, sharp, stepped trademark drum sound forms the backbone, marching the track through to inhuman perfection.

Review: Delta Heaviness: this debut album has been on the cards since the UK duo signed to Ram in 2010 and they've not disappointed. Four of the 14 tracks, pressed to double 12", it's a sizzling synapse-snapping screenshot of where Ben and Si are at: feather-ruffling electrified bass, spatterings of rifle guitar blasts and beats so strong they could melt concrete. Climaxing with the hands-in-the-air vocal slap-down "City Of Dreams", each of these four cuts are primed for the peakest of peak hours. Delta Heaven.

Review: Newcastle powerhouse Chroma come in from the cold and land a killer blow on Total Science's CIA label! The trio are no strangers to the CIA cause, having already supplied the label with 2013 high calibre 12" Intermission as well as remixing Total Science & S.P.Y. cut "Whoonga" last year, but Outline is some classy business. Opening up with the title track, Chroma head off into vintage junglist territory whilst showcasing their innate talent for catchy vocal edits, ear-bending mid basses and banging 808 subs. On the flip, the tight and heavy stepper "Hodrull" shares sides with a killer remix of the aforementioned "Intermission" from certified badman Break. Whilst Newcastle United may be currently mired in relegation woes, Chroma are flying high on this 12"!

Review: Culture Shock releases are notoriously sparse... With upwards of a year passing between dispatches (and epic five-year hype times between ID clips of Ram boss Andy C playing them and them actually being finished and released) fans have learned to make hay while the sun shines. Like now... Originally released digitally in December, these four tracks are finally available on vinyl and every one of them is a thriller: from the Detroitian textures of the synths on "Tangents" to the all-out bull charge of "Steam Machine" and the vocal beauty of "No More", Shocky's sun is shining brightly right now. Time to make hay!

Review: 2016 is a big year for Spectrasoul duo Jack Stevens and David Kennett; the pair have become long term associates of Shogun Audio with two albums and countless 12"s in their discography for Friction's label. However, this year they have elected to branch out and launch their own label, Ish Chat, with this debut release showcasing Spectrasoul at their finest! There are plenty of strands to modern drum and bass, and the four tracks on this 12", Only You, really demonstrates Spectrasoul's mastery of them. The title track adopts a pensive, and dare we say almost poppy, take on the autonomic sound thanks to some deliciously manipulated vocals and a clear understanding of space. "SM1" is a full on junglist blast, whilst "From The Jaws" brings the jazzy stepper vibes and "4URGH" lands straight in screwface territory.

Review: Mr Utopia returns to his spiritual home with four more forward-thinking sermons: "The Gully VIP" sees him giving 2015's underground thumper a toxic halftime treatment, stripped back the break and throwing it into a moody swagger with sudden flurries of breaks when you least expect them. "String Section" is a stark stepper with hardly an orchestra in sight, just raw sizzles of electricity running back and forth and a very subtle string line causing paranoid drama throughout. Finally "By Firelight" rolls with a really spacious design and polished bass textures that are reminiscent of a young Photek. It doesn't get much better than this.

Review: Seba & Method One: Two international statesmen collide with ludicrously heavy results. "Let's Be Done With This" does that dynamic double drum kit thing that classic jungle records used to do; you think the whole track has revealed itself then boom... A hidden twist unleashes another layer of processed drums and a sub so heavy it could crush limbs. "Silicon Nature" takes us to a more spacious place with an aesthetic that's similar to Headz; crystalline drums, a rising acid pulse and a reese that groans like thunder. Immense.

Review: Here's a tag team you'd be proud to take home to your parents: polite civilised gentlemen by day Sam and Om are unruly, uncompromised club crushers by night, slapping ears happy with their unique jungle, hip-hop, bass melt-ups. Here we find them doubling their sonic muscle and creativity on their own Bunit venture: "Windmill Kick" is the ultimate finishing move, all clattering drums and classic jungle motifs. From here we get darker and starker with every track.... "Big Kev" is a big juicy rolling halftimer, "1000 Cats" is a bewitching brew of acid and underwater footwork while "Planetary Reboot" presses the beatless reset button on all your preconceptions.

Review: Russian roustabouts Command Strange and Intelligent Manners collide for some head-to-head fun on Marky's Innerground imprint. The vinyl edition features a select cut of the full album's 12 tracks which do well to highlight the duo's broad style. From the jaw-dropping darkness of "Frontline" to the gully jump up rawness of "Ghetto Drama" by way of soulful duvet moments such as "Jumpin' The Sun" and the jazz-licked "Uptight", each of these cut have been tried and tested by the big bossman himself. And this is only half the album!

Review: Convex Industry's unruly little brother CNVX makes its first stance of the year with this all-star-cast EP. First up is dBridge's far-from-average "Average Echo". A neat contrast to his screwface adventures with the freshly reformed Bad Company, this track is a lesson in fine drum tuning and spacious bass placement. Loxy & Resound's "Heritage", meanwhile, lives up to its name (even down to its stately six minute length) as it taps into drum & bass jungle's deepest roots, digging up all manner of Headz references along the way.

Review: The North American jungle assault continues as Dispatch welcome an old friend (Quadrant) and a new one (NC-17) for this powerful double-tracker. "Dub Central" is a lean warp-focused track where a pulsating bassline groans over the anchored kicks. NC-17 goes it alone for "Only One Way Out". Upping the savage factor a notch or two, there's more of a shred to the bass as it rips through the spectrum with a classic air of Renegade heaviness. Muscular.

Review: Released digitally a matter of months after their debut album, The Prototypes shunned the usual 'release a load of songs from the LP' attitude and flung out freshness. Electrified and rampant, it sums up just why the Brighton duo have risen to fame in the way they have these last few years. As does "Pop It Off". One of the most popular D&B tracks of 2015 full stop here it gets a new injection of VIP gulliness where the bassline is taken to deeper, leaner pastures. Never before pressed to vinyl, this one's special.

Review: PA goes all alter-ego on us with this dual persona workout on Ray Keith's Dread. First up are two contrasting PA cuts: the demonic MC-led "Purple Demonz" and the slinky roller "Sound You Never Know" which wouldn't go amiss on Symmetry or Advisory. What follows is a slew of darker, more classical jungle sounding cuts that were tailor made for Dread with the minimal Doc Scott style heartbeat bass of "Dread Colonies" and the scorching reese on "Keep Pushing". Two personalities, two sides, four impressive cuts.

Review: Stateside Drum and Bass figure head Random Movement first landed on Dutch titans Fokuz last year, and it felt like the perfect match for a producer who proudly claims to take influence from "not old music, not new music, just good music". Not soon after Lenzman remixed his crusher "I Stayed Around" for a Fokuz 1", Random Movement further strengthens his bond with the label with a pair of freshly cooked body swervers. The name "Meat Sauce" conjures up all sorts of queasy mental imagery, but the track itself is a faultless production rife with soul and razor sharp rhythmic chops. Face down and "The Change Is In You" dips in all the right places - this one is a serious tip!

Review: Some fierce drum 'n' bass from the darkside that deconstructs and reconstructs jungle era breakbeat science on the Give Me A Dub EP by Nottingham's (now London based) Soul Intent on Tempo. Appearing for a change outside of his usual home, Lossless Records, he throws down three killer tracks here. First up the title track smashes through the audio spectrum like a battering ram with the kind of drums that even Dillinja would stand up and notice. "The Dread" is more minimal and stripped; the kind of stuff that DJ Krust was throwing down back in the day. Finally "Heaven" is definitely the most highly engineered offering; a futurist techstep journey with an emotive atmosphere and liquid breaks.

Review: Few D&B artists have delivered seven albums in 10 years at the high level of creativity as Logistics. Few D&B artists have delivered seven albums full stop. But this is the prolific magic of Matt Gresham, a man whose passion for melody, soul, grit and authenticity are balanced in such a way he consistently smashes it with every construction. Take the rattling jungle amens and choral soaring of "Icarus" or the weighty halfstep and Flume-style vocal trippiness of "Fight 4 U" or the hazy sunrise glimmers of the title track.... Each cut expressing weight, musicality, heaps of space and a range that's at once broad and highly defined. Impressive.

Review: Sunny-side skanks from veterans Vinyl Junkie and Sanxion as they recruit the harmonic Darrison-level dulcets of Bushman for "Talk Too Much"... Think sunset at a festival, carnival time or warm and toasty warm-up, it's an on-point throwback to the hazy days when ragga rule jungle. For added slinkiness jump on Westy's sub-slicked remix. For added classic, circa-2000 jump-up breaks mischief jump on the 140 version. Stop talking, start playing.

Review: Kenzo's Artikal hits the big two-oh in style with Dutch drumweaver TMSV. Sitting pretty around the 165 mark (past the point of no return between dubstep and D&B), each cut rolls hard and heavily. Both versions of "Hunter" play deftly with intense layers of funky percussion: TMSV diving deep on the full speed while Jay licks low on the halftime flip. Elsewhere we're bombarded with more super-tight congas and icy textures on "Laddergoat". Genuinely unique, 165 is a really exciting area that's crying for more creativity like this.