Review: Oh Benga. Where do we begin? Emerging from the depths of Croydon in the early noughties, Benga has been a pioneer and pivotal lynchpin in the ever-burgeoning dubstep movement. His previous albums, Newstep and Diary Of An Afro Warrior remain amongst the most influential long players of the genre's history, alongside commercial crossover collab with Coki, "Night" and a slew of other high profile releases on labels such as Tempa, Tectonic, Hotflush and Planet Mu. Firmly cementing his reputation as one of the scene's most pre-eminent figures, Benga brings us "Phaze One" - the first in a series of EPs on the seminal Tempa imprint. Bookmarked by the delightfully named "Baltimore Clap" and "No Bra, No Panties," the EP kicks off with jittering, dark riddims and aggressive slapstick, breathy tones. As digital bonuses, "Transform" - another bleepy bad one, and the aforementioned cheeky sampling, dancehall-esque "No Bra, No Panties" - conclude the EP with a resounding two fingers in the face. Great stuff.
Review: Having announced his new Jon Convex endeavour with two slices of formidable futurism for Martyn's 3024 imprint, Damon Kirkham returns to the familiarity of Non Plus with a double clutch of equally essential productions. Fans of cult TV might recognise the snatch of Badalamenti strings that announce "Radar" in such ominous fashion, though it's they way this element is weaved amidst ever groaning insect like bass and murderous strains of dystopian acid that truly impresses. And of course the brittle click clack of drums that always threatens to smash to pieces. In contrast, "Vacuum States" offers a more optimistic slant on the sci fi electro poise, gradually letting loose a succession of kaleidoscopic synth flutters over the stripped down kick thrust and glooping bass.
Review: The promise of Cooly G's releases for Hyperdub et al turns into maddening anticipation as the first taste of her forthcoming album sneaks out months ahead of the game! First up it's "Landscapes", co-produced with Simbad, and utterly devastating in its use of simple elements for maximum effect. A broken beat ticks steadily away under glossy, undulating streams of pads while Cooly herself enchants with her Neneh Cherry style vocal delivery. "It's Serious" on the flipside sees Cooly linking up with certified house legend Karizma for a more chunky, beat-driven offering that will slay floors in the same way that Altered Natives' "Rass Out" did some years back.
Review: Cooly G has become a phenomenon in the last year among fans of dubstep and UK Funky partially thanks to her heavy DJ sets, a prolific Twitter account and a slew of excellent mixtapes. But this incredible double A-Side release via Hyperdub showcases the main reason Cooly G is the name on everyone's lips - her beats. "Up In My Head" starts with a dreamy arrangement of chords, fed through different phasing effects and with a sparse string lead just creeping into the melange of R&B-esque sounds. While there's a warped-pop feel to "Up In My Head", "Phat Si" (which debuted on Kode9's DJ Kicks mix recently) is straight-up fire. With snares sequenced into a full-on funky rattle and hats sounding like knives, she filters the beat up subtly until letting fly with a huge processed siren-effect which brings the beats in with full force. Frankly it's sick, and another essential release from Cooly and Hyperdub. Enjoy.
Review: Nonplus continue to confound all with their esoteric approach to curation with the debut record from Doubleheart, a collaborative project between Optimo's JD Twitch and bass pioneer Neil Landstrumm. In a year of strong releases from the label, it easily stands out as one of their best; "Salsa" utilises brittle mechanical congas as the rhythmic backbone for the track, but it's the massively oscillating bass and sirens that really make it, being simultaneously huge but also restrained enough to prevent it falling into typical bass tropes. "Ache" meanwhile takes things down a notch with a housier tempo and thick bass slabs which threaten to go into full on acid at times. But it's the echoing vocal fragments and rhythm guitar that fascinate most, joining the dots between the obvious influence of Jamaican dub and contemporary bass.
Review: Music from the young Joshua Leary has been sporadic since he emerged on a wave of YouTube hype at the tail end of 2011, with only the Kings and Them mixtape and this year's one-sided Duga-3release on Record Store Day, but given he received a production credit on Kanye West's Yeezus album last year his relative silence can be forgiven. As such the Waterfall EP represents perhaps Leary's first proper release, and it shows that he has come a long way since the early days of his career. Containing four tracks that bridge the gap between jungle, hip hop and ambient music, Waterfall is both delicate and savage in equal measure, especially on the closing title track, where plaintive piano and semi-automatic snares collide to thrilling effect.
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