Picks Of The Week (13.04.24

1. Various Artists - Genesis VA Pt. 3 [Yamatai Recordings]

Recommended if you like: Any and all sorts of deep vibes

You know what we haven't had in a while? A good old compilation! Luckily the lads and ladesses behind one of the best up-and-coming deep and dark label, British imprint Yamatai Records, discussed on here many times before, have once again compiled a whole bunch of yamataisty tunes from a ton of yamatalented artists from all across the spectrum. Don't worry, (Yamata-)I'll stop. You know the game, first 3 especially exciting picks, then a summary, let's go!

Pick 1: Teezy - Broken Strings

First, we've got Bristol-based bass afieniado Luke Alexander Trowill, probably better known as Teezy! As part of the modern wave of new UK-based artists merging jump up with more out-there sound design and melodic vibes, Luke has been rising the ranks quickly ever since starting out way back in 2018. After trying to make a name for himself with submissions to various DJ competitions, he changed strategies and decided to start putting out some of the bangers he had been working on in the shadows during all of this. His debut on DNB Vibes in 2021 was soon followed up with releases on SASASAS, via their UNITE album mix, Pick The Lock, which landed him his first VISION Radio play, and DnB Allstars RAW. While this energetic jumpy sound had definitely found its audience, this was of course only the beginning of the prolific Bristolian's journey. With a freshly finished (2023 is still fresh okay) degree from the legendary BIMM university in hand, he plunged head first into full-time production, both under his Techno/House alias Eltee, and as a newly reinvented Teezy, the results of which were immediately picked up by the likes of Underground Soundz, Debunked, PullUp and, since this week, both Flexout's new newcomer platform XOU and the one and only Yamatai!

So what does this new one, Broken Strings, sound like then? Well, we've got free-flowing shuffly drums punctured by two punchy kicks laying down a base rhythm, accentuated further by very deliberately placed, slightly dissonant guitar-tuning-esque synth stabs to create a satisfying rhythm that gets the whole body moving in all sorts of ways, for one. Pair that with a vibey vocal sample, an amazing atmosphere and another futuristic synthwave-y electric guitar shredding its way straight into my heart, and you've got a tune and a half!

Pick 2: Marble Elephant - Fil d'Argent

Next, a duo that's been lighting up even the rainiest of my Sundays with their wonderful liquid creations in recent times: Marble Elephant! Way back in 2017, the DnB power couple consisting of Frenchman Baptiste Lecomte and Gerwoman Christina Woodger first connected at a Brightonian skatepark they both frequented, with their shared love for rave music being the main thing bringing them together. Even though Baptiste was initially not quite convinced of the drums and the basses yet, as he was more of a hardcore and -tek guy, they had enough other shared musical interests that they wanted to give creating music together a try, no matter the genre. However, they were really struggling to actually decide on something concrete and went through a ton of experimentation.

Until they stumbled upon D&B Academy, that is! By that point, DnB had gripped both of them, and the coursework the online platform offered seemed perfect for them to push their production to the next level. Their brief bout of doubt averted thanks to an insightful chat with the academy's founder Humanature, they enrolled and off they went! As Marble Elephant, the duo started releasing their creations on their very own MarbleLabel imprint in 2018, but as time went on, labels like Erculean, C and the legendary Influenza Media took on their delightful creations, and after a feature on none other than UKF in 2021, the stampede could not be stopped anymore. Basically all the Fokuz family labels, pyxis' charity platform Beats In Mind (among a couple others like it), Sunny Moves, Incurzion, Sub Wavelength - wherever you can find lush underground liquid, you could also marble at the loveliness they were putting out.

Now, Yamatai joins the ever-growing list! Fil d'Argent, French for silver thread, lures the listener in with an atmosphere defined by distorted, almost disturbing but luckily distant vocals, slowly creeping up to us along with its accompanying break arrangement. But don't worry, lushness isn't far. With the ol' reliable fast-paced rolling drum action as our motor, we flow through the peaks and troughs of an arrangement of most lovely tribalistic pling plongs, reverberating vocal chants, and menacing bass wubs. I honestly cannot get enough of it!

Pick 3: Ambion - Zyranth

Unlike the medication, this Ambion wakes you the hell up! Straight outta the Channel Island of Guernsey, Sam Broadhurst, the man behind the addictive beats, has been channelling all sorts of different influences into the diverse multi-genre discography he has (b)assembled since starting out in 2019. Garage, House, Techno, Rollers, and regular old Drum and Bass all got their time in the SoundCloud spotlight, but it was the latter that would edge out the competition, and by 2021, the Evolve Audio core member had stopped using his normal, real-life name (who would ever do that) in favour of the shiny new Ambion DnB alias. One free download at the time, Sam covered all sorts of ground on the energy spectrum, with his label debut Mesmic on the one and only Sinful Maze in 2023 probably being his heaviest all around.

Now, he kicks off his paid releases career, with his absolutely masterful contribution to the Yamatai canon, Zyranth! Back and forth, we rock from flickery, distortionated vibrations to truly menacing yet fonky-bouncy bassline responses, as slices of vocal samplery sparkle across it all. The longer this goes on, the more supercharged both parts of this equation become, and once a particularly spicy vocal chopping session begins its reign of terror, we even switch over to a roller-y switchup to round it all off. I can see why VISION Radio took a liking to this one. Simply Ambi-on point!

Summary

You want even more? Alright, we've also got Melysma bringing the fonk on We Return, vibe maestro Acris rolling it out on Let It Go, Theoretical saucing it up on Twangy Style, Dizrupt firing off some shots on Pursuit, Nebulate going the techy Shaolin route on SHO, Speaker Louis breaking it all up with Southbank Rhythms, Koax wubbing his way into our hearts on Operation Paperclip, Rue putting us all in Danger with his banger, TER3NCE & Descement bringing the energy on Eruption (one of my favs), Rhizome bleeping his finest bloops on Emergency Broadcast, Scurrow going halftimesies on Cold Start, Grim Hellhound shuffling the cards in all sorts of ways on Hidden Place, Cutworx spinning up some murky filth with his Moogy Wheels, Untrue cranking up the vibes on Calling Me, OZOH lighting up the room with Permanent Darkness and Sequent nicely finishing this insane sequence of events with Through Your Love.

You see why I chose to focus on just 3 of them? I could fill books with the backstories of all the talents involved in this! It's a straight-up ridiculously large goldmine of tunes from all across the spectrum.

2. Reknek - Midnight Vibes EP [Engage Audio]

Recommended if you like: Geostatic, Maykors, Amoss

Now onto someone I've been itching to talk about for a while already: the hecking techy, recklessly break-neck deep and dark master Reknek!

Straight out of Saint Petersburg, Herman Sokolov (depending on the source it's always different so I'll just go with Herman) has been putting in the work in the electronic music scene since more than 20 years at this point. Early on, it was the legendary MTV Music Generator on the PS1 that hooked him, but soon enough he got his hands on FL Studio to put his own spin on the stuff he had grown to love so much in the early 2000s, from Trance and Garage to Hard and Pumping House. Of course, plenty DnB also made its way into his playlists, and around 2006 he even joined a mysterious technoid-dnb collective that I actually don't know anything about. What I do know, however, is that, after a couple years of that, Herman decided to venture off on his own in 2012, with his Atmospheric Electronica, Future Garage and Dubtechno project Vancore, followed by his Experimental Techno and Half-Step alias Personnage. During all of this he wasn't just creating music in more and more incredibly specific genres, he also founded his very own label Sigrún Music and compiled one sample library after the other.

While putting together his latest sound pack, however, he realised he wanted to do more with these sounds. He wanted to go back to his roots, and once again partake in what he calls the Dark Souls of production: Drum and Bass! Inspired by his mate Nami, he started chasing that soul-crushing but consequently all the more rewarding high with his brand new alias, Reknek, in 2021. Right away, the accumulated skills from his decades of experience in all things electronic translated to tunes so sick, they immediately received support by VISION Radio and the Overview Podcast. Across most of the best underground labels around, including but not limited to the likes of Data Music, Impact Music, Overview, Yamatai (ayyy) and Ekou, he's put out one banger after the other, but the name behind his sickest output so far has got to be Engage Audio.

Before we get to talking about his newest wonderfully energetic offering on there, however, let's take a brief look at the London-based imprint! Since being established in 2016 by David "Four Points" Dean, Engage has not only been a vital part of the scene in the capital and beyond, with various collaborative works with the likes of Overview and Transparent Audio and their truly legendary lockdown-times sit-down raves being notable examples, among many others, they've also done a massive service to all the up-and-coming deep and dark artists by championing them from the very beginning. Melysma, Framer, Maykors, Resslek, Rizzle, Yannons and Speaker Louis are just a couple of the myriad of talented names you might not necessarily know yet, but should definitely check out and all provided some proper, dare I say, engaging audio all across the deep spectrum over the years, and now, Reknek joins this illustrious list, with his Midnight Vibes EP!

We kick things off with the perhaps slightly unconvential, wonderfully weird one-drop-wonder Follow Me. Fast-paced, energetic, proper slapping drum action acts as the foundation for some hypnotising, otherworldly processed vocals, ever-evolving, distorted synth melodies and powerful bass bombs to create a vibe unlike any other - what a way to start a project! Speaking of vibes, next we've got title track and incredibly aptly-titled tune Midnight Vibes. Soothing vocals, lowly rumbling bass moving about and occasionally peaking through to the surface, cheeky bits and bops chirping away, bassy flimmers flickering about, coming in one after the other, capturing the beautifully spookiness of the hour of the dead.

We continue rolling with Slip Away. Not only are the shuffly drums crazy detailed and packed with little fun switches and sounds, like the machine gun fire at the peak of the drop's constant evolution, Herman also managed to fit short bursts of vocals, piercing bass stabs and subtle background chords into this wonderful progression, resulting in an incredibly intricately arranged roller of a tune. Lastly, we've got Outun, on which we are once more treated to some excellent rolling drum work, this time accentuated by massive bass wobbles creating a rather infectious rhythm, the occasional rave siren, and 16th note madness. My favourite part has got to be the punctuated bass transforming into these large, drawn-out waves putting huge pressure on you to get yourself on the Dancefloor already.

In a world full of Simula clones and Bristol-flavoured minimalism seemingly dominating the deep and dark scene, it's such a breathe of fresh air to be treated to aggressive, ever-evolving and just plain sick drumwork, both all-encompassing and piercing basses, and all-around infectious energy as is on display here. Amazing EP!