Category Archives: Ear & Drum Session

2009, Ear & Drum Session, Liquid D&B, Melodic

The Way It Is – Ear & Drum Session 22

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Liquid seems to be on the move at the moment. Whilst some camps are still pushing the dance floor sound, others are bringing a deeper influence. Russia seems to be a gold mine for new talent, and an amazing amount of melodic and minimal music has surfaced this year from the eastern block. The sound still holds it’s melodic base, but strips back the beats and lets the sub-bass pulse.

This mix is essentially the a best of all the new liquid(esc) music I’ve bought in the last couple of months. There are some traditional hand clap numbers in there, but I mainly try and focus of the deeper side of the sound.

The Way It Is – 1hr of Melodic Beats

Alix Perez feat. Peven Everett & Spectrasoul – Forsaken
Marky & XRS – Rotation (Stress Level & TC1 Remix)
Bonobo – The Keeper (Redeyes Remix)
A-Sides feat MC Fats – What You Don’t Know (Total Science Remix)
Quadrant – Whisper
Majestics – Force of an Attracting
Simplification & Edward Oberon – Loveline
Simplification – The Trilogy
Majestics – Coming Back
Mr Sizef – Garmoniya Mirov
DJ Clart & Glen E Stone – Mysterious Ways
Eveson – Deeper Still
Bcee – Disciple
Donnie Dubson – Battlecat
Calibre – Intro
Donnie Dubson – Grapefruit
Calibre – Tru Beat
Fourward – Eyelash

2009, Chill Out, Deep D&B, Ear & Drum Session, Minimal

Stripped Bare – Ear & Drum Session 21

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The deep minimalistic sound running through Drum & Bass has been around forever. But this year it seems to have come of age with some seriously big names now playing almost entirely minimal. At it’s best the sound rolls out deep, dark and dubby with a little nod to the good old days of Tech Step. And at it worst it can sound like a half made Drum & Bass track.

With cavernous b-lines intermingling with skippy high end beats as atmospheric pads float in and out of your ears. Artists like Alix Perez, Rockwell, S.P.Y. and Morphy are taking the sound into some seriously deep territory and in the process redefining what people consider Drum & Bass.

This set goes out to Doc Scott for always being there on the edge and peering over the line and D-Bridge for the Autonomic podcasts and pushing things to their limits.

Stripped Bare – 1hr+ of Stripped Beats and Deep B-lines

SPY & Mosus – My World
Morphy – Warren Dub
ASC – Porcelain
SPY – Moving in Circles
Rockwell – Underpass
Alix Perez & Zero T – Suffer in Silence
Spectrasoul – Buried
Alix Perez – Portraits of the Unkown
Redeys – Float in Time
Mr Sizef & Unquote – Hours Have No Reverse Motion
Arp XP – Surfaces
Jubei – Outcast
Morphy – Version (Roff & Ready Original)
Kryptic Minds & Leon Switch – Hide the Tears (Loxy & Resound Remix)
Sunchase – Violet
Data & Cell – Antenna
Mutt, Atmospherix & Eros – Today Halftime
Data – Vice
Breakage feat. Skream – Skreakage

All Label Mix, Cross Genre, Ear & Drum Session

31 Seconds: Part 2 – Ear & Drum Session 20

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Another 31 Recordings mix, this time focussing on the Kingz of the Rollers EP series. Spanning from 2003-2004 the Kingz of the Rollers were THE EP series that you had to have. The mix of established and new artists kept the EPs varied and saw 31 Records tap into artists like Klute, D.Kay, Greg Packer and Pendulum for the first time.

By 2003 the 31 sound had evolved into mighty rollers that suited both the light and dark vibes. Old classics like NHS, How You Make Me Feel, Deadline and even Shadow Boxing got updated remixes using the new sound. It’s hard to keep still to these tunes. They are just that infectious that you can’t help but bob your head.

31 Seconds: Part 2 – 1hr:15m of 31 Record’s Kingz of the Rollers

Klute – I Minder
D.Kay & Lee – Pipe Dreams
The Insiders – Late Night
Total Science – Shelf Life
Greg Packer – Not Just A Groove
MIST – How You Make Me Feel (Photek Remix)
Usual Suspects – Sapphire 7
D.Kay – Reach Inside
Alias – One To Another
Usual Suspects – Calimist
Artificial Intelligence – Won’t Give Up
Doc Scott – NHS (Total Science Remix)
Pendulum – Vault
DJ Kontrol – Echoes of Light
Digital – Deadline (Ed Rush & Optical Remix)
Nasty Habits – Shadow Boxing (Jonny L Remix)

2009, Ear & Drum Session, Hard D&B

Departure – Ear & Drum Session 19

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Not my usual selection this time around as I head into the darker and harder territories. I even slip in a little dubstep at the end. There are some mighty big tunes in here though with Fresh’s Heavyweight, Commix & Rufige Kru’s Envious and Break’s Is This What You Want VIP setting the standard.

So turn on the sub, crank the volume and rinse out.

Departure – 1hr of upfront bitch slappers

D-Bridge – Memory Park
Alix Perez – Down the Line (Break Remix)
Dj Fresh – Heavyweight
Commix & Rufige Kru – Envious
Break – Is This What You Want VIP
Logistics – Warehouse
Operon – Electrons
Subwave – Dreamcatcher
Icicle – Frozen
Dom & Roland – Funkhunt
D Kay & Lee – The Greatest Thing
Rufige Kru – Shanghai Dub
DJ Fresh – Heavyweight (Benny Page Remix)
Printer Jam (Barbarix Remix)

2009, Ear & Drum Session, Liquid D&B

Up Rising – Ear & Drum Session 18

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A new mix this time based on the uplifting vibes of Summer. I know it has headed into Autumn in the Northern hemisphere, but I thought it couldn’t hurt to mix up a little reminder of what made the festival floors burn.

Hospital were obviously a HUGE part of Summer with Sick Music and Logistics new LP Crash, Bang, Wallop! hitting hard and heavy. But it seemed like everyone caught a dose of the fever with producers like Fresh and Jonny L also wading in with their take on the Summer warehouse sound. And of course regulars like Lenzman, Greenfly and Young Ax produced their normal high quality crowd pleasing choons.

If things are getting a little parky around your way, and you want to feel the sun one last time before Winter kicks in I suggest you get this on your iPod and take it for a spin. 😉

Up Rising – 1hr+ of uplifting tunes from the Summer of 2009

Luca – Screen I Motion
Young Ax – System of Survival
The Burbs – Organic
Greenfly – Monopoly
Lupe Fiasco – Paris Tokyo (DJ Clart D&B Remix)
Sigma – Paint it Black
Infectious – Capital Connections
Crystal Clear & Netsky – King of Stars
Calibre – Ringtone
Logistics – Warehouse
Operon – Electrons
Metrik – Anthem 09
Lenzman – Sugar Hill
Logistics – Eastern Promise
Logistics – Murderation
London Elektricity – Just one Second (Apex Remix)
Bcee – Glitterballs (Redeyes & Lenzman Remix)
Logistics – Transporter
Jonny L – Microdaze
DJ Fresh – Fantasia (Liquid Mix)

2009, Cross Genre, Ear & Drum Session

Catching Up – Ear & Drum Session 16

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I’ve been a little out of the game recently due to life getting in the way of music. So this mix is an attempt to catch up on the last couple of months in Drum & Bass.

June, July and August has seen some of the best tunes of the year coming out, plus some huge albums as well. Sick Music on Hospital, Memoirs of an Afterlife on Metalheadz and Ambassadors 4 on Santorin are all incredibly strong releases. Add to this the slew of quality 12″ releases and I had plenty to keep me to spinning for a couple of hours.

I’ve tried to get in a good variety of styles, and take it on a bit of a ride. So whether your are having Summer in the North or Winter in South, this should be a good sound track for the season.

Catching Up – 2hrs of New Tunes

Break – In Between
D-Bridge – Wonder Where
Lynx & Kemo – Tribes
Sh1 – Bangalore
Spectra Soul – Cherry Smoke
Alternative Vibes – Wavelength
Smote & Stunna feat. Submorphics – Sweet Passions
Danny Breaks – Volume 1 (Logistics Remix)
Rufige Kru – One More Time
Rufige Kru – Chances (Alex Perez and Sabre Remix)
London Electricity – Just One Second (Apex Remix)
Data – Delicate
Fanu – End of an Era
Simon V & Telmo A – The Rhythm Track
Madmen & Poets – Afraid of Jazz (Lenzman Remix)
Nu:Tone – Balaclava in my System
Luca – Screen I Motion
Rufige Kru – Sometime Sad Day
Young Ax – System of Survival
The Burbs – Organic
Nookie – Walking Away
Concept & Shnek – Burning Up Inside
Nookie – Mr Slippery
Sigma – Paint it Black
Crystal Clear & Netsky – King of Stars
Trei – Justify
Rufige Kru – Something About You (D-Bridge Remix)
Oak – Starbird

2009, Cross Genre, Ear & Drum Session

Sup? – Ear & Drum Session 15

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Back onto the new tunes for June 2009 in this mix. We kick off with some tracks from the highly under-rated Future Thinkin’ label, and then get into some Alaska & Paradox from their new LP ‘Isolationist’. Rufige Kru’s – Memoirs Of An Afterlife EP gets a nod, as does Paradox’s – The Age Of Outsiders Vol.2 and Helsinki Sunshine, the new LP on Peshay’s Pivotal Entertainment label. We even get into some heavier territory thanks to Break’s – Traits remix and Spor’s nasty rework of Two Finger’s – That Girl.

There is a whole heap more than just what is mentioned above, so if you want to hear something new and different I suggest you shove this into your ear hole.
 

Sup? – 1hr+ of new beats and bass lines

Escher – Slice
Am De Sa – Beyond the Saurian
Alaska & Paradox – Zion
Geln E Ston – Equinox
Am De Sa – Aaj Mera Jee Karda
Rufige Kru – Sometime Sad Day
Solar – Exploration
Instra:Mental – Photograph
Contour – Helsinki Sunshine
ASC – Stardust
Draft – Life Cycle
Break – Traits (Remix)
Two Fingers Feat. Sway – That Girl (Spor Remix)
Alaska & Paradox – Mauja
Lenzman – Bright Lights
Paul SG & Eros – Midnight Rain
Roni Size – It’s Jazzy (Nu:Tone Remix)
Calibre – The Blues
D-Fect – Contact
Break – Enigma (Calibre Remix)

All Label Mix, Cross Genre, Ear & Drum Session, Old Skool

31 Seconds Part 1 – Ear & Drum Session 14

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Doc Scott’s 31 Records is a seminal label in D&B. It has released so many classics down the years with tunes like Shadow Boxing, Liquid Fingers, Mechanics and Deadline all becoming synonymous with defining their various genres. 31 is also the label that launched Pendulum onto the world with the almighty Vault, a track that has had more rewinds than you’ve had hot dinners.

When 31 Records first hit the scene I bought everything they put out. With artists like Dom & Roland, MIST, Optical, Digital, Nasty Habits and Klute on board it was pretty much impossible to pass up on a release. I unfortunately missed out on a lot of the later output on the label until A Bunch Of Cuts opened up its MP3 store and laid down the entire back catalogue of 31. I couldn’t resist, I had to down the credit card and start filling in all the holes in my collection.

This mix is the first in a 3 part series covering the early days of 31 Records. Part 2 & 3 will cover the middle and later part of the labels history. What you get in this mix are the choons that made 31 Records a must have label for every self respecting D&B DJ. Tracks like Chilling Out, Prototyped, Technology, The End Part I and Part II, Liquid Fingers, Deadline and of course Shadow Boxing stamped 31 Records as one of THE premier labels in the mid to late 90’s.

Even though these tracks cross all sorts of genres they all have a distinctive 31 sound. A futuristic and technological edginess that always made the hairs on the back of your neck stand up and the dance floor go mental. This one goes out to Doc Scott and his merry men for leaving a legacy 99% of labels can only dream of creating.

 

31 Seconds Part 1 – 1hr of 31 Records early masterpieces

Deep Blue – Immersion
Optical – The End Part I
Octave One – Chillin’ Out (Deleted Mix)
Dom & Roland – Mechanics
Octave One – Chillin’ Out ’94
Nasty Habits – Liquid Fingers (Goldie Remix)
Fortran – The End Part II
Dom & Roland – Prisms
MIST – Dreamworld
Klute – Song Seller
Klute – Dawn of Reason
Nasty Habits – Shadow Boxing
Nasty Habits – Prototyped
Digital – Deadline
Octave One – Technology
Total Science – Get It On

Cross Genre, Deep D&B, Ear & Drum Session

In Too Deep – Ear & Drum Session 13

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I did a mix years ago now called ‘Deep Seated’. It had all my favourite deep steppers on it all in one mix. I went to listen to it again recently only to find that that by some tragic accident it had never been backed up to DVD. Luckily I still had a full set list, so instead of letting it get me down I decided to remix the set and make some new additions to it. 🙂 The end result is ‘In Too Deep’.

I find this deep steppy sound usually sorts out the part time D&B listeners from the true heads, as it doesn’t rely on any fancy production techniques and tricks, or on a relentless firing Amen to keep you interested. Instead it sets up an almost hypnotic beat and just rolls out into a deep panorama of sound that locks you in. It takes some true production talent to pull this off and not sound boring and repetitive, so you know some serious amounts of talent and work have gone into making these tunes work.

This mix is comes in three parts with two half beat interludes provided by the genius of Russia’s Coldicus between each section. First up are all my favourite old deep steppers from labels like 31 Records and Creative Source. Minimal, stripped bare melody tracks that take you on a proper journey. Next up is the modern day legacy of this deep D&B provided by Commix and D-Bridge. And the third section is the harder & darker edge of the deep step sound. Atom One’s pioneering Trance and Bass stepper Imminent is massive and Doc Scott’s – Shadow Boxing puts the class in D&B classic.

 

In Too Deep – A Brief History of Deep Step D&B

Nasty Habits – Liquid Fingers
Kazimir – Memories
More Rockers – Saying
Carlito & Addiction – Make it Real
Marcus Intalex & ST File – How You Make Me Feel
Roar Deal – Roar Deal
Howard Huges – The Real
TeeBee – Lifeless
Coldicus – Dreamaboutgirlfromkndr
D-Bridge – Creatures of Habit
Commix – Bear Music
D-Bridge – The Question
Coldicus – My Dreams Are My Dolls
Preasure Drop – Legacy (Paul Daley Remix)
Atom One – Imminent
Splash Collective – It’s For Us
Doc Scott – Shadow Boxing

2009, Cross Genre, Ear & Drum Session

Forward Thinking – Ear & Drum Session 12

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Another 2009 mix up this time. It’s been a good year so far for D&B with a lot of labels and artists getting more experimental with their beats and pushing their traditional sounds into uncharted territories. This mix reflects some of these more experimental bits and gets in some good old fashioned D&B grooves as well.

Implex & Enei are two Russian artsits who’s Sublife Lp impressed the hell out of me. I’ve put a lot of the good bits from this into the blend. There is a lot of Metalheadz tracks in here as well, but you might not pick them as they are definitely on the stripped back and spacious tip. Bop & Despot get a high five for their amazing Song About My Dog and Random Thoughts tracks out on Medschool, meanwhile Logistics and High Contrast on their sister label Hospital also feature.

This mix takes in all styles and sounds, and crosses a fair bit of ground. It’s main purpose is to highlight what is new and cutting edge out there in the underground.

 

Forward Thinking – 1.5hrs of the latest D&B for 2009

Bop – Song About My Dog
Data – Mutued
Alix Perez & Sabre – God Fearing
Implex & Enei – Snake Style
Sabaruko – Warped (Instra:mental Remix)
Implex & Enei – Iceberg
Implex & Enei – Spring Tune
Commander Strange – Time
Bachelors of Science – The Beautiful Life
Implex & Enei – Behind The Law
Invisible Landscape – First Is Forever
Atmospherix & Soultec – No Way Out
Pal SG & Eros – Ask Her
Human Factor – Diggin Deepa
Logistics – Toy Town
Total Science & Conrad – Soul Patrol (Lenzman Deep In Your Soul Remix)
2Key – New Beginnings
Naibu – Screens
High Contrast – Seven Notes in Black
Alix Perez & Sabre – Everglade
Subwave – Dreamcatcher
Bop & Despot – Random Thoughts