Hello,
It's all coming apart. For years dubstep has seemed like a field of limitless possibilities, its syncopated rhythms and wobbly basslines lending themselves to endless permutation.
All this has changed over the past few months. Where a year ago only the most adventurous artists like Instra:mental or Scuba have traversed the outer reaches of the dubstep universe, now the entire genre seems to expand beyond easy recognition, fusing with hip-hop, techno, IDM, house, and even indie rock.
The stars of our latest interview feature, Mount Kimbie, are rapidly becoming the poster boys of this anything-goes approach with their guitar-driven and electronica-tinged album debut, but other rising artists such as Brokenchord, SBTRKT, Ital Tek or 1000Names warrant an in-depth look at the current state of dubstep as well. |
MORE DUBSTEP ESSENTIALS
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Compilation released 12-07-2010 on Tectonic
Bristol-based studio and publishing company Multiverse is the city's first address in all things dubstep related, with brilliant labels like Tectonic, Kapsize, and Caravan under its wing. 'Dark Matter' is an essential guide to the Bristol scene, featuring Joker, Pinch, October and many more.
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EP released 16-07-2010 on !K7
Kode9 continues his recent explorations of funky house with this exclusive single for K7!. Save the echoing rave sirens, Spaceape's vocals, and its slightly stumbling groove, 'You Don't Wash' could easily pass as a German deep house production - albeit a very good one!
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Veteran Brooklyn-based producer, Machinedrum, has been cooking with gas lately with a stellar release on Hotflush Recordings (with Praveen, as Sepalcure) and with this exceptional LP for LuckyMe (home of Mike Slott, HudMo, Rustie). Not confined to any simple genre classifications, 'Many Faces' is an unhinged exploration of synth and bass.
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Mark Pritchard's collaborative project with vocalist Steve Spacek, Africa Hitech, follows up on recent single 'Blen' with the raucous mini-album on Warp, 'Hitecherous'. Packs a punch with six futuristic, crystal-clear and weighty dancehall and grime-inspired cuts, including the digital exclusive 'One Two (Instrumental)'.
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The second volume of remixes for Jahcoozi's recent album has an all-star assembly of producers revamping their 'Barefoot Dub' and 'Read The Books' originals: Vienna's Stereotyp, London's Ikonika, and last but in no way least, Ramadanman, who contributes an instrumental as well. Strong stuff.
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This masked London-based producer, who was recently outed as nu-jazz, breaks producer Aaron Jerome, has been raising a ruckus lately under his new pseudonym, SBTRKT. Ramp reveals a collaborative release with vocalist Sampha, 'Break Off', which has the future garage / UK bass evangelists hot and bothered.
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Barely over three months since their 'Oversteps' album, one can infer possibly that the 10-track 'Move Of Ten' is a continuation or epilogue, of sorts. However, 'Move Of Ten' is able to stand on it's own with dubstep-inspired tracks like 'pce freeze 2.8i' instantly demanding attention. Must have, of course.
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Since appearing on the scene in 2006, SpectraSoul have succeeded in re-contextualizing the classic sounds of DNB, which continues to be their hallmark achievement. dBridge (Autonomic, Exit) contributes his sultry vocals to the brooding 'Glimpse'.
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Excellent release by the Ramadanman & collaborator Midland on a laid-back funky tip. Piano house meets cut-up vocals on 'Your Words Matter', while 'More Than You Know' sports a dubbier vibe, with plenty of percussive white noise, filtered chords and deep strings. Another great release for Aus Music.
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Arguably the most innovative producer currently operating in the Netherlands, A Made Up Sound (a.k.a. 2562) is blazing his own path, crafting a hybrid sound of house, techno, dubstep and broken beat. Here he presents his latest dancefloor-aimed mutations, 'Alarm' b/w 'Crisis'. Brilliant!
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