Category Archives: Ear & Drum Session

2012, Deep D&B, Ear & Drum Session, Half Beat, Melodic, Minimal

Sub Sampling – Ear & Drum Session 77

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Hitting the deeper and darker spectrum of D&B again this time around. There is some really great deep darkness about at the moment if you know where to look. Shogun Audio and Med School are obvious trail blazers, but some of the smaller labels such as Ingredients, Critical Music & Vibration Records are also punching way above their weight with the help of production talent such as Krakota, Enei, Kasra and Alcrani.

The great thing about this sound at the moment is it’s ability to keep a moody streak whilst still being diverse in terms of influence. Some tracks come at things from a minimal perspective, others melodic and others still with the stripped back half-step MC driven sound but all sound like they were made for each other and make for good fun when it comes to making up a track selection.

Sub Sampling – 1+hrs of Deep and Dark D&B Vibes

SpectraSoul – Coals
Alcrani – Inversion of Control
Krakota – Tunnle Vision
Utah Jazz – Crossing Frontiers
June Miller – Isis (Silent Dust Remix)
Joe Syntax – Bassline Sinker
ASC – Glass Walls
Scott Allen & Deeper Connection – The Need In Me
Silence Groove – Carried By Clouds
Flame – Tragic Kingdom
Craggz & Parallel – Hurt You
Able Danger – Asteria
Kasra & Enei – So Real
Joe Syntax – Pull It
Utah Jazz – Slice of Nature
SpectraSoul – Light in the Dark
Enei & MC DRS – Obsession (Foreign Concept Remix)
SpectraSoul – Shackles
Bass’Flo – Poseidon (Physical Illusion Remix)
Rudimental – Feel the Love (Fred V & Grafix Remix)
Technicolour – We Were Always One

2012, Bass Music, Cross Genre, Ear & Drum Session

Bass Fishing – Ear & Drum Session 76

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Session number 76 sees something new in the repetiore with my first attempt at a Bass Music mix. WTF is Bass Music I hear you ask yourself, and what happened to the Drums? Bass Music is a mixture of (mainly UK) House, Techno, Dubstep and Garage. I say mainly UK because it seems to be the UKs reaction to Dubstep being stolen by Skrillex in the US and turned into some screachy festival music for bros & hoes. This sound is much deeper, and groovier and has a good smattering of the real Dub and Reggae roots dubstep originally had when it first came out.

For me this stuff is super fun to mix, and the chance to blend all sorts of styles, beats and tempos together reminds me of the good old days when there weren’t really any defined genres. It was all just dance music. I think the other thing that is great about this stuff is that it can be as deep you like whilst still feeling fun and making you move. Something D&B seems to have forgotten with it’s super slick production and super sped up beats. Although if you check the set list carefully you’ll notice that a good chunk of the producers in this mix do have their roots in D&B production.

Oh and the other reason it’s called Bass Music because it really is heavy on the bass. So turn it up and tear it up.

Bass Fishing – 1hr+ of Deep Bass Music

Greg Packer & MC Assassin – Sound Kriminal (Killafoe Remix)
Lennie De Ice – We Are IE (Caspa & Rusko Remix)
DJG – Here Come The Dark Lights
Barefoot – Murmurs
Ill Skillz – Eternity (feat. Dub FX) (DJ Edit)
Amit – RBMK 1000
Lynk feat. Fats & Seed – Revolutions
Sepalcure – Taking You Back
Photek – Levitation
Tokimonsta – Mileena’s Theme
High Contrast – Not Waving, But Drowning (feat. Lung & Jessy Allen)
KeOSz & Trilo – Last Hope
Unquote – Cold Tenderness
Skream – Where You Should Be feat. Sam Frank (Original Mix)
Tali – Love Runs Deep (vs Atlantic Connection)
Eveson – Life In The Balance (140 Reprise)
Tali – Signs (vs Skism & Do The Math)
Noisia – Tommy’s Theme

2012, Ear & Drum Session, Liquid D&B, Melodic

A Long Summer Sumthing – Ear & Drum Session 75

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It’s been a long time since I did a long mix and seeing as we in the Southern hemisphere are starting to heat up after a particularly cold winter, and those in the North are seeing the last of their warmer days I though it was about time to drop a mix of Summer tunes from this season. Now when I say Summer tunes I don’t mean Festival & Bass style stuff (not my style), I mean proper Summer rollers with a good vocal or two to sing a long to.

I have to mention some of the big albums of the (Northern) Summer. The very under-rated L.A.O.S released their debut which everyone must have been hanging on because they titled it Finally. Full of big sounding lush liquid tunes this is a belter and well worth the asking price. Next up is Atlantic Connection – Love Connection. I always love their albums as you can be guaranteed a diverse range of music brilliantly produced and with a Cali vibe to it. And last but not least Utah Jazz with his Groove Therapy LP which I have already banged on about on this blog. His Conrad Funk tune of this is my favourite track in this mix and has that amazing old Good Looking vibe with updated production quality meaning it hits even harder.

So set up your sun lounge, get the stereo in the garden and kick back with some rays and enjoy a rinse of a long Summer sumthing.

A Long Summer Sumthing – 1.5hrs of Summer Tunes from 2012

Random Movement – The Note From Next Door
LSB – All Of My Love (Technicolour & Komatic Remix)
BCee feat. Messy MC – Captured In Time VIP
Maduk feat. Veela – Ghost Assassin
Dynamic – Midnight Heat Thing
Atlantic Connection – Warm Regards
Phors – Shining Star
Dynamic – Modal Suite
Hybrid Minds – Leaving
Alix Perex – Contradictions
DRS featuring Lenzman & Jehst A – Holding On
LSB & Sian Sanderson – Overthinking
SpectraSoul feat. Tamara Blessa – Away With Me (Calibre Remix)
DJ Clart – The Grind
Culture Shock – Protection
Utah Jazz – Conrad Funk
Intelligent Manners – Acting, Thinking, Feeling
nClear – Only Way
Contract Killers – The Life Moments (Soundwall VIP)
Undersound & Missy May – Headfirst & Foolhardy
L.A.O.S – Hush Now
L.A.O.S – Break My Heart (LP Version)
Rudimental – Feel The Love (Fred V & Grafix Remix)
Silence Groove – Eat Me Softly
Dynamic – Blueberry Nights
The Burbs – Desire
Rowpieces – On My Mind
LSB – Some Disco

2012, Ear & Drum Session, Liquid D&B

The Falls – Ear & Drum Session 73

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Lots of exciting things going down in the liquid genre at the moment. Logistics, Duoscience & Majestics all have solid albums out with Majestics – All Is The Music on Liquid Brilliants being the pick of the bunch for me. Not only do you get 23 tracks, you also get some of the best produced melodic D&B to come out this year. The Brazilians are also on fire with S.P.Y, Marky & Duoscience all pumping out great tracks in recent months.

The Falls – 45mins of fresh Liquid D&B for 2012

Total Science & S.P.Y – Piano Funk
Lenzman – How Did I Let You Go
Command Strange – Love Beam
Logistics – Neon
Torn – Ultimate Master
Marky & S.P.Y – Love Affair
Nymfo – Bi-Polar
Majestics – Stay At The Moment
Drudex – Calmness
Sub Zero – Protection
Technicolour, Komatic & LSB – Rotary Motion
Majestics – Gone Away
Majestics – I Feel You
Duoscience – Interlude 02

All Label Mix, Chill Out, Deep D&B, Ear & Drum Session, Intelligent, Melodic, Old Skool

Shadow Wax 6: 1996 Chilled Intelligence Part 1 – Ear & Drum Session 72

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The sixth installment in the retrospective Shadow Wax series looks at the chilled out vibes from 1996. No one could touch Moving Shadow during this era of sublime melodies and blissful beats. Artists like PFM, Flytronix, Wax Doctor, Dave Wallace, EZ Rollers and Unit 1 read like a who’s who of top Intelligent D&B producers.

For me these are some of the finest musical moments in Drum & Bass that still sound just as fresh today as when they were made. ’96 truly was a golden era for this sound, so if you like you beats chilled and smooth I suggest you kick back and enjoy the ride.

Shadow Wax 1996: Chilled Intelligence Part 1 – 1hr+ of Chilled out Moving Shadow

PFM – Cruising Detroit
Teqniq – Razzmatazz
Fytronix – The Rhode Tune
Mastermind – The Essence
Hoax – Meltdown
Essence of Aura – So This Is Love ’96
Neil Trix – Revolution
JMJ & Flytronix – Delusions
Wax Doctor – Cool Breeze
Unit 1 – Atlantic Drama
Dave Wallace – Flight
Dave Wallace – Waves
EZ Rollers – The Morning After
Hoax – Pipe Dreams
EZ Rollers – Vintage Moments
Vext – Visions

2012, Ear & Drum Session, Hard D&B

Tough Break – Ear & Drum Session 71

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This is a quick mix of some recent tunes from the tougher edge of the D&B spectrum. We kick off with the epic Metalheadz 100th release Freedom by Goldie, roll into a classic remix of Klute’s We R the Ones by Ulterior Motive and finish up with the huge Muffler & Cat Knight collaboration Put Me Down. Special thanks to Fanu for the free track Desert Jubie for his generosity on The Take.

Tough Break – 1hr of Tough Beats

Goldie – Freedom
Fanu – Desert
Klute – We R The Ones (Ulterior Motive Remix)
Soul Culture – Stronger
Amit – Manic Miner
Commix – Tracking You
Enie & MC DRS – Obsession (Foreign Concept Remix)
Gridlock – Enemies of the State
Madcap – Our Love
Jubei – The Take
Die & Break – Grand Funk Hustle
Krusha – Need Your Loving
Break & Mikal – Just a Game
Muffler & Cat Knight – Put Me Down

2012, Deep D&B, Ear & Drum Session, Liquid D&B, Melodic

The Soulution – Ear & Drum Session 70

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So recently on a certain D&B forum a colleague of mine suggested that the problem with D&B was that it couldn’t be fun without being cheesy or chavvy. Obviously hearing is in the ear of the beholder and every body’s idea of ‘fun’ is different, but it did get me thinking about the more fun and accessible D&B I had been overlooking lately. For me the D&B with the widest audience accessibility (ie. stuff that not just the headz would listen to) is the vocal and soul fueled variety. It has the vocals to hook in the ladies and give that sense of fun, it has the soul to get the hips swaying and it still has the beats & b-lines to keep the floor moving. Best of all it doesn’t have to degenerate into the cheesy festival style D&B that is seen as commercially popular.

So in response to my good chum Ocelot Ed’s question I put together this mix to provide a solution to Ed’s problem with D&B. As I said, everyone’s idea of ‘fun’ is different, but for me these types of tunes offer up a good balance of fun without the fromage, and there is still enough D&B grunt to keep the headz happy too.

Props have to go to Komatic as he seems to be all over this sound that’s not quite liquid and not quite deep, but has loads of soul and a real pump to the bass and beats. Other notable exceptions are Young Ax who always brings it with a real live sound to his soulful productions and the usual suspects of Duo Science, Spectrasoul and Technicolour who seem to constantly pump out quality tracks on a monthly basis.

The Soulution – 1hr of Soul Fueled D&B

Komatic – The Open Choice
Mage & M25 – Savanna
Young Ax – High Rollers
Komatic – Earth Turns
Paperclip – Whom I Belong
Anile & Hybrid Minds – Old TImes
Madcap – Our Love
Duo Science Feat. Skyeyes – Let Me Know
Deeper Connection – Quiet Storm
Soulproof – Inna Dem Clothes
Villem & McLeod – Hush
Spectrasoul – In Profile
Technicolour – Winter Rose
High Contrast – The Stand
Technicolour & Komatic – We Were Always One
Soul Culture – Stronger

Ear & Drum Session, Hard D&B, Old Skool, Tech Step

Roll Playing – Ear & Drum Session 69

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Everyone loves a roller, and no era did rollers quite like the start of the millennium. Stakka, Ed Rush & Optical, Matrix, and J Majik were smashing out big funky b-lines with those rolling techy beats that sent the floor crazy. Metro Recordings were one of the BIG labels in the game at that time and to celebrate the re-releasing of their classic tunes onto digital I thought I’d put together a mix that, for me, summed up the times and that awesome rolling sound.

If you are looking for the Metro back catalog you’ll find it here – The Metro Collection.

Roll Playing – 1hr from the Golden Age of Rollers

Optical – The Shining
Klute – Unwind Yourself
Ed Rush & Optical – Fastlane
Stakka & Skynet – So Confused feat. K.Tee
Matrix & Danny J – Paradiso
Matrix & Danny J – Vertigo
Ed Rush & Optical – Reach Out
J Majik – Solarize (Optical Remix)
Ed Rush & Optical – Kerbcrawler
John B – Up All Night (Epic Remix)
High Contrast – Music Is Everything (Influx Datum Remix)
Matrix Vs. Goldtrix – It’s Love (Trippin’)
Pressure Rise – Focus
Hatrias vs J Majik – Spaced Invader

2012, Chill Out, Ear & Drum Session, Liquid D&B, Melodic

In A Round About Way – Ear & Drum Session 68

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In a round about way this is a liquid mix. I say this because liquid seems to be morphing lately and is a hard genre to pin down these days. Originally melodic party music, liquid now encompasses a much wider range of directions then it used to. There’s the still the up for it dance tracks, but lately also a deeper and more mellow aspect that has drawn me back into a music I thought might have be in danger of becoming to formulaic for it’s own good. I’ve also noticed some tracks taking on a more live jazz based flavour, reminiscent of Reprazent’s classic Brown Paper Bag.

So in the spirit of diversity I’ve tried to cover a little bit of everything in this mix. It actually started out as a quick sound check on my new set up, which now includes an Allen & Heath mixer, until I got carried away and went into a full blown set. So let me know if you can tell a difference in sound quality. 😉

In A Round About Way – 1hr of Chilled & Melodic Vibes from 2012

Phat Playaz & LM1 – Colour Of Time
Centik & Grimm – Don’t Wanna Do This
Phat Playaz & PFM – Time of Our Life
Sapphire – Snowdrop
Roygreen & Protone – Danube
Phat Playaz & MJT – Want You
Oscallist – The Silver Lining
Queensway – Darlin
Override – Take Your Time
Sato – Barn (Break Remix)
Break – They’re Wrong
Command Strange – Everything
Static & Scott Allen – Eastern Horizon
Smooth – Shifting Sands feat. Shaz Sparks (Part 2)
Crimson, Nizzo & Promenade – Stay
Roygreen & Protone – Tartagura
Plug – A Quick Plug For A New Slot
Command Strange & Dynamic – The Beautiful Things
Brother – Riverbank

2012, Deep D&B, Ear & Drum Session, Hard D&B

Fluctuations – Ear & Drum Session 67

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Coming in deep and hard on this mix of new tunes for 2012. Whilst not everyone has loved the minimal revolution, there is no doubt it’s influence has been felt across most genres and no more so than the harder end of D&B. Tracks like Dub Phizix & Skeptical – Marka have shown just how devastating the minimal sound can be when mixed in with some tough beats and a good vocal.

This stripped back sound has played right into the hands of producers like Loxy, & Ink and Jubei who already had quite a deep and minimal sound. Plus, it has allowed a few of the more chilled out minimalists such as June Miller and Need for Mirrors to step up and have a go at producing some harder edged music.

As the boundaries begin to blur across the D&B genres it’s the music that profits as people focus less on what the music is called and concentrate more on what it sounds like. Which means 2012 is looking like being a sweet year for D&B.

Fluctuations – 1hr of Hard & Deep D&B

Dabs & Amoss – Still There
Phobia – Clean Break
Mr Foul – Land of Look Behind
War – Rafale
Dom & Roland – Enforced VIP
Skeptical – Cold One (Jubei Remix)
Need for Mirrors – Columbia
Jubei – The Path
Subwave – Wheel of Time
Sunchase & Nickbee – Dawn Time
Dub Phizix & Skeptical – Marka (feat. Strategy)
June Miller – Walls of Jericho
Krakota – Tunnel Vision
NC-17 & Time Reaper – Burial Ground