Beats News

Ltd 12" vinyl re-release.

Homemade Weapons has established himself as one of Drum and Bass' most vital artists, sculpting a signature style that has garnered wide ranging support from Om Unit through to Calibre, Loxy and on to Donato Dozzy. With his Negative Space debut LP for Samurai Music, Homemade Weapons planted a jagged flag, attracting critical acclaim and igniting a new era of breakbeat manipulation.

Gravity further expands this approach, moving forward his own hyper-advanced amenism while maintaining his position firmly between what people are calling 'modern jungle' and the stripped back minimalism of the deep half time sound. Drafting in fellow weaponizers Artilect, Torn, and newcomers Torana for collaborations adds congruous variance to the searing Gravity spice.

While many artists in his immediate musical vicinity concentrate on going deeper, Homemade Weapons continues to make focused, stripped back tunes that have the weight and momentum to work on the dance-floor.

As the first Samurai Music artist LP of 2019, Gravity shows a singular talent confidently moving the creative arrow in drum and bass forward.

Each 12" plate is a different colour on the first press vinyl, any repress will be a different colour.


Press
RA - Early album pick-up here

Hyped On Acid (Limited Hand Stamped 12'')

Foxy Jangle returns with a cheeky one: a special re-issue of Bones & Natty's classic '95 jungle 12" - Pow / Thunder.

Originally slated for release back in the day on 24 Karat, this monstrous 12" alas never made it past the white label promo stage, becoming one of today's most sought-after jungle records

Lovingly remastered by Bob Macc at Subvert Central, pressed at Record Industry and with hand-stamped artwork by Dublin artist CISTO, this vinyl-only release is most definitely not to be slept on!

Vintage amen choppage at its finest.

Repress

Obstruction EP

- Utopia Music are extremely proud to present UM022, Hydro's debut album 'Lateral Thinking'. - Spread over 3 plates (4 including the sampler), Hydro manages to really showcase the variety and musicality that he's known for. With over 20 years of experience, he manages to comfortably wear his many influences whilst offering something both fresh and new at the same time. The palette covers light and dark, warm & cold, ambience, jungle, funk, soulful, techy, rolling, half time, 130 & 140 bpm, hip hop, jazz, tribal, and even meditative vibes. Inspired by a lifetime of music, travel and memories the aim was to deliver an eclectic album that could satisfy both the DJs and the headz whilst also being able to transport the listener elsewhere on an emotional and cerebral level. Dance music that can work beyond the dance floor.

- Hydro has been releasing incredible music since 2003 on almost all of the big labels. Since his production beginnings collaborating with Break, he has continued to work on many different styles and with many other different producers. He's become known for his musical diversity and his name is synonymous with quality & finesse. It's an absolute honour to be able to introduce his debut album to you. This project also features War, who again establishes himself as one of the best engineers in the game. Since first collaborating in 2011, Hydro & War have proven to be a formidable team, known for consistently delivering essential releases, including for Utopia. The only other artist featured on the album is Mateba, who joins in for two of the more uplifting tracks. A talented French producer and a long time collaborator of both Hydro & War.

Fracture returns to the fast lane in 2019 with "Big Up The Ladies" EP - four fresh and futuristic, genre defying cuts that build on the momentum of the London producers recent 'turbo' experiments that side steps the turbo-berghain-esque intensity of 2018's Dropping You and Turbo Toms and pivot for the dance hall.
Title track "Big Up The Ladies" is a positive party starter full of swagger and powerful hooks on top of a driving 4/4 kick and half time clap rhythm.
"Percussion Sweet" continues the fresh patterns while adding edgy vocal stutters and a searing reese breakdown propelling the listener towards a perilous mix of jacking 909 hi hats and trademark bass stabs. Turbo in full swing.
"Verhoeven" switches up the techno kick patterns in favour of an 808 bounce to deliver an ambitious electro fused bubbler which as Fracture explains is 'like a scene in a future-society film when the main character enters a disorientating subterranean club with loads of weird and wonderful people coming in and out of shot' Finally "Sci-Fi Tramp" closes the EP with a sense of sleazy uneasiness viewed from behind a pair of mirrored shades. Alarming bass womps jack the listener straight into the system to hack the rave and get the hell out...
Big Up The Ladies is released on 12" & Digital on 12th April 2019 on Fracture's own Astrophonica imprint and follows the label's huge Fracture curated "Gradients Vol.2" compilation featuring Luke Vibert, DieMantle (DJ Die & Dismantle), Dream Continuum (Om Unit & Machinedrum), Falty DL, Fracture, Taso (Teklife), Sully, Moresounds, Proc Fiskal (Hyperdub), Sam Binga, Lewis James, Rider Shafique and more. As ever the release is accompanied by ever incredible art and design from Utile.
It's a party yo! Come celebrate the sheer brilliance of catching a vibe... and.... Big Up The Ladies!

4 TRACKS OF PURIST JUNGLE TECHNO FROM A COLLABORATION BETWEEN RON WELLS AKA JACK SMOOTH AND DANIEL SILK OF WORLDWIDE EPIDEMIC

North to South America link up! Sao Paulo's finest, BUNGLE steps to the plate with yet another champion release! Effortlessly touching on any style, 'Physical Dub' boasts a futuristic stepper quickly capturing your senses with a meticulously layered riddim backed with a chest thumping bass arrangement. 'Healing' opens up with an eerie-like tone subtlety touching on the hook prior to an instant onslaught of heavyweight breaks and a monstrous but melodic reese b-line. Dirtying up the dance, 'Inner Mask' highlights a more sinister atmosphere one for the rude bwoys and rude gyals.

Peshay Returns To Infrared Records With This Stunning 4 Track E.p On 2x12" Limited Vinyl.
This Release Is Limited To 250 Copies And Will Never Be Repressed.

As we celebrate the 25th year of V Recordings, it couldn't be a better time for another release from DJ Patife & Vangeliez. One of the OG's of Brazilian D&B Patife teams up with fellow countryman Vangeliez (formerly one half of Human Factor) once again. Fresh from their last single, as well as features on last year's very well received 'Viva Brazil' compilation released in conjunction with SUNANDBASS, this duo has definitely found their own lane!

* On 'Living Together' they link up with two of the most recognizable voices in the D&B, MC Fats and Stamina MC to create an uplifting summer anthem, that spreads the positivity of music across the globe. These two vocalists need little introduction, but in case you don't know, they are behind some of the most seminal moments in our genre's history, classics like Calibre's 'Drop It Down' , DJ Hype's 'Peace, Love & Unity, DJ Marky & XRS's 'LK', D Kay's 'Barcelona' and so the list could go on... Basically with the coming together of these four names you're in safe hands! 'On The Floor' continues to push a euphoric feeling, but adapts a sub low bass that could tear through any system!

* Teaming up with Manchester's finest for vocals on 'Ain't That Bad', the tracks follow in the vein of their previous collaboration on Soul-R, and DRS delivers a stellar vocal performance that brings the track to life, and is again full of good vibes, definitely something you can never have enough of! 'Unexpected' is dripping with original liquid vibes - think Carlito & Addiction, Calibre, D Bridge Big Bud, Solid State - with a 21st-century twist - one for the those who like it deep.

* Drum & Bass as a genre now has so many different sounds and styles, but one sound that has ridden the waves of fashions and emerged as timeless is on display here as the duo deliver 100% organic, funk-filled Drum & Bass music for the soul.

* LABEL MARKETING: Features on V Recordings Podcast, Dedicated newsletter to 85,000 V Recordings subscribers. 80,000+ Facebook reach through label controlled Facebook and Twitter. Press on websites across the globe.

We Launch A New Vinyl Series, Strictly Limited To 200 Units, No Repress, On Which We'll Be Releasing The Finest Tracks Released On The Digital Pot (digipot).
For This First Strike, We've Chosen A Oldie But Definitely Goodie, Released Back In 2009 On Digipot18: Katharsys, Gancher & Ruin - Dirt Track Ep.
The Original Release Includes 4 Tracks, We've Taken These 2 For "hard-stuff-on-vinyl" Lovers: Sky From Beyond / I Think Its Done.

* To celebrate 15 years of the Intrigue club night, Ben Soundscape's Intrigue Music label will release 'Intrigue 15'. The album is a truly versatile selection covering a wide spectrum of deep drum & bass. It contains 15 exclusive tracks and from the likes of Calibre, Break, Randall, Random Movement, Ill Truth, Ben Soundscape, RoyGreen & Protone, Joakuim, Raw Q and more. It follows the previous four in the series, which began at the start of 2014. It has received huge support from across the scene including plays by ReneLaVice on BBC Radio 1, DJ Marky, Fabio, LTJ Bukem and more.

French underground drum & bass music ! Fresh

CYBERSPEAK, Milan multidisciplinary collective appears on the internet as a language of objectivity and truth, as the computer is, challenging the existing order in electronic music.
'V1' is the first physical episode coming from duo TRAIN TO ELTANIN showing their skills with 5 tracks that embody the musical accelerations of the label.
Hi-Speed Electrofunk with some energetic stop and go that makes it a sure killer dancefloor weapon, atmospherical and evocative club sounds, classicism jazzy school driven by computer sequencers, jungle assaults and broken electronics. The message is clear: Keep on Programming!

We're delighted to present Lenzman's brand new album - 'Bobby'.

Gliding through sub-genres of hip-hop, jazz and soul, Lenzman's new album is forward-thinking with complimenting crossovers that still connect with the current drum and bass scene. Across this boundary defying journey, Lenzman draws on a cascade of mellow and weighty subs, soft and rich vocal tones from collaborators DRS, Children Of Zeus and Konny Kon whilst guest producers Artificial Intelligence and LSB lend their notable skills to the LP with nostalgic melodies. Amongst the intricate sound design also lies sentimental influence of family and childhood that has served as the essential foundation to bind the LP together:

'I became a father a year or so before starting the album. My daughter had also named her stuffed toy 'Bobby' at the time,' Lenzman explains. Although the LP was already taking shape that was fitting for me as a title. Becoming a Dad had made me revisit my own childhood and look at it from a different angle. The memories, influences and music from that period of my life were the most vivid in my mind... the moods and feelings, all translated into the music on the LP. I was raised by my father and he used to draw a lot back in those days, so it was fitting for him to draw the cover, fragments of my childhood put onto paper.'

Since stepping on the scene in 2007, Lenzman has continued to flourish as an artist known for his fluid approach and bold collaborations. Whilst producing his own originals including his debut LP Looking At The Stars in 2014 and Golden Age EP in 2016, the revered producer has also provided the remix treatment for Joe Hertz' One Another and The Mouse Outfit's Feeling High. Having released on the likes of Spearhead Records, SGN:LTD, Soul:r and his rising North Quarter imprint over the years, the Bobby LP on Metalheadz is primed to satisfy the bubbling cravings of patiently waiting Lenzman fans whilst capturing the ears of a wider global audience as he releases his most seminal body of work to date.

Gloom

Adred is back on Metalheadz and this time he's hitting the main label presenting 2 silky collaborations with Commix and Ant TC1 & DRS. Both sides are a compliment to each other as they showcase rich, deep sounds seeping with infectious patterns and soulful grooves, with the discernible voice of DRS executing a stand out release.

22 years since a last appearance, Placid Angles partners with London's Magicwire to share with you a second full length, First Blue Sky.

Placid Angles (John Beltran) & Magicwire would like to dedicate this album to you, the earth & everything.

First Blue Sky is due mid March. For now please enjoy the clips and take care of each other.

All artwork done by Magicwire's Gabriola.

Recut and repress from Fantomatik 02 and Trichoptere 01. About Trichoptere 01 I assume it's the best MemPamal Track.. About Fantomatik 02 i'd say it's a superb 4/4 Hardtek DJ Tool, bringing out long breaks and banging kicks. Both tunes are truely alternative dancefloor stuff. And emotion still.

After months of anticipation UK DnB duo Delta Heavy finally drop their sophomore studio album 'Only In Dreams', out on worldwide release today via iconic imprint RAM Records. The follow up to their seminal debut album 'Paradise Lost', 'Only In Dreams' features collaborations with Zeds Dead, Everyone You Know, Muzzy, Modestep, KUURO alongside vocalists Jem Cooke, Starling and Rae Hall and further cements their status within the bass scene on both sides of the Atlantic and beyond. Flexing and bending between DnB, trap, future bass and dubstep, the duo infuse every single track with layer after layer of originality, creativity and dynamism, lifting the music well beyond the norm. Tracks like 'Exodus' and the Middle Eastern-tinged Muzzy collab 'Revenge' thunder and prowl their way across the darkest of sound systems. Monstercat heavyweights KUURO bring their talents into play on the trap and DnB hybrid 'Replicant' while British dubstep and electronic act Modestep feature on 'Here With Me', a soaring and complex take on the future bass genre. 'Lift You Up', the Zeds Dead collaboration that only recently lit the online music media world on fire, gifts fans a prime example of Delta Heavy's ability to stride firmly into the Stateside world of bass, as does the glitchy halftime stomp of 'A.I.' The album climaxes with 'Show Me The Light' and 'Take Me Home', featuring Starling and Jem Cooke respectively, two anthemic vocal tracks laced with as much emotion and beauty as they are with dance-floor drive and energy.

Limited Edition Vinyl With Sticker Insert

UK Jungle heavyweights Supa Ape and Lady Soul join forces to create a fiercely unique live act, performing tracks from their upcoming collaborative EP 'Supa Ape Meets Lady Soul', as well as some of the freshest amen breaks on the planet. The pair joined forces in early 2017, and the success of their track (and subsequent music video) 'Approach With Caution' inspired them to work on four original pieces to be released in both vinyl and digital formats on the UK Jungle Records imprint. Together they possess a musicality, depth and a raw energy scarcely found within the jungle / dnb scene, and deliver a live performance unlike anything you have ever heard.

This record features full coloured artwork sleeves which will be the eye catcher of anyone's collection.

Many labels have prided themselves as being specialists within the field of drum & bass, however not all of them can boast the background that Dispatch Recordings have built for themselves throughout its development. They've never shaped their sounds or artists to fit any one popular model and have instead shifted their focus to providing music which is ingeniously written, whilst also being engineered for speaker stacks. The output on Dispatch has been continually of a high caliber and difficult to match since the label was first launched, yet they still manage to find artists who fit these standards. Even in recent years, they've helped shine a light on many producers who were not only beginning to establish themselves, but also to make these figures become buy-on-sight; whether that's exemplified through Black Barrel's "Last Frontier" LP through or the "In Life" EP from Tephra & Arkoze.

Their next concept album comes from Italian maestro Dabs. His tech-funk layered drum & bass has often provided stand-out selections, with his name becoming a staple at parties across the likes of Europe, Australia and South America. The high-energy, technically trained producer has offered up a massive package of tracks to capitalize on Dispatch's colossal audience. As well as debuting his music on Eatbrain and Horizons, whilst having his own Avantgarde podium which gave him full creative control, he'd already firmly established himself within the back catalogue of Dispatch. With support from title-winning names such as Andy C, Ed Rush & Optica land DJ Hype, his remix of Octane & DLR's "Back in the Grind" saw him step further into the roster of Dispatch Recordings alongside Cern, after the pair came under the label's radar in 2010.

The "Wormatic" LP draws many other like minded individuals in for the ride with collaborations alongside the likes of Nymfo ("Walkman"), Illaman & Kwality ("Got the Message"), Quadrant & Iris("Adenosine") and Wrath ("Last Note"). His standalone cuts are also just as impressive, with the sweeping breaks of "CWM", the throbbing electronic drums of "Buntlack" and the gritty LFOs of "Eardrum" all making themselves heard. Tracks such as "Martini", "Granulair", "Sleepless City", "Tempra", "Shape of Things", "Wednesday" and "Got the Message" are all just as diligent in their manufacturing. From beginning to end, the album is a stunning display of diversity and it's an aspect which is heralded by the Dispatch Recordings camp. They've never had to surrender to any commercial appeal and for this, they still provide an outlet for the drum & bass world's underground.

Jason Leder, otherwise known as Method One has been a mainstay of the American Drum & Bass scene for a very long time. Originally hailing from the east coast his earliest claim to fame was remixing DEEE-LITE - "Call Me" in 1994 for Elektra records after Lady Miss Kier heard his cassette demo. Eventually he headed out west to San Francisco where he has remained for over 20 years.

The Stomping Grounds EP is Jason's tribute to the music that originally inspired him. Two harder tracks that echo Tango & Ratty era Formation Records and two deep & melodic atmospheric tracks that nod towards golden era Good Looking. A Method One release is a rare treat and is his first solo release since 2015's "Blackwood" EP on Auxiliary Transmissions.

Check other releases from Method One on - Doc Scott's 31 Records, Seba's Secret Operations, Samurai, Auxiliary and Commercial Suicide amongst others.

If 2018's WOLFEP046 touched on the burgeoning talent of rising Portuguese star Pedro, this 2019 follow-up delves deep into the accomplished head that rests on those youthful shoulders.

Opening the EP, 'She is' gives a taste of the path Pedro takes with this record. A ten-minute twisting trip, that moves and melds modern jazz leanings with a rugged aesthetic. Off kilter sax flurries, at times gleaming, at others melting, open up the distorted dreams of Pedro's world, as a metronomic double bass attempts to steady the ship. Metallic rides and abrupt percussive hits contrast with the sustained piano chords, further foraging down his surrealist sidewalk.

Take to the flip to find the waltzing 'Faces sob o sol'. A beatless contemporary jazz piece in 3/4 time, where deft piano melodies dance around a looped up, muted guitar phrase and twanging riffs. A simplicity born from only a handful of layers, that in turn creates a free-flowing fluidity through this jazz rabbit hole.

The most club ready of the cuts, 'Alef' rolls around next, where a funked out bass and psychedelic strummings, marry with crisp cymbals and polished piano playing. Pedro's dream inducing trip still takes its hold though, with distorted, panning, hallucinogenic vocal cries swelling across the airwaves.

Stepping up to close out the EP, Moomin flips 'Faces sob o sol' on its head, laying a rough and ready, liquid DnB rhythm as the basis alongside adding delicate arps and sweeping, atmospheric pads that follow Pedro's original. As hypnotising as its forebearer, but with an ethereal dancefloor orientated radiance.

With hundreds of new producers cropping up, week by week, it's rare to be challenged by something of such high quality from an up-and-coming artist. And with jazz finding a new lease of life across the UK, Pedro's latest output will be sure to find a home on these shores.

Known for his dub excursions on labels such as Dub Stuy, Zam Zam Sounds and Moonshine Recordings, Bukkha steps out under his Preacha moniker once again for NICE UP! with a deep, dark and brooding grime and trap influenced track. What started out initially as a remix project for another artist soon turned into a track of its own when badman MC and poet Rider Shafique stepped up on vocals, going deep on the subject of what drives us in his own inimitable style.

Remixes come from US dubstep don DJ Madd who flips the pace a bit for his signature 160 style - heavy on the vibes, bass and bounce, while up and coming producer Casement twists it into a grime style banger incorporating elements of garage and jungle along the way. An acapella version is included as an exclusive to the vinyl.