Beats News

'Prole Art Threat' is producer Anthoney Hart's second LP for Planet Mu under his East Man alias, after 2018's well received debut 'Red White & Zero'. It brings together a set of MCs from all over London, Darkos and Eklipse from East London and Lyrical Strally from near Feltham who were on the first album, Ny Ny and Mic Ty also from East London, Streema and 'Vision Crew' member Whack Eye from Lewisham plus Fernando Kep, an MC from the burgeoning Brazil grime scene. They work across a cohesive set of tight riddims forged from thoughtful amalgams of grime, dancehall and drum & bass. The album takes its name from a Fall song/mission statement of the same title, the band being self-consciously working class and led by a brilliant autodidact in Mark E Smith. East Man relates that the title is to be taken as “a reflection of working-class creativity and how the establishment marginalise us and (perhaps on a subconscious level) see us as a threat.” Les Back, author of 'The Art of Listening' and 'Out of Whiteness: Color, Politics and Culture (with Vron Ware)' contributes liner notes to the record: East Man understands the force and the democracy of the mic. Listening to Prole Art Threat is like being at a dance. As the mic is passed between each of the MCs, a different tale is ‘elevated... off the map’ as Ny Ny puts it. We hear instalmentsfrom Forest Gate, Lee, Lewisham and Manor Park as these ‘lyrical gaffers’ and ’top boys and girls’ tell tough stories of life under the scrutiny of the ‘Feds’ in a brutal and divided city. The bars and rhymes document what it means to live here; from the double standards applied to the sexuality of young girls and boys to the corrosive violence of everyday life. All this is dissected without compromise. This is not just aLondon story though, the inclusion of Fernando Kep from the burgeoning Grime scene in Brazil is evidence of the outernational reach of the music. The tracks on East Man’s album explode the wilful ignorance of those who see ‘the working class’ in contemporary London as code for whiteness. This is the sound of a proletarian urban multiculture, made from Caribbean and African influences, sound system culture, pirate radio and the inexorable rhythms of Grime, Drum & Bass, Techno and Dancehall. It is the stirring of the "white" & "black" working classes who are living together and coming together on their own terms in sound. ‘Making music because you love it... what the fuck else could you do?’ as East Man says. The tracks and voices you are holding in your hands are, as a result urgent, vital, as hard nails and twice as sharp.

This is a Dubquake Sign Series #1

2 dirty steppers for a pure dark electro dub banging sound !

You will struggle to find an artist who has contributed to the culture as much as East London pioneer, Footsie. His position in the music hall of fame is firmly cemented with his foundations paving the way for thousands after him.

New 5 track digital release from Sumgii for Swamp 81 sublabel, 81. Mastered at TenEightSeven

A digital stimulus for the analog age.
Termina presents slowed-down mystery funk and
sub-bass excursions for open-minded dancefloors. Impressive!

Personnel: Yosa Peit, Nauker, and Glenn Astro

2x12"

Having made initial waves on Cold Recordings and Osiris, Eric Baldwin returns now to Tectonic to release his eponymous album ’Cocktail Party Effect’, bringing his South London roots to Berlin for an all-weekender, under strobe lights.

Drawn by his appetite for powerful rhythmical forms and inspired by the likes of Daphne Oram, The Residents and Captain Beefheart - Eric takes uses background in sound design, knowledge of hacking VST software and adapted spring reverbs and other hardware, to create a truly unique vision of contemporary electronic music. It sits somewhere between Jeff Mills, Aphex Twin & Squarepusher - held together by a connective UK Bass Music spinal chord. A weird but intriguing beast.

We open the track with Japanese cocktail recipes, before moving into the only vocal track of the album, ‘Talking To Bricks’ featuring Bristol vocalist Redders on fine form - charged with disjointed energy and run ragged across a technologically charged dancehall style beat. The LP progresses through the rolling breaks and bleeps of ‘For The Memory Exchange’, into an IDM side-step in the shape of ‘Brutalism’, moving into the gentle, beautiful flickering glitches of ‘PDA’, before we get to the hyperactive twitching alien charge of ‘War On Codex’.

Taking a leap in another direction, we reach ‘Cause For Bad Shelving’, which sounds a bit like Squarepusher when he was on late 90s, immaculate form - taking the tempo up a few notches, while building melancholy. ‘Lack Of Wrong Format’ then gives us a moment to breathe, before diving into ‘Deerhorn’ which brings us right back to the dancefloor. Things are then turned inside out with the jittery wonder of ‘I Get It (Lost Banknote)’, redirected via the industrial clangs of ‘Low_Rise’, before rounding off our sonic adventure with the ponderous tones of ‘Loner’ - which leave you glowing and drifting off into space.

A bold album that’s just brim with a strong sense of originality, direction and grand narrative. From international dancefloors to post-clubbing ear-worms, Cocktail Party Effect is just getting started and you’ll be hearing his name more and more now.

Following a series of standout releases on stateside imprint, Astral Plane, E.M.M.A returns to Coyote Records for the first time proper with new 12', 'Mindmaze / Pumpkin Emoji'. Having first provided a remix on Spokes' inaugural EP ('Green Eyes') for the label back in 2015, E.M.M.A has since kick-started her Angel Food radio show on NTS alongside Aimee Cliff, and also established Producer Girls — a nationwide workshop initiative aimed at helping aspiring women get into music production. On 'Mindmaze', described by E.M.M.A. herself as 'medieval funky' and originally made as a special for Mumdance on Rinse FM, she pokes fun at the club, going in sample-heavy and re-fixing anthemic Windows 95-era melodies over a stampeding, heavyset 4x4 beat. This tune is a homage to the Encarta 95 CD ROM', she explains. On the flip meanwhile, 'Pumpkin Emoji' references the glossy, crystalline textures and lo-slung 808 bass of early E.M.M.A. gems like 2014's 'Light Years', a potent reminder of why she remains one of the UK's most innovative and quietly rebellious club producers.

Pennyroyal continues with a slamming EP from Zeki, the new alias for a familiar and prolific UK producer.

Four cuts of ruffian Grime / Techno hybrids clocking in at 140bpm. Built to enjoy or deploy loud at your favourite dance.

Boxed return with the third edition of their various artists EP series, showcasing the best in forward-thinking grime. Boxed's own Mr. Mitch leads the EP off with a rare and special appearance on vinyl, simultaneously graceful and unsettling the anthemic Friend of Mine flips a soul sample in screwed and chopped fashion while ghostly hi hats rotate around its vibrating bass core. For the A2, the debut vinyl appearance of AS.IF KID. Mashman Riddim Pt.2 recalls the technical ruffige of prime Plasticman or Mark One whilst pushing his sound in to new hi-definition territory. OG grime don JT The Goon unleashes his long awaited slate Flux Capacitor, a staple of Oil Gang's DJ sets. Fairlight-era flutes orbit a classic JT bassline for pure emotional, end-of-night vibes. Closing the EP Sirpixalot drops his VIP of All In One, trademark modal keys and skittering drums combining with triton bass.

Killer, one-sided grime instrumental from DJ Sinclair dispatched on Mumdance & Logos' Devils series. Placed beside Sinclair's Ricky/Gunman What (2016) one-two for Keysound, the sino-
futuristic instrumental pressure of Bells (RPG Mix) effectively doubles the London producer's tally of releases in fine style, slyding along Far Eastern scales in weightless
dimensions of liquified gamelan melody, zipping syn-flutes and fiyah-breathing Triton bass, all buffeted into sweepingly cinematic contours but all kept locked-on course for the
dance and DJs in-the-mix. Thanks to Sinclair's up-to-the-minute mixing sorcery and discreet use of sampled
dialogue, it's a strong cut above the instrumental grime field right now, and a mighty strong look for any and all in orbit of grime and it's current mutations. Hot tip!

Ruff Sqwads' most asked after instrumental, finally released on a
4-track vinyl EP. Includes R U Double F, arguably one of the most sought after and loved Grime tracks which never saw the light of day, along with 3 more forgotten classics in the form of Darker, Iron Man and Come On.

Setting off Signal Life's blacklabel series 011-015 as well as debuting on the label is Inner, Finland's worst kept secret at least judging from the vast radio support courtesy of crucial stations like London's Rinse FM. Based in Tampere, Finland, Inner has been making waves in his home country for a few years now and finally gets a well-deserved first international release. Drawing equally from Atlanta rap, movie soundtracks, grime and dancehall, Inner's music escapes a singular genre definition. Equally, his tracks emote as much as they bang in a club. Pain sets the atmosphere of the EP with a nod in a familiar direction, but swiftly switches up into a ice cold blend of futurist RnB and grime with a golden era Timbaland sensibility. Crystal Ember furthers this development with equal doses of south London grime melodics and feminine pressure. On the flip, Closa presents a thoroughly warped flex where staccato subs make your eyeballs vibrate as icey staccato synths double up showcasing Inner's ability to rethink the future of club music in 2017. Finally, certified emotional banger Roll Out continues the staccato rhythmics as squarewave melodics and hums are accompanied by long detuned grime bass streaks.

Numa Crew and the ’London City Warlord’ Riko Dan join forces on this dancefloor banger called ‘Babylon’.

When it comes to the influence of Ragga in the MCing styles of Grime, one of the undisputed pioneers is Riko Dan - most famously associated with Roll Deep, one of the most important collectives in the history of Grime.

The original track is an explosive mix of Grime and Dubstep sounds spiced with a Dancehall flavor that gives Riko the perfect platform to spin raw and punching lyrics.

The flip side is a remake of the original ‘Babylon’ in a pure Dub stepper style, heavyweight bassline, hypnotic skanks and mystical atmospheres that fuse the two worlds of Grime and Dub in a unique sound. Certified sound system material.

Elite level lost grime dubs used in legendary Wiley/Ghetts freestyles on Westwood, Wiley’s Tunnel Vision 5, and a whole host of grime clashes.

* Walton kicks off 2019 for Tectonic with 4 cuts of pirate radio infused dancefloor orientated DJ tools. 'Inside EP' follows on from Walton's exceptional 'Black Lotus' LP, which dropped on Tectonic last summer, gaining widespread acclaim - even rated as The Guardian's 'Contemporay Album Of The Month'!

* What we have here is 4 tracks that all sit around the 130bpm mark, providing grime sonics to a techno compatible form. Built for those who don't really give a f**k if you call it techno, grime or bass blah blah so long as it bangs in the dance and moves those feet.

* Sampling snippets of MC's chatting between tracks, each track takes a mostly functional approach, building raw elements in a simple but effective fashion. 'Bullet #2' sets the scene, kicking off with a radio style wheel up - before dropping into rolling 4/4 square wave power moves. 'Inside' follows the mood, building towards a more rolling technoid construct. 'More Cowbell' bangs out like an old 4/4 grime anthem with a contemporary production sonic, while 'Gunshot Clap'
closes out the EP, with its swooping square wave stabs and background shouts from behind the mic.

East Man returns with a four track EP that explores his own Hi Tek take on Grime, stripping everything down to the raw, bare essentials.
Opening the EP is Fight For A Cause, a rough a fuzzy sub bass driven exercise in beat science that draws as much upon Dancehall as it does Grime. The second track, Selector, is a straight up DJ tool, utilising an alternating 32 bar pattern interspersed with splashes of pirate radio chatter.
The flip side opens with the storming Bandit Country.
The subdued intro lulling you into a false sense of security before the beats and bass are unleashed in full attack mode, the relentless onslaught pausing only briefly midway for you to catch your breath before continuing on it's devastating path.
The closing track, Darkage, is an ominous brooding affair that those of you familiar with East Man's sets will know well.

A real head nodding roller, it's definitely one for the technical DJ's.

The hugely anticipated second full length album from the incredible Stormzy.

Following the release of Gang Signs and Prayer, his award-winning, platinum-selling debut album, Stormzy may no longer be stepping between the street and the sermon, but he’s still walking between two worlds: that of the celebrity and of the Everyman. His desire to stay grounded is evident; as his career continues to soar, he seems more and more determined to help others reach new heights of their own.

Much anticipated & supported Grime Trap hybrid finally sees the light of day after support on BBC 1xtra. Accompanied with a haunting remix by JLSXND7RS. This one has been heard in all the dances for the past year. Support from J:Kenzo, Sicaria Sound, Opium Hum (Boiler Room) and many more.

Fresh from releasing his first artist album for Deep Medi (‘Dark 365’) and overseeing a prolific year in charge of his Navy Cut imprint, J. Sparrow debuts on Coyote Records with two tracks of abstract, excursive pressure. Although long revered as one of dubstep’s core UK innovators, Sparrow has also spent time experimenting with different sounds, palettes and rhythms over the last two years. ‘Single Time’ and ‘VHS’, both written during this period, not only spotlight Sparrow’s willingness to aim for the outer reaches, but also embed themselves neatly within a Coyotediscography defined by the new-gen grime of producers like Last Japan, SilkRoad Assassins and Utah?. Still cut with a rolling dubstep lean, A-side ‘Single Time’ is heavy on the hollowed-out, dubby weight and scything bass jabs, while B-side ‘VHS’ – referred to by Sparrow himself as ‘Egyptian grime in the 1980s’ – is a bleepy, filmic, widescreen stepper that draws from the past as much as it does Sparrow’s take on shiny, sci-fi grime of the future.

Nomine Sound has always boasted an eclectic roster and for their next release they’ve drawn on grime instrumentalist Boylan to present his 14 track LP project ‘2 hrs Sleep’.

Supported by the likes of UKF and Red Bull, his cross pollinations of jungle, drum & bass, dubstep and grime instrumentals have caught international attention, leading to the top tier collaborations which feature on his forthcoming LP.

With heavyweight names such as Devlin, Slimzee, Riko Dan, Flowdan, Spooky, Logos and Oz making an appearance there’s a range of musicality explored throughout, packaging the sub genres which Boylanhas mastered throughout his career.

2x12" Purple Vinyl

Ascendant star of the new global underground, Slikback wraps up his first two digital-only EPs with three killer bonus cuts on a vinyl premiere for Hakuna Kulala, his prized sublabel of Nyege Nyege Tapes.
Hailing from Nairobi, Kenya via Kampala, Uganda, Slikback has rapidly attracted a wave of attention to his undulating mutations of current club styles, as found on the ‘Lasakaneka’ and ‘Tomo’ EPs between 2018-2019. Due to popular demand both those EPs now make their vinyl debut, packaged along with three previously unreleased zingers to weigh in the most significant showcase of Slikback’s acclaimed style and pattern in club circulation right now.
Distilling a range of inspirations from local East African hip hop to Congolese rhythms and Gqom’s cold percussion, plus influence from US trap and footwork, and the subbass common to JA and UK soundsystem cultures; Slikback’s music has arrived at a grippingly powerful sound which, while singular, is also entirely symptomatic of the thrilling styles emerging from Central Africa right now, and after many years of underrepresentation in the shadow of West and South African styles which have been popularised around the world.
On his debut ‘Lasakaneka’ EP Slikback swaggers from icy, robotic dancehall in ‘Acid’ to a gripping fusion of footwork and Gqom with a jungle bent in ‘Bantu Zen’, and dancehall techno drill on ‘Ascension’, along with the palpitating footwork pressure of ‘Venom’, and a nervy new ace in the itchy step of ’Shell.’ The follow-up of 2019’s ’Tomo’ meanwhile represents a mean progression of his sound; exerting a firmer control of his scudding bass rudeness in ‘Sonshitsu’, and the dissonant synth tone of ‘Gemini’, while the syncopated gabber styles of ‘Zuhura’ and ‘Rage’ give way to almighty exclusive joints in the hard seam of trap called ‘Kite’, and the Equiknoxx-gone-psycho styles of ‘Senshi.’
If you’re new to Slikback, trust this 2LP is the perfect place to get acquainted with his lucid, hi-tech madness, before checking for the full frontal futurism of his two new EPs in collaboration with Svbkvlt’s Hyph11e, Yen Tech, and Osheyack. But if you’ve already heard Slikback’s EPs, his Boiler Room at Nyege Nyege Festival, or witnessed his European tour dates, there’s surely no need to overstate the crucial nature of this “early years” 2LP comp.

Off the back of the highly conceptual project 'Plata - Last Dayz', Circadian Rhythms quickly return to focus on their white label series and solidify their signature sound. CRWL003 takes form of three club driven tracks from the arsenal of Leicester based producer R@ (Lewis Ireson). The 21 year old's current studies in Video Game Development have evidently started to seep into the ferocious sound that has drawn him attention.
His praised debut EP 'Neural' was released on Stella Beats in October 2018 and following his DJing debut at the CR003 Live event alongside Mssingno and Plata, he now continues this run with his first vinyl release, showcasing his signature production.

Kromestar vs. Ironsoul Pt. II. Heated dubstep and grime bangers from one of the pioneers of both dubstep and grime

NS013 is a sample of the forthcoming album by
Nomine Sound wonder boy Boylan (more info soon),
who is doing a lot of damage and about to do a lot
more!
A monster of a track called Start Up, featuring the
mighty Flowdan on vocals, who drops a very unique
"Flow" compared to what we are used to.
A fusion of heavy Grime, Spoken Word, Dubstep,
Jungle and Drum & Bass = an absolute corker that will
vibe up any dance. "watch ya basins I'm telling ya"…!

J:Kenzo returns to Artikal Music with his new single featuring the vocal talents of legendary grime artist Flowdan.

A raw hybrid grime / dubstep crossover with straight fire delivery from Flowdan which has had support from Sir Spyro (BBC 1Xtra), Caspa, Slimzee & DJ N-Type.

Due for release on August 2nd this single is a pre-cursor to J:Kenzo’s sophomore album which is dropping October 2019.

Ever since their debut 7” landed on our doorstep unannounced, we have been captivated by the powerfully understated movements of the duo known as Undefined. Sahara (keys/bass/programming) and Ohkuma (drums) have deep roots in the Japanese dub and reggae scenes (Heavymanners, Soul Dimension) and operate their own experimental dub label, Newdubhall. Recent collaborations with Kazufumi Kodama (of dub elders Mute Beat), dBridge, and Kabuki are nudging the group further into a spotlight that they richly deserve.

Named for the 3-feel of its colossal groove, “Three” is a locked groove of pure downtempo dubwise, techno in its repetition, hip hop in its tempo and swagger, motorik in its muscularity, meditative in its clarity. Featuring the unmistakable voice of ZamFam Rider Shafique, showcased in a moment of profound introspection and vulnerability, “Three" banishes all thoughts of flash-in-the-pan “big tunes” for an incredibly deep and immersive dive.

“Three Dub,” a version in the classic sense, strips out the vocal entirely to focus on the rockstone riddim, crafted of one of the most captivatingly beautiful bass tones we’ve ever heard, combined with wicked drum turnarounds, lightning hi-hat work, and extremely subtle & sophisticated dubbing technique. A masterclass in dubwise essentialism and profound attention to detail, stripped down to the foundation yet incredibly lush and alive.

Strictly limited to 600 copies for the world. No digital, no repress. Design & screen print by Polygon Press. Mastered by Sam Precise.

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