I am not too familiar with Funkagenda’s work but I saw that
he released a new EP and I decided to go check it out.
Samsara – by definition this means the repeating cycle of
birth, life, death and rebirth. Quite a heavy and profound meaning which
already tickles my loins but lets get into the music.
The opening track is To The Moon and Back. The title didn’t
grab me but the melody did, with its trance sounding synth it created the
perfect backdrop for the hard hitting drum beat and the airy fairy
atmospherics, don’t get me wrong, it is extremely catchy and is the perfect
buildup for the heavy electro – acid sounding drop which just blows everything
out of its way.
The second track off this EP is Half Man Half Drugs. As soon
as I read this title I couldn’t help but smile at myself. I just knew that I
would like this track. I didn’t even realize
that the song was playing but as soon as the drop came in, it completely kicked
me in my face. I had to take a step back, rewind and listen to it again, yes it
is that awesome. Funk succeeded in combining the heavy hitting electro bassline
with the melodic, this is not an easy thing to achieve.
This EP has definitely been one of the standouts I’ve listened
to in the last couple of months, this EP will appeal to not only Electro House
lovers but just bass lovers in general.
This EP was released off Dim Mak records and you can buy it
on Beatport.
The track is a combination of
soulful production skills, an ethereal ambiance and the angelic voice of Page
that succeeds in combining the mystical with hard-hitting bass lines and
melodic chord progressions. The track has already been a hit on Soundcloud,
with close to 80 000 plays in 3 days
This is definitely a track
worth checking out if you are a fan of melodic dubstep.
The track is available for
free download off Seven LionsSoundcloud, Minnesota’s Soundcloud and is part
of OWSLA’s The Nest.
The reason I know anything about Raf Riley is purely because I checked out his Twitter profile. He popped up on my "Who to follow" list and by accident I decided to check out his profile.
I was so shocked that not many other people have heard about him. I thought this lad would have tens of thousands of fans on every platform. But it was so shocking that his Facebook profile only has like 560 likes, 3000 plus followers on Twitter and like just over 5000 fans on Soundcloud. I came to the realisation that wow, this lad is really underground. So I decided to go do some research on him.
Turns out this north London bloke has worked with some big names in the Electronic scene. It is quite impressive that he has worked with both Labrinth and Diplo. Diplo even commissioned him to remix Usher's Climax and then go on to release his Dog Unit tracks off Mad Decent records imprint The Jeffree's. Not bad for a lad that's only in his early 20s hey. But lets move on to his music shall we.
I was pleasantly surprised when I listened to his track King Henry's Hustle. It was so bizarre that I could not help but just fall in love with it. I have never heard anything of the sort. I must say that I have really started to warm up to this whole idea of Trap, even though Raf classifies his music as Gangster Beats. His music really took me back to my hip hop roots and made me fall in love with it again.
I was very excited to see that his EP Now That's What I Call Gangster Beats was available for free download off his website. Needless to say I jumped on that wagon and downloaded it asap. It was definitely a good decision on my part. The EP has been on repeat for the past couple of hours and I have not gotten sick of it yet.
With infectious guitar riffs in the opening track Wunn!!, awesome bass and synths lines in The Liquidator and awesome drum sampling in Gunshot, it has definitely been an EP that has caught me off guard. Caught me off guard in a very good way.
Raf Riley is definitely an artist that has such a bright future, he has everything going for him. I am looking forward to seeing what he can come up with in the future because I know it is going to be massive.
You can purchase his Dog Unit tracks as part of The Jeffree's Volume 5 off Beatport.
I was never a big fan of Deorro but after I heard Black and his awesome remix of that very shitty Laidback Luke tune Pogo, I knew that there would be interesting things coming from the bloke.
I was very excited to see that his EP Elevation was going to be released on the 23rd of April. It has definitely been a release that I have been waiting for. And it has not disappointed.
I must say that the opening track Stronger is probably the weakest track off the EP. It definitely wasn't a good start but I forced myself to keep on listening and it was well worth it. The track just doesn't do it for me, it becomes really boring after awhile and it is way too long in my honest opinion. The melody is also not one that is catchy, I found myself forgetting what the track actually sounded like after the first listen.
But let's go on to the good stuff. The rest of the EP is simply sublime. Red Lips feat. Pasha has such a feel good and fun intro melody that I could not help but fall in love with it. With those naughty vocal samples, I could not stop myself from bobbing my head to the infectious beat.
The drop is also an interesting one, I like it when producers have weird and interesting drops. Gone are the days when you need to make your drop sound like an Atomor Ode To Oi rip off, let's leave the rip offs to PSY and Will.I.Am shall we?
The third track on the EP is Cayendo feat Tess Marie. Now, I am not Spanish so I have no fucking idea what that means. I could probably google it but that defeats the point. The point of the matter is that I don't care what the fuck it means or what Tess Marie is singing about. I just dig the awesome sounds that are coming out of my speakers. That is how awesome this song is. It is an instant club banger and it makes you want to move around with your eyes closed. The drop is another reason why I love this track so much, it infuses dirty dutch elements with some fierce electro synths. Now in my books this is an instant winner. Couldn't ask for a more in your face combination.
Elevated feat. Erick Gold is the fourth track on the EP. This is probably the heaviest track on the EP. When the vocal sample comes in with "it's going down tonight", I knew that this is going to be a real treat. The drop was so fierce that I had to momentarily turn down the volume of my speakers because the floor and the windows were starting to vibrate from the bass of my sub woofer. Now that is what I call dropping the bass ladies and gents, when something like that happens then you know this is a gem. What I really dig about this track is that it end off on such a chilled note, it brings about this really rounded effect to the song, this is an element that most tracks lack.
Hype is the final track on the EP. What a way to end an awesome EP hey. I would say that Hype is Deorro's way of saying, "I know this EP is awesome and I am just hyping you up for the next one." "Bring the motherfucking hype" can almost be seen as laying down the gauntlet for his future releases. This is definitely one of the stand out tracks. Such an infectious melody and it will definitely be a favourite amongst house DJs for its great beat and dirty dutch- esque drop.
Deorro has definitely impressed me with this EP. It's innovative and extremely well produced with very catchy tracks. It is definitely a good bye for any EDM enthusiast.
I am always up for promoting local talent and the next artist has definitely a bright future ahead of him.
Guy MacKinnon-Little or rather Life Magic is relatively unknown. Wait, let me rephrase that - I know absolutely jack shit about him. Don't even know what the lad looks like but I do know that he is a fucking talented musician. I guess that's all that matters in the end.
So I was casually waddling about Twitter, going on my random stream of consciousness rant when I get this notification from my home girl SIDESHOW. She tells me I must check out this link, by that time, I was sitting in a boring ass meeting, Wi-Fi wasn't working and I was itching to take a listen. My curiosity always gets the better of me, I guess that's why I'm journalist.
So anyway, when the meeting ended, I quickly jogged over to the nearest cafe and abused the internet.
Let me tell you, this EP was worth the jog. Initially I wasn't expecting much but I was still curious to check it out.
The EP starts off with the title track Highway Dawn which in my opinion is a mixture of trap, electro and some ambient sounds. The drums only start to kick in like 1 minute into the track, usually songs like that would bore me because usually the intro melody isn't strong enough to grab me.
This is not the case with Highway Dawn. It has this very spacey feel to it which I find quite enigmatic and beautiful. When the drums and the drop come in, I was sold because it just sounds so damn smooth.
The next and last track off the EP is Pool Fun. When that intro melody starts, it made me feel like I was lying on the ground in an enchanted forest. When that sub bass, the drums and the punchy synths gradually fill your ears I knew this would be my favourite track off the EP.
I was quite disappointed that it was only a two track release because I wanted to hear more tracks from the lad. I'm sure that this Cape Town bloke will provide more enchanting music for us in the future.
The best way I can describe this EP is - This is some awesome dolphin music that is perfect for those days when you just want to lose yourself and smoke weed.
I have never been into the whole trap genre but when it is described as being post trap infused with future garage and minimalist elements? Well then I will sit up and pay attention.
So I checked out this Romanian artist on Soundcloud. Never heard of this bloke before but by God he is talented. It has been awhile since I have listened to an EP that is so well produced and so interesting, it is really something new. Making use of weird elements that do not normally go together and combining them to create such awesome music.
The first track - Tequila Mockingbird - is probably the best track off the album. The title in itself is so brilliant that it caught my attention immediately. The track features North American producer and DJ Druid Cloak. The track has all the elements of a banger, choral sections, melancholic vocals, a heavy bass drop and that poignant minimalist feeling and tempo to it. As soon as i listened to this track with my headphones, the drop and the heavy bass just blew my head off.
Alpha is the title and the next track on the EP. This is quite an interesting track. Interesting in the sense that it uses Ciara's Get Up vocal snippet as the main vocal breakdown. This really works well with the hip hop feel. This track actually reminds me of a post moomba track infused with trap elements. I love these weird combinations, keeps things interesting.
Honey Trap is the third track off the EP. To be totally honest, it isn't my favourite track but it does have some great aspects to it. I really love the drums in this track, its heavy and goes so well with the industrial minimalist feel of the rest of the track. Combine with the a typical trap drop, it makes for a pretty catchy song. But this is also the reason why it doesn't sit well with me, I have heard too many trap songs that use this effect and it has become quite boring to me. But take nothing away from the song, it is extremely well produced and will be a firm favourite with Trap enthusiasts.
The EP also boasts with remixes from future-garage heavyweight ViLLΛGE and also Fuckowfski.
Kicks n Licks are probably one of my favourite bass acts at the moment.
What I like about this San Diego duo is that they have such a clear sound and they don't try to do too many things at once. Less is more with these guys and I always respect that.
Their self released EP The Expedition has been one of my top plays for the week. More props to them for making this beauty a free download because it is definitely loaded with quality tracks.
I really liked the fact that they have a variety of bass tracks on their EP. You will find dubstep, drum and bass and even a trap track on the EP. It definitely shows their flexibility as producers. The EP will show their Hip Hop roots come through into a well crafted bass EP. It is always great when producers combine other genres into their work.
While listening to the EP I must say that the their sound reminded me a little a bit of Adventure Club with the melodic synth work.
The feel good drum and bass banger After Hours and the hard hitting title track The Expedition are definitely the best tracks off the EP in my opinion. Even the trap influenced Hit Em' With The Horns surprised me with its well crafted, punchy sound.
This EP will satisfy any bass lover, it has something for everybody. Definitely worth checking out.
You can download the EP for free off their website.
