Juno Recommends Drum & Bass September 2020

Review: Following a sure shot from Yosh earlier this year, Constant Sound offshoot Vivid returns with a deadly two tracker that plunges into the underworld of breakbeat science and soundsystem dynamics. Etch is without question one of the most inventive break-wielders in operation right now, and he pivots ably from monolithic drumfunk dubstep pressure to nimble jungle across his two astounding A side tracks. Tom Jarmey brings a more electro tinted angle to his offerings, sweeping from the atmospheric, melancholic roller "Burn" to the subtly snarling "Spectrum", offering something smoother in contrast to Etch's rugged cut ups.

Review: Thuggy's up to his ravey tricks again. A man just as capable of pushing you off a cliff with his deadly hardcore bangers as he is flipping ATB's "Till I Come" into a breakbeat monster, anything is possible when this man's in town. Just like this killer EP on Warehouse Rave. From the deep, emotional, almost Orbitalesque intro track "Concussion" we're then hit by bouncy rave bubbles on "Coordinated Love", aquatic bewilderment on "Fatigue" and the pensive flighty finale "It Was Us Or Them". Thug life, Thug love.

Review: Who Dem Sound smash it again as J Robinson dons his Meditator alias to link with the mighty Ink. The result needs to be heard to be understood. A nod to the Goodlooking and early Creative Source influence, everything about "Kinghtsdale" twinkles and shimmers in that silky, rolling way that's half way between jazz school and Jupiter. Need a little more celestial oomph? Flip for the Smokers remix. Trust us, this is every bit as beautiful as the marbled vinyl suggests.

Review: Some folk are widow makers. Other folk are widow made. Bad to bone types who dish out breaks so brutal they should come with a medical health warning. Not that you'd pay much attention to it; beats like these are too good to miss out, regardless of health. Courtesy of Dead Man's Chest's Western Lore, it's four tracks of total rave annihilation; the bubble gun basslines of "Television", the icy unforgiveness of "The Kingdom", the prangy hardcore steps and swampy weirdness of "Deep Within There Is Nothing" and the dark finale "Awkward Demise". Some records are party starters. Other records are party made. Badness.

Review: There is an irresistible crispiness to Law & Kola Nut's "Self Control" that draws you in here - the drums are pristine and precise, the fluttering snares up top float like a butterfly while the bass stings like a bee. It's a sweet roller indeed, and the soulful vocal only adds another level of lushness. Law goes solo for "1 4 Me" and gets even more summery and blissed out with some gorgeous keys raining down from above. When the duo link again for "Flow State", it's all about stripped back rhythm and dreamy vocal sounds and Nut then goes it alone to close out in deep and emotive fashion with his pad laced "Dream World."

Review: Repertoire have finally ensnared Law & Wheeler for their full extended play debut with this fittingly entitled Post-Truth EP. The pair have been producing together more than 18 months and now draw on all their experiences and influences and distill them into six sizzling tracks of forward facing, turbulent riddims. The range of moods is impressive, as they taking in stripped back and cavernous steppers like "Early Reflections" as well as darker vibe son "Intersect". "Igloo" is an all out drum assault that never lets up and "Post-Truth" continues on that theme as it sinks you ever deeper into an abyss.

Review: Brought up on a strict diet of vinyl, capable of turning a floor into an en-masse gun-finger at the flip of a dub, Hozzy's jungle-loving nu-breed Unglued sounds like he's about 25 years older than he actually is. Here are four fresh examples of his extraordinary future retro abilities: "Total XTC" takes a hardcore standard and gives it the all essential 2020 bubbler twist, "Got 2 Have" jumps forward about 10 years to BC Recordings and Virus with its bouldering distorted bassline and relentless aggy energy, "War Dance" sees him tagging in fellow Hoz murker Whiney and Manny's finest Truthos Mufasa for another amen-lashed turbine funk jam while the spiralling chaos of "Pigeon Funk" doffs its cap to the late 90s Ram and Formation flavours while remaining fully in the new decade. Time to get sticky.

Review: Friction's Shogun Audio return to update their "Shuriken" collection of classics from their vaults for a first-time, special collector's vinyl press. While previous editions have dug deep into the label's full repertoire, this one captures a much more recent snapshot of the label and the deeper sound it's been celebrating in the last few years. Friction takes the lead with the subtle, sultry charms of "For This" with Liam Bailey from the label's recent 15 year anniversary collection, before Pola & Bryson's 2019 chiller "Cold Love" raises the cosmic pressure. Flip for some superb double bass-slapping funk from Document One in the form of "Like This" before man-of-the-moment Monrroe shuts down the EP with the belting star-gazer soul of "Horizon". Stunning.

Review: D Ross is in fine form on his dubplate mix of the low slung, swaggering and rude as you like "Well Well Well". It's bass lead garage with an infectious appeal that will make whole warehouses march. D-56M's "Homage" then sinks into more murky techno territory, with wiry electronics and sludgy bass taking you into the unknown and then Persian's "Parvaaneh" slows down a notch further, with dubby chords and twitching synths sinking you into a dream state. He closes out this most interesting and varied of EPs with "Questions", a techno track with dusty breakbeats and deeply buried acid that is fresh indeed.

Review: Vinyl Fanatiks have willed two classic rave gems into 12" existence, after spending the best part of 28 years lurking on DAT. They come courtesy of Tone Def, a collective best known for their early work on the mighty Moving Shadow with tracks such as "Hectic House" and "T.D.E". Both these cuts, recorded around the same time, continue the classic rave theme with their swashbuckling breakbeats and zippy detuned synth sounds. Two sides for two very different vibes: "Can You Feel It" is the evangelistic hands-in-the-air rush-fuelled romp while "On The Attack" is a much sharper hardcore piece with its aggy, pitched-up lyrics.

Review: Reissue! Brent Newitt's Vinyl Fanatiks has become a key player in the reload game as they continue to excavate pivotal pieces of wax from the 90s in order to preserve the foundations and make sure the stories of the often over-looked early artists are told. 3rd Rail is a great example; the brainchild of Bournemouth's Ben James - he only released this one record on Delirious in 1992 before getting on with his life.... Only to realise that almost 30 years later, the OG copies of "Look No Further" have been known to fetch over L200! Although you would be better off with this crisp, remastered version instead. With all four tracks, including the original remixes from KZ1, this is a fitting reload of 3rd Rail's short-but-powerfully formed legacy. Watch out for those 4x4s on "Stand By 4 Fast Beats". Woof!

Review: Vinyl Fanatiks by name, meticulous preservationists by nature, the Bournemouth-based label return to their successful crowfunder from last year for another limited run. Artists involved are both local lads close to the founder and chief digger Brent; champion b-boy and a consistent force in the 90s DJ Junk and Dave Wallace and Shaun O'Hara's Mad Dog. The former goes back to a 1992 breakbeat assault that still hurtles at you like the future 28 years later while the latter, who've been mainstays on VF since it launched two years ago, get all cosmic and 3am. Already sold out on crowdfund on its first release, this one is likely to fly just as fast.

Review: OG Riffz returns on a brand new label from J Robinson's Who Dem Sound camp: Slap The Walls. Just as the label name - and Riffz' legacy - suggest, the sound will have you joyfully slapping the nearest hard surface within seconds. 'Krunch's Mission' is all about the rolling jazzy breakbeats, tense chords and dubwise instrumentation while 'N64' pokes us in the (golden) eye with another careful balance of shades and emotions. Watch out for the full-on drum solo towards the finale of the track... Pure breakbeat science.