Rolling deep this time with a mixture of Half Step and Minimal monsters from the likes of Bop, Seba and FX909. The real star of the show here is Shinbu who’s self published stripped back tracks demonstrate that the deeper darker side of D&B is still going strong in 2022. Check his work out on his Bandcamp page.
FX909 – Now (Half Step Mix) Data 3 – String Theory Shinbu – Ski Om UNit – Aqua Roho – Devise Law A.T.5 – Witch Metal Kintsuku – Absent Echomatics – Pushing Back Seba – Public Beauty Bop – Space 2 Breath VIP Quartz – Crescent Moon Spinline – Return Shinbu & Shoujin – Midnight Visit Shinbu – Eka Shinbu – Nightmarchers Redders – No Go Theoretical – Revival Digital – Deadline (Dub Phizix Remix) Khramer – Far Away
It’s been a long while between drinks for the Call the Ambience series, but we’re back better and more chilled than ever. Even thought the releases of this kind of music seem to be slowing down a little, the quality is still high when it does drop.
Etherwood, dBridge and Atlantic Connection all contribute some wonderfully blissful music, as do 90s originators Alaska, Voyager and Bill Laswell. I’ve been trying to squeeze Laswell’s – El Hombre Invisible (for William S. Burroughs) into a set for years, and finally managed to pull it off here. This 15 minute journey is something else, and shows how formulaic modern day D&B has become.
Seathasky – For Love & Science Rowpieces – 1st Love (Downtempo Mix) Zero T & Beta 2 – Misdemeanour Mystic State feat. Congi – Too Late (Captivate Remix) Shebuzz – We Bring You the Future Alaska – Azarca (Synkro Remix) Muffler – November (Lo-Fi Hip-Hop Mix) Ky! – I See U (Made in Russia Remix) Voyager – Meraki Bill Laswell – El Hombre Invisible (for William S. Burroughs) The Vanguard Project & Fred V feat. Riya – No Words (Chill Mix) Shebuzz – 34th Street Atlantic Connection – Threshold dBridge – I Know Etherwood – Water in Your Veins Sultan & Shepard feat. The Cut – White Lies Etherwood – I Will Wave to You
Going a bit deeper and darker in this mix of new-ish tunes. 2021 has been a good year for harder styles, and even though there isn’t as much minimal techy stuff coming out there is still a decent selection of deep beats and darker cuts still being produced.
Probably the deepest and darkest of them in this selection is the Missive triple play close to the beginning. Cavernous bass and stripped back beats characterised Missives top quality Lithos EP which came out around the middle of this year. Other tunes to keep an ear out for are T>I’s The Locksmith and Let it Go which both shred, Foriegn Concepts ragga tinged Kultja and Zero T’s killer VIP reworking of Goldie feat. Jose James – Truth.
Extra big shout to Offish for providing the opener on this mix, his LP Garden of Eyes is full of deep, dark beats and well worth a listen over at his Bandcamp page. https://offish.bandcamp.com/album/garden-of-eyes
Recently PFM and 4Hero have remastered versions of some of their classic tunes that defined an era. PFM in the form of a bunch of singles and 4Hero with the re-release of their seminal LPs 2 Pages and Jacob’s Optical Stairway.
So what happens when you take two of D&B’s greatest acts and blend them together? Great things, that’s what!
PFM – For All of Us 4Hero – Universal Love (Single Version) 4Hero – Universal Love (Internal Affairs Mix) Jacob’s Optical Stairway – Majestic 12 Jacob’s Optical Stairway – Fragments of a Lost Language PFM – Is the Only and the One (Unreleased Original Full Length Version) Jacob’s Optical Stairway – The Naphosisous Wars 4Hero – One Final Hour Jacob’s Optical Stairway – Solar Feelings JMJ & Ritchie – Free La Funk (PFM Remix) 4Hero – Evacuation Plan PFM – Bonus Track PFM – Wash Over Me (Original Instrumental Version) Jacob’s Optical Stairway – Jacob’s Optical Illusion David Holmes – Gone (PFM Remix) Force of Nature – Cool Spot (PFM Remix) PFM – Dreams (Club Mix)
The deeper side of D&B seems to have slowed down a little in the last year or so, but what it has lacked in quantity it has made up in quality.
Familiar names to the genre such as Calibre, Bungle and dBridge are still consistently rolling out quality stripped back tracks that perfectly loop. Best of all a healthy amount of new comers like VROMM, MKD, Ordure and Heron Flow have kept the vibe alive and run with it into deeper territories.
Respect to all the producers old and new keeping the sound fresh and fabulously deep.
Krust – It’s a Lot (Calibre Remix) Dom & Adres – Limelight Redders – No go Muffler – Watchdog Doctor Jeep & Rohaan – Unreal (Rohaan Remix) Camo & Krooked, Mefjus & Sophie Lindinger – No Tomorrow (Tom Fisher Remix) Bungle – Runaway Goldie feat. Jose James – Truth (Zero T VIP Remix) VROMM feat. Rider Shafique – Level Up Kasra – I Don’t Know What the Future Brings Andy Scopes & Madcap feat. Singing Fats – Trouble MKD – Krill dBridge – Tear in Vain Ordure – Hold Me Close Mystic State – Whole Half Heron Flow – Compare Love
Part two of the holiday mixes focuses on the deeper side of D&B with new tunes from Fixate, T>I, Serum, Om Unit and Conrad Subs. While Minimal seems to have faded a little in 2020, a new more rolling take on the stripped back D&B sound has taken it place which I am totally there for.
Perfect for a late night couch session, this mix might go well with a drop of something stronger and a smoke.
H20 – Dusted Fixate – Focus Oat – IntoTheSun FX909 – Meltdown (Peyo Remix) Degs feat. Pola & Bryson – Sleepless (Bladerunner Version) Goldie – I Think of You (Digital & Spirit Remix) H20 – Parasite DJ Marky & Pola & Bryson – Run the Streets Mistrust – Dreamer T>I & Zombie Cats – Sidestep Airglo & Stash the Groove Bug – Boom Daniel Power – Upstream Colour Hyroglifics – God Given Russell Small – It Is What It Is (Bad Ass Disco) (Carl Cox DnB Remix) Breakage – Valhalla T95 & DRS – On Site T>I & D*Minds – Pulling Teef Serum & Kasra – Fade Out Waeys – Ephemeral Acuna – Back to the Brainstorm Philip K Dick – Drips Bop & Subway – Higher Dimension Om Unit – Joyspark Mystic State – Expectations Shinbu – Sacrifice Conrad Subs – Beyond This
I have always been a huge fan of Teebee’s early works on Certificate 18 and later on his own Subtitles imprint. Teebee recently went on a remastering rampage on his entire back catalogue of early LPs, EPs and 12″s all of which can be found on his Subtitle’s Bandcamp – https://subtitlesmusic.bandcamp.com/
To say I was pleased is an understatement. I pretty much own most of these tracks on vinyl already, but was more than happy to pony up again for the digital remasters because there is just so much great music in this man’s back catalogue. From singalong R&B bootlegs to dark, brooding techstep monsters one thing Teebee’s early work has is serious funk.
If you are feeling any of the tunes you hear in this mix please do the right thing and purchase them for yourself. They are cheaper than ever and have never sounded so good.
Heading back out into deeper waters with this mix of moody and minimal sounds. D&B is all about setting a mood, so this seems fitting for the times.
The whole thing starts and finishes with Dom & Roland who’s latest album, Lost in the Moment, is a much deeper and pensive affair than his usual style. Other standouts are Dub Phizix & Strategy making a return with their signature sound on Deh, new comer Jolliffe with Time Please and Creep in the Dark and Breakbeat luminary Decline going back to his D&B roots with Crossover.
I’d like to send a thought and prayer out to all those currently in the war zone that is the USA. Stay safe, be the change you want to see and know things are always darkest just before the dawn. #blacklivesmatter
Dom & Roland – State of the Art Oliver York – Treasured Entire – Taura Moresounds – Flocon T>I – Foot Drop Dub Phizix & Strategy – Deh Atlantic Connection – Gravity Dom & Roland – Binary Star Jolliffe – Time Please (feat. Jake Blake) Contact Lost – Vector Jolliffe – Creep in the Dark (feat. Ad-Apt) Adred feat. Robert Manos – Flesh Wounds Fetus – Dirty Air Rockwell – Vent Decline – Crossover Adred – Sci-Fi Acid_Lab – Instinct Dom & Roland – A Broken Heart
Part three of my Flight 96 series where I pull out some rare and lesser heard tunes from D&B golden era of 1996. This time around we’re heading into pure D&B territory. In 96′ D&B was only just starting to come together as its own genre, with jungle and hardcore still being played at the same parties and raves.
In this mix we have some lesser heard remixes of classics like Goldie’s ‘Angel’ (also called Saint Angel) twisted by Peshay in his Back From Nam Remix or Skylab’s The Trip amazing rework by Roni Size!
We also have a heap of tunes that either didn’t get a full release or were very limited in release from some of the scenes biggest names like Omni Trio, T.Power and Source Direct. Plus a bunch of producers I’d never heard of like Vert, Paolo and Scissor Hands. This one is going to be quite the ride.
Vert – Hole Tone Java Hyper-On Experience – Disturbance (Tango Remix) Goldie – Angel (Peshay Back From Nam Remix) Boymerang – Blue Notes L Double & Younghead – New Style Paolo – Vinyl Frontier Roni Size & Represent – Natural Thing Plug – Snapping Fuss Skylab – The Trip (Roni Size Remix) Spring Heel Jack – Galapagos II MC Fats – Don’t Take the Shit Johnnie Blaze – Strumming Dubs (VIP Mix) Scissor Hands – Dirty Call Skycutter – Independence Day Source Direct – Call & Response Underground Beat Movement – Check Dis T.Power – Tama Trafalgar – Radio Macho (Adrenalin Dub) Omni Trio – Red Rain
This is part two of my deep dive into obscure and rarer track from 1996. Last time we looked at Intelligent D&B and this is on a similar tip. While a lot of these tunes could be considered Intelligent, I think of them as even more chilled out.
Artists such as T-Power, B.L.I.M. and Kid Loops had their own take on the Intelligent sound that was less jazz focused and chopped up drum edits and more soulful cruising and laid back. Perfect for a couch session or recovery after the party is over.
Gangster Sound feat Mrs B – Paradise (Dangerous Mix)
Lunar Funk – Spacewalk
United Future Organisation – Loud Minority (Alex Reece Remix)
Kid Loops vs Cool Breeze – Shift Then Return
Universal Love – Deeply (Ryder’s Dream 128 Mix)
T-Power – The Inti Raymi (Remix)
B.L.I.M. – Jeamland
Herb E – Light (Darwin Mix)
Jodeci – Feenin’ (LTJ Bukem Remix)
Kid Loops vs Cool Breeze – The Valley
Kid Loops – Digital Breakdown
Kid Loops vs Cool Breeze – Five Seven Five Seven
Dave Wallace – Expressions Part 2
Mr Psyche – The Drop
