Review: The Plastik People label has been going along nicely for its first few releases, with label head Marc Cotterell stepping up and coming correct last time out. Now he calls upon various artists with Dave Charlesworth taking care of the a-side of Nice Ripe Cuts. He offers two super slick garage cuts that cannot fail to make their mark on the club and it's no different on the flipside except D Lux & Y No combine first for '25 Miles' and then S R offers the irresistible 'Pressure.' An essential 12" for anyone looking to bring some fresh garage flavours.
Review: Bang on trend grooves from the Vivid camp, exploring the current fascination for all things that intersect both the garage and breaks genres. Lead track 'Wicked & Wild' is the one that leans furthest into UKG territory, its bumpy bassline and MC-style vocal giving it heaps of energy and attitude. Flip side instrumentals 'Push Past It' and 'Ronin' meanwhile, evoke the early 2000s spirit of breaksteppers such as Horsepower Productions, the latter especially maintaining the bassline pressure and adding it to the more hardcore vibe of rawer, sampled percussion. Maximum respect!
Review: Mr G is of course an untouchable producer of dubby house and techno rollers. Whether or not he is the inspiration for the title of this EP we do not know but it's a fittingly good one either way. Dewey Decimal is the man in control and opens with a naughty garage cut with filthy low ends. 'Cha Ching' is another killer cut with sensuous sax notes over turbocharged bass and prickly, percussive drums with a cheeky two-step swagger. 'Wag21' brings some smart r&b vocal samples to another raw, hard hitting garage house groove and 'Treat Me Right' closes out one of the best EPs we've heard in a while with some busty drum loops and dirty bassline brilliance.
Review: Scott Diaz taps into some old school garage class with this new EP on Pirate Cutxz, but never is it too slavish to the OG sound. Instead, he brings fresh ideas and modern production skills to four characterful cuts. 'Holdtight' opens in bunch fashion with big drums and busy chords dancing about next to yelps and sustained pads. 'So Hot' is a more subtle 2-stepper with a ducking and diving groove bathed in warm synth work and natty bass notes. 'Ikigai' shuts down with some 90s organ chords and sleazy, shuffling speed-garage style drums and well-deployed vocal samples. Effective stuff.
Review: DJ Crisps taps into a menacing garage vibe on this no-frills, all-killer new EP via South London Pressings. Opener 'Styla' has naughty low ends and punchy drum programming with plenty of post-dubstep wub-wub goodness and eerie urban melodies. 'Hold Tight' will have the gun fingers firing off left right and centre with its rude-boi vibes and 'Adolphy Sax' then channel masters like Groove Chronicles with its dry, dusty drums and hits, lush chords and sexual sax lines. 'Too Shy' (feat Ell Murphy) is perfectly sleazy yet sultry vocal garage closer.
Review: We live a bit of DJ Perception here at Juno H. He is an original garage great who keeps on cooking up the goods. This latest missive comes on the small but well-formed South London Pressings and features off the classic 'Future (feat Russ).' It's a soul drenched sound with acoustic guitar licks flailing above breezy breakbeats that will be perfect for once the sun comes out, not least with the most Balearic top lines that break out midway through. The Benny Ill Heavenly remix is a more shuffling garage cut but still one packed with real heat.
Review: A melting pot of UK garage, house and bass, DJ Swagger's latest release on Berlin-based label, 777, is a fascinating exploration in structure and chaos. Opening track, 'Thanks Felix', moves at lightspeed - a thrilling race through a gritty arrangement of blunted kicks, shifting in and out of focus, moving between order and disorder. 'Fingerclut' emerges with an instantly more house-facing feel - a satisfyingly hypnotic groove spirals in a circle motion, featuring a cyclonic gathering of subtle flecks of percussive variation over the course of the track. Offering a spliced, glitched-out take on contemporary bass, 'Final Bout' journeys through moments of airy weightlessness before being thrown back into the growling, driving bass section of the track. The perfect tension builder, 'Full Cycle', is an ingenious tease of a track, skillfully building up to, you guessed it, even more build.
Review: The Full Circle label is building up a fine head of steam early on and this third EP is a throwback garage classic. It's a re-release of a cult gem from Danny J Lewis with the steamy vocals of Danielle Gaga. 'Spend the Night' has it all - the hooky and soulful vocal, the dry percussive drums, the infectious swing and the lush chords. As well as the H-Man dub, there are other versions including one from tech house tian Archie Hamilton, a super smooth VIP dub and a Disco Edit that layers in some cosmic arps and leaves the great original vocal intact.
Review: Our second sound-clash instalment sees Panix lock heads with DJ Snowy Buffet. Based out of South London, Panix made a name for himself in the dubstep scene, before emerging as one of the most exciting producers of UKG and breaks. The A1, 'Premium Dubz' combines moody bass-lines with ravey stabs to make the ultimate 2-step dance floor killer. The A2, 'Hefty' does exactly what it says on the tin.. Hefty basslines and squeaky clean 4 to the floor drums. DJ Snowy Buffet is another veteran of the dubstep game, producing under the well known WZ. Surfacing as his new alias, the Czechoslovakian producer shows depth to his game with a bouncy UKG sound. The B1, 'Can I Tell' provides skippy garage drums and synths certain to light up any set. The B2, 'Club Life' showcases the darker side of UKG, with warping basslines and amen breaks.
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