Introducing the long-awaited third instalment from our label series, Culture, where we take a step away from the tech & neuro to feature exciting sounds from the full spectrum of drum & bass.
CULT003 comes from the hands of Constrict, an upcoming producer who’s had a belter of a year, releasing a cracking EP with our mates at Context Audio, and collaborating with Koherent on their Dispatch release. The Anywhere EP is a wicked cross-section of Connor’s skills, with a varied sound showing of the strength and range of his production talents.
The title track Anywhere is a seriously vibed-out liquid roller, with lovely keys, warm bass and a perfectly executed vocal sample leading the track into it’s thumpy, somewhat minimal drop. A spacious bassline mirroring the keys makes up the theme of the track, while a lovely, snappy break drives the track along. The second drop switches it up, taking the sound into darker realms with some warping reeses, and a much fuller, thumping bassline. Each drop could fit effectively into two completely different sets, yet the track retains an impressive congruency, a truly versatile track.
Next up, Labyrinth, couldn’t be a different affair. Right from 0:00 you know the tones changed, with granular, eery atmosphere and percussion setting the scene for the tune. what follows is a thumping, syncopated stepper, with buckets of attitude. Starting reasonably minimal, with a driving break on top of a sub-heavy, warping bassline, the track turns up the heat with techy percussion, vocal stabs, and even more atmosphere. The beautifully crafted drum breaks and rhythms are the backbone of this tune, holding the ear and moving the feet all the way through. Even get a nice boom-bap section at the end to nod your head to, quality.
Continuing the trajectory of the release, the final track Kawachi takes it even darker, even deeper, and even more minimal to round out the EP. One for the deep drum & bass heads, an abrasive half-time beat introduces the track, which is joined by a colossal sub, subtly moving around underneath. Once again the percussion picks up the rhythm, accenting the variations as the track stomps its way along. In the second section a filtered breakbeat is added in, giving it heavy Samurai-vibes. Proper, proper hoodie music, it really doesn’t get much darker than this.
Follow on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/constrictdnb/
Follow on Soundcloud:
https://soundcloud.com/constrictdnb
