Beats News

Real J's mini album has reached the surface - the Memory Screen LP is approached with a distinctively different execution of style resulting from a bunch of distorted sonic memories deriving from early childhood until present.

Expect a collection of atmospheric heavy-weight slams with sprinkles of sunshine and experience transitions between heavy drums and haunting industrial feels."

Alec & Harry go head-to-head with the help of Enchanted Rhythms and 2step Bec on the third instalment of Sock It To Me. Rowdy dancefloor fodder for when you just want your life back.

No messing around with this one folks. I guess I must have been feeling some pent up intense emotions from the lock down because when I went to write this EP four steam rollers came flying out of me. These tracks are definitely up there with some of the peakiest peak timers I’ve written so strap on your seat belt and get ready for the turbo thrusters to kick in.

UK Garage Classic!

The always impressive Mesck makes his DDD debut with the Terror Management EP. Stepping straight into uncertain future realities, Mesck's beats deliver just the right amount of bite, crunch and distortion, balanced with the heaviest bass weight known to cyber space. Anyone familiar with sets from the DDD crew will already be familiar with these tunes, which we have been itching to sneak out of Mesck's tightly-guarded vault.

VINYL BOX Part 2 is available separately (with the final 4 records). The full collection holds 8x12” records throughout two boxes. No reprints.

"This album is intended to be a journey through every genre of music that I love the most. It was inspired through the use of a vast number of tools and foley recordings. As an artist I force myself to be versatile while keeping my own touch on the music I create. Much of the creative ideas behind this album were inspired by the feeling of loss, a loss of attachment to any of the restraints and walls I had created within my art. I am never pushing for a specific sound, I go with my subconscious flow. Once again my grandpa has continued to inspire me through his art. Every time I get to work with him I feel grateful. I am so lucky to have the chance to pair his art with mine."
--Chrizpy Chriz

A return to form for TMSV's 2022 Perfect Records revival.

On the A-side you'll find sought after soundsystem-shaker 'Altered', with fan favourite 'Shallow Breath' and electro weapon 'Hypocrisy' on the B-side.

Windy Pipes / Surfing Swan is Employee and Funkycan’s first split on Beatbude. Two magical fantasy tracks from next week, written and produced by Max Graef (A-side) and Am Kinem (B-side). BB 015 comes with funny stickers.
Recorded and pressed in Germany. Mastered by Kitaro Beeh (Schnittstelle). Artwork by Gabi & Hermann.

One of the UK’s most consistently inventive production minds of recent times, Lil Silva has perhaps one of the most varied resumes in the world. Causing a seismic effect on the world of club music with smashes such as ‘Seasons’ and releases with the likes of Night Slugs, production credits for a diverse range of artists such as Adele, BANKS, Mark Ronson and serpentwithfeet, and a collaborative project with George FitzGerald as OTHERLiiNE even before factoring stellar solo releases under the Lil Silva moniker using his own vocal, he has continuously combined a broad range of influences to create a transformative, varied discography. After the release of ‘Backwards’ last month alongside Sampha, today Lil Silva announces his long awaited debut album, Yesterday Is Heavy.

Over 10 years in the making, ‘Yesterday Is Heavy’ is a cumulative product of an already remarkable career filled with highlights. An album about stepping out: outside of a comfort zone, and, for Lil Silva, outside of himself. It’s a debut album of heft and heart, but most of all hope – and trusting the process. Buoyed on by the encouragement of long-time collaborators like Jamie Woon and Sampha early in his career (they both implored him to commit his own voice to record), and bolstered by incomparable session experience working with Mark Ronson, Adele and more, the Lil Silva story that started aged 10 in Bedford is beginning full circle. Created primarily in the town he grew up in (and continues to live now), the pervading solace of home courses through the project, while providing the thrilling moments of sleight of hand that Silva has always been capable of.

As he so often does, Lil Silva shares the spotlight with an astonishing international cast of guests. He fuses well-versed modern legends in the shape of Sampha, Ghetts, and Little Dragon with rising stars serpentwithfeet, Charlotte Day Wilson and Skiifall to thrilling effect, the whole time never allowing his deftly dynamic yet considered touch to be outshone throughout. The album has also been created with musical direction from Louis Vuitton musical director and BBC Radio 1 tastemaker Benji B, as well as creative direction from award winning visual artist BAFIC. It’s with the opening track ‘Another Sketch’ however, where his singular talent introduces itself.

With a visual directed by UKMVA Award winner Fenn O’Meally, ‘Another Sketch’ is a prime example of the vast array of talents that Lil Silva possesses. A video that transcends generations of Black Britons (featuring Lil Silva’s own family as well as Sampha), ‘Another Sketch’ focuses on the subject of time. Looking at generations of black britons as monuments, the visual centres on the idea that despite time being able to wear down your appearance, what’s inside of you can never depreciate. The main centrepiece of this is heritage, with archive and newly recorded footage showing Silva’s family and friends enjoying the same activities they did generations ago, spliced with footage and voice notes from one of the lands of his dual heritage, Jamaica. The track itself focuses on a central theme of actions, their consequences and changing our inevitable future, with Lil Silva’s stunning falsetto shining alongside background vocals from serpentwithfeet and an instrumental that initially opens minimalistically before gradually unfurling to unveil elements of his electronic beginnings; a thumping hip hop infused beat and swelling melodic embellishments.

With ‘Yesterday Is Heavy’, Lil Silva reaps the rewards of over a decade of influence to create the debut album he’s always imagined. Simultaneously riding the line between pertinent storytelling and virtuosic production, ‘Yesterday Is Heavy’ charts the story of one of UK music’s unsung heroes taking his time to build something that is truly timeless. Yesterday Is Heavy, but tomorrow is forever.

SUB PLATES Vol 5!! - SUB PLATES is back and in the original format that made it such collectable item when it launched back in the day! 2 x 10 inch vinyl replicating the dubplate style acetates. And picking up from where it left off with Vol 5 like it's never been away!

First up is the return of Suburban Base recording artist Cool Hand Flex, who had music featured on the first generation SUBPLATES! The track here 'Get Down' is a piece of uncovered treasure that has been rediscovered having sat on DAT master in storage since around 1994 and never been released. Exclusively held on dubplate by Randell, Hype, and Flex himself, it is finally getting a release as part of this special package.

Next up we introduce brand new music from brand new Suburban Base recording artist Sound Shifter collaborating with the legend Marvellous Cain on the beautiful 'Light Source One', a rolling piece of DnB which manages to keep classic elements of production whilst at the same time delivering stunningly fresh Drum & Bass.

Subbase veterans Sophisticated Bad Boyz open record 2 with the DJ Phantasy VIP '94 Dubplate version of 'Feel The Magic', only held on Dub Plate by a very select few, and appeared only once on the D&B selection album 3 (The Dub Plate Selection) with very limited vinyl of that cut as 5 tracks per side, now for the first time ever you can get this stunningly remastered dubplate cut on a side all by itself sounding truly amazing.

Flipped with another much sought after classic dubplate special 'Intelone' by Asend was a Kool FM only VIP Dubplate around the time Asend aka Dead Dred hosted his show on the Midlands version of the infamous pirate radio station, it made only one appearance on a 1996 Kool FM dubplate special project and has been hard to find ever since. Remastered and sounding incredible!

4 amazing tracks on one highly collectible EP including unreleased tracks and limited dubplates, stunning value from SUBURBAN BASE RECORDS once again, in stock and ready to ship!

US Born, Manchester-based Avernian inaugurates his newest club-night turned-label venture, with the help of Stenny (Ilian Tape), Tammo Hesselink (Delsin) and Jabes (Timedance).

The first four-track compilation comes to form with opening piece 'Kembow' by Ilian Tape mainstay, Stenny; a pacy bass-ridden roller, executed to devastating effect with razor-sharp synths that stab down into the midrange of the speakers like daggers, sitting atop dread-ridden sub frequencies.

Label-founder Avernian follows suit, already being widely recognised for rowdy releases on imprints such as More Time, Fever AM and Scuffed Recordings. 'Power Stance' continues the 12" with elephant trunk synthesis, and a galloping, low-mid frequency rumble that is second to none.

Jabes (Timedance/Klunk) delivers 'Rite'; a deeply tense excursion with harrowing sound-design and analogue delays that dance around a playful stereo field, mixed down to extreme, scientific hyper-precision.

Closing out the record is Tammo Hesselink (Delsin/Nous'klaer Audio) supplying 'Water Plus' with a neck-snapping groove of warm and distorted, polyrhythmic claps that have been self-recorded among a frenzy of foley lines that spiral into fun and friendly dancefloor adrenaline, bringing the compilation to a clean close and leaving the listener pining for the label's follow-up.

"To make this concept a cohesive whole, Hybrids took a couple of years to compile. It reflects a certain shift in my sound, where I've try to maintain a constant balance between experimentation and efficiency - surprise, technique and playability... It's a highly functional object crafted from a subversive standpoint, breaking the rules while following them all. Auto-referential musical artifacts blend into composite shapes, and ultimately manifests into five exercises in style, trespassing traditional boundaries of genre, tempo, and (good) taste. While this record probably expresses an inner conflict at the intersection of hypermodernity and conservatism, I hope it accomplishes, at least, its primitive function-to put the body in motion."
- TENEBRE

Killer EP. Next-level Shackleton.

Taking off from Beaugars Seck’s foundational sabar drum rhythms — recorded by Sam in Dakar in February 2020 — Shackleton has constructed a trio of intricately layered, luminous, enchanted, epic excursions. The second is more dazzled and meandering, with jellied bass, insectile detail, and discombobulated jabbering; the third is more liquid, fleet of foot, and psychedelic, with a grooving b-line and funky keyboard stabs, scrambled eastern strings and hypnotic vocalese.

The harmonium in The Overwhelming Yes sounds like Nico blowing in chillily from up the desert shore. The overall mood is wondrous, twinkling with light, onwards-and-upwards; an uncanny, dubwise mix of the ancient and the futuristic. Mark Ernestus’ Version is stripped, trepidatious, mystical, and stranger still, with just a snatch of the original melody, extra distortion and delay, and crystal-clear drum sound.

Twenty minutes of startlingly original music, with Shackleton the maestro at the top of his game, and a characteristically evilous dub by Mark Ernestus. Mastered by Rashad Becker; handsomely sleeved.

Sick to the nth. Love 4 Ever.

DNO hits double figures as Denver’s Trisicloplox & Sectra return with more industrial-strength electro-sludge.

Sectra sets the tone with ‘Mail Theft’, a hulking mass of sand-blasting static, insectoid jitter and low-end boom. It’s an intimidating, uneasy listen, like tuning through the haunting emptiness of post-apocalyptic broadcast frequencies, only to be interrupted by sudden bursts of unseen filth and gore.

Trisicloplox follows with a brace of tracks. ‘Bruised’ does exactly what it says on the tin, gargantuan kicks pummelling layer upon layer of dense sound into an impenetrable wall of noise. Ritualistic rhythms and gluttonous amounts of overdrive swarm over distant wails, sending everything into a spiral into despair.On ‘Megastructure’, doom metal meets hip-hop, as rough-hewn drums crunch above a bassline that takes its cues from the Super Hans School of Electronic Music: “The longer the note, the more dread.”

And finishing up the vinyl offerings is ‘Dead On Arrival’. Coming courtesy of Sectra, the most traditionally ‘club-focused’ effort of the lot sees a serrated breakbeat and venomous acid lick sparring over dissonant pads.

As always, digital listeners are offered a little bonus, this time the only full collab: ‘The Dead InTheir Shrouds’. Shunted along by a systematic kick, the track’s jackhammer subs become all-consuming, seemingly sucking all the air from the room and hurling it back out of the bassbins in a violent frenzy.

A bold release that’s not for the faint of heart, the ‘Dead Structure’ EP further cements Trisicloplox & Sectra as truly original talents and DNO as an outlet that can never be pigeonholed.

Rhythms of postmodern realism at the very bottom of the DNO.

Limited hand stamped copies..

Nicolini is back! Delivering two slices of finest DIY post-punk digi (styles), woven together with bouncy basslines, punchy drum machines, and Casio melodies, as Nic’s voice beams in from beyond the ether.

Vex Is The Debut 12" From Nazamba, A Fire And Brimstone Dub Poet From Kingston, Jamaica Who Will Drop A Full Album With France's O.b.f. Sound System In The Fall. The Riddim Is Produced By G36, An Anarcho-dub Collective From Nagasaki, Japan Who Also Have Their Own Ep Incoming On Pressure.

The Spirit Of Prince Far I Reincarnated, Riding A Sci-fi Steppa That Relentlessly Aims To Flatten All Floors. Nazamba's Angry Rant Against The Global Epidemic Of Morally Bankrupt, Indelibly Corrupt Politicians, Is A Straight Shot To Babylon's Head...

Brandneue 6-Track-Vinyl-only-EP von Kelela, eine der stärksten Vertreterinnen des Future-R&B, frisch gesignt auf Warp Records, z.T. produziert von Arca. Die "Hallucinogen EP" - von den Meinungsmachern bei Pitchfork als "sinnlicher, feinfühliger Hi-Definition R&B-Ansatz" bezeichnet - erzielte bereits mehrere "Album Of The Week" Platzierungen in den Trendmedien (Spin, Stereogum) und besitzt laut Guardian "mehr Ideen in den 6 Songs als manche Künstler in 6 Alben haben". Auch das Radio hierzulande zeigt sich sehr aufgeschlossen.

Hudson Mohawke ist für viele ein Produzent, der neben Leuten wie Flying Lotus und Oneohtrix Point Never die moderne Ära von Warp definiert hat. Seine Talente als Klangkünstler und Clubagitator kommen auf 'Cry Sugar' voll zur Geltung, was sich wie das kompromisslose Hudson Mohawke-Album anfühlt, auf das wir alle gewartet haben, auf dem er seine Faszination der Verschmelzung von Hoch- und Trivialkultur auslebt. Schließlich ist er der Architekt der hochauflösenden Trap-Produktion, die sich in den 2010er Jahren zu einem Stil entwickelt hat, der überall - von mit Bierdosen übersäten College-Partys bis hin zu Arby's-Werbespots - Verwendung findet. Amerikanische Dekadenz wird so zu einer Bühne, auf der seine Musik gedeihen kann - der DJ-Pult wird für ihn zum Komponistenpodium, auf dem er das spannungsgeladene Drama zwischen Ausschweifung und Apokalypse inszeniert, die 'mise-en-scene' der Clubkultur 2022.

Violet Vinyl + DL Code

Yiannis Iliakis is a multi instrumentalist and composer from Athens. He is mainly known as a drummer. As such he is a member of the free jazz band Outward Bound as well as a member of the successful Greek progressive rock band Ciccada. However, that's only one side of Iliakis' creative efforts. In April 2021, he released his first full length electronic album entitled Vertical Horizon on the Submersion Records, which mostly is an ambient work. Now, with Mountainmouth he opens another chapter for his musical talents.

The EP is one of the most thrilling and adventurous takes on what the IDM term usually would suggest. The key song might be the title track "Mountainmouth" - an extremely energetic composition which won't leave you unaffected. As per most of Iliakis' songs it is based on originally recorded drums that were heavily edited. In the next step, these were combined with chords, melodies, bass and harmonies on top. The musical result is simply breathtaking - one might even call this track electronica for prog-rock heads. Surely a perfect opener for the release.

The next song is Carbonated Soap on which Iliakis is going straight forward. The catchy melody and a fresh uptempo beat are offering something that could even fit well into a club-friendly DJ set. Next up, comes "Infected Walkman". According to Iliakis, it was the first one he made for this project when he participated in an art exhibition. This track, as well as the following "Sad Plants", are both down tempo and chilled, yet keeping an experimental vibe without loosing a soulful and human touch. Coming closer to the end, "Exodus Denied" is a brilliant experimental ambient piece, more similar to the works on the Vertical Horizon LP. Finally, the EP ends with a short edit of "Carbonated Soap" that jumps right to the more energetic parts after the first break.

Mountainmouth may not be an easy listen at start - but we are sure the music has the power to be another classic release from our catalogue. The EP will be released in July 2022 on a very limited 12" vinyl as well as digitally. The cover artwork was done by Iliakis himself. We are very excited to present a new artist to you on Equinox with so many different talents.

Killer old schooled beats comes with his dreaming rap by CV Smiles after the long intro from SJT Remix.

On other side,Pure analog 139bpm techno session from the guy "PST" with 808.

Incl. Tim Reaper Remix

Club Designs head honcho and infectious beat impresario Garneau is joined by Vanouver Slab party series producer Max Ulis for the “Big O EP”. Both extraordinary producers and DJs in their own right, these Canadian underground stalwarts never fail to impress.

Breaks, beats, booms, and bass – expect to hear these on the club circuit for a while, each track a brilliant combination of deep house roots with breakbeat tips.

After manufacturing delays these tracks have been kept under wraps for over a year, but we are so happy to finally release them for the world.

Atlanta resident Nikki Nair invites you to join his new 4 track EP on Astrophonica - ‘Renormalization Support Group’. It’s a place where we can share our experiences via the help of Nikki’s special ‘not quite sure what you call it’ bass lead Electro Breakbeat programme.

Track one is ‘Plug’ - An uptempo low slung booty shaker which will have sound engineers scrambling at cables and faders trying to work out wtf is going on. We’ve all been there so let’s talk about it.

Track two is ‘Where Are U’ and encourages us to ask ourselves that question through the exploration of full speed Breakbeat Electro. If we know where we are, we can begin to look into where we are going. Probably the dance floor.

Track three is ‘it's NP-Complicated’ which sets out an uncomplicated blend of bubbling bass and simple sympathetic drums, providing us with a network to feel more empowered and to build a sense of community.

Track four is ‘Donut Time’ - Well done for finishing the course! You can congratulate yourself with a donut full of squelchy acid jam, glazed with frosted pads and hi hat sprinkles.

“Together we can help ourselves be alone together.” - Nikki Nair

Sherrie B's super rare Nah Tek It gets the remix treatment from Interplanetary Criminal - flexing acid tinged basslines & 2-step FWD drums.

Alternatively banging and evasive, exhausted and unglued. Stepping along the rim of the silver screen. Diptera takes a near electro-acoustic approach to the DNA, texture and pressure of UK Garage with a debut release on Mana comprised of four tracks. Obsessively written over four years and teeming with material detail. The duo's musical collaboration operates like a relay. Initial tracks made by Activist DJ — short sharp affairs focused on swung drums and darkside — are passed on to Wesley to be broken apart, tinkered with, and slowly refigured into more anxious and impressionistic musical forms, etched with intricacies and mixed fidelity. The result is a distinctive and resourceful excavation of hardcore at its most agile. A fly on the wall may face some adversity, so if you imagine a human hand in basic swatting motion, maybe you will also couple the image with an evasive manoeuvre of some sort; usually there is a moment of hesitation where the human is unsure whether their aim was true. ''Did I catch it''

Two-tracker of club ready tunes from the don Pessimist.
He says: "Hardcore / jungle techno done my way. These are two tunes for the dancefloor, no messing around, straight to the point."

4 more quarters, 4 more contrasting expressions of global bass music culture: Barefoot sound originator and G-stone Afrofuturist Stereotyp teams-up powerfully with Malaysian rap legend Arabyrd on 'KEK', delivering a massive dose of Malay shudder trap that does not relent in either its growling bass attack or husky lyrical humour. Next up, the crisp and clean mid-90s DnB vibes of Bristolian producer K-65 ups the energy and tempo with the steadily rolling rinse-out of 'In My Mind', lightening the mood momentarily prior to the first cut on the B-side, with which we descend once more into the increasingly familiar Badman-isms of Low End Activist, who opts for a mutant strain of hardcore UKG on this outing, all scuffed swing and first light maneuvers. Finally though, it's all about the transparency of the groove, with the lush closing tune by Sentinel 793 emanating masses of UK Bruk style and charm, delivering another solid, low-slung workout from this hardworking and charismatic producer. Confined to quarters or not, get these 4 new sound pieces for the meantime, downtime, time being etc... as you like, want or need.

One of Bristol’s foremost electronic labels toasts 10 years with a 19-strong family gathering of adventurous, contemporary club music.

Livity Sound has evolved considerably since 2011. Originally it was established as a vessel for new tracks from Peverelist, Kowton and Asusu – three Bristol-based artists who found common ground between their distinct styles in pursuit of a reduced, heavyweight strain of soundsystem techno. A run of hand-stamped 12”s and a three-way live show followed, while the Reverse sister label provided a conduit for emergent artists to enter the fray. Early breakthroughs from Hodge, Batu, Bruce and Simo Cell pointed to the broader horizons Livity was heading towards – an expanding community of like-minded artists creating dancefloor misfits that somehow fit together.

First appearing with a compilation of remixes in 2014, Tess Redburn’s iconic artwork heralded a fresh new impetus for the label, and the music seemed to become more colourful in kind. While the founding principles of space, bass and fractured rhythms have largely abounded up to the present day, there’s been a progressively broader palette of sound employed. Technoid melodic shimmers, earthen percussion and found sounds have become as prominent as sub frequencies and cavernous dub echoes, delivered by a vivid and varied ensemble of producers.

Molten Mirrors captures the dynamic energy of Livity Sound at 10, with 19 artists from the label’s roster coming together to present an honest document of where the label is at in the present moment. No over-arching concepts, no hackneyed themes – true to Livity’s open-ended mode since 2011, it’s as much a declaration of community as a cross-section of experimental dance music in 2021. Trying to pin down the sonic styles is something of a fools errand – from the older guard to recent signings, what binds together this international, inter-generational span of artists is their lack of convention.

A case in point: Azu Tiwaline’s submerged and subdued rhythmic incantations sit between Bakongo (aka Roska)’s raw and angular drum pressure and Al Wootton’s needlepoint, swinging dub tech variations. Nothing is totally placeable, and yet everything meets that ill-defined Livity Sound ethos, which stretches back to the earliest 12”s.

Club music continues to mutate and break new ground with each passing year, and as a faithful document of one microcosm within an ever-expanding music culture, Molten Mirrors reflects the multifaceted, technicolour energy of the here and now while celebrating the possibilities of an open, unpredictable future.