Exit

Rinse FM Podcast - Metalheadz vs Exit Records - 19th November 2014

Fresh, genre bending interpretations from Barac (Romania) and dBridge (UK).
180 gram vinyl, initial copies with hand-made screen printed covers. Out: 25.01.2016
These two inspiring producers provide their modern touch to the contemporary dancefloor continuum:
dBridge offers an up-to-date hybrid that straddles the line between techno and breakbeat, while Barac’s extended mix is a deep and hypnotic journey through space. 
www.discogs.com/Barac-dBridge-Int…P/rele­ase/7348102
http://www.juno.co.uk/products/konrad-black-the-scorched-earth-interpretations/596080-01/

dBridge represents a milestone when it comes to UK dance music. Being part of the legendary drum and bass group Bad Company in the late 90s, running his extensive label Exit Records, and regularly releasing on Boddikas Nonplus, Metalheadz, as well as R&S, he has gained an enviable reputation as a specialist with a modern take on techno and breakbeat variations.

Romanias up-and-coming Barac has released a double record on Rareshs Metereze imprint among others, has recently launched his own platform with Moment, and is inarguably one of the top creative minds emerging from the vivid ourown / sunrise scene.

The selection of these particular producers is the result of Konrad Black simultaneously considering his past while embracing the future. His affinity for dBridge goes back longer than a decade when Konrad was working for Virus Recordings in London, making dBridge an ideal conduit for the Drum and Bass aesthetic that still courses through both artists veins. Barac represents a new wave of artists whose music exists as a crystal ball depicting an ideal future for techno music on the whole. Together, these top talents present a pair of fresh interpretations of Blacks darkly aspirational release.

Discogs

Konrad Black - Scorched Earth (dBridge Interpretation) (Meander 16.5)

New Zealand’s downtempo-bass producer Consequence, aka Cam McLaren, always tread the line musically, to the point that the line became blurred entirely. His debut album, ‘Live For Never,’ reminded the electronic world of the intricacies and emotional heights of Drum &amp; Bass, and carried the genre into new realms of sonic possibility. ‘Live For Never’ appealed to different scenes across the board (and around the world), receiving rapturous applause from electronic music’s toughest critics (Resident Advisor, Boomkat, FACT) and magazine gurus alike (DJ Magazine, IDJ). 

In March 2011, Consequence made his second album appearance on Exit Records with Joe Seven, as They Live: the duo’s ‘Cancel Standard’ was an immersive, sci-fi laced album that set the bar for the year rather high. Consequence decided to end 2011 with one more album, however: his long-awaited sophomore solo LP: ‘Test Dream.’

‘Test Dream’ is not for those who expect the next logical evolution of ‘Live For Never.’  It’s also not for the unadventurous, nor for those who seek easily digestible music. Creatively free, Consequence revels in pure electronic experimentation, and the result is an album that follows no rules, and explores fractal dimensions that defy conventional genres. 

The downtempo compositions on the LP manage to hold the intensity and propelling urgency of high BPM electronic music, even though some of the tracks are relatively beatless. ‘Before I Go’ takes the listener to space and back, while ‘Can’t Say’ comes through with staggered synths and rugged drums, building an atmosphere where each sound tells a story. ‘Marlo’, meanwhile, is a welcome retreat from the tension built in its predecessors, with a reassuring melody, softly rhythmic snaps and handclaps, smooth vocals and warm pads. ‘Of Uncertainty’ reveals a slow beauty that builds with impeccable grace, adding colours, slowed vocals and tranquil atmospheres along the way.

Ever a many-faced producer, Consequence’s album takes a few forays into more haunting, cryptic territories. ‘Just Water’, filled with creepy effects and sinister samples, leaves the listener nothing short of on-edge, especially with a finale that sounds not much unlike C3PO being ripped to shreds. And ‘Magda Trench’ sounds like a video game that’s burning under a microscope, rendering fractured pixels into outer space. 

Staying true to his roots, Consequence brings the album back through the tangles of the jungle, and voyages into heavier D&amp;B landscapes. ‘Oden‘ and ‘Soul Sees Spirit’ feel slightly apocalyptic, with soaring ominous-filled synth builds and hard-hitting drums that will darken (and deepen) any dancefloor instantaneously. 

There are many surprises tucked within, too, of course. ‘Re-occuring’ has ascending melodies that sound as though they could dance in a Giorgio Moroder universe: a transportive space-capade that gives an aural tour through a cluster of stars. Powered by a stuttered melody on a wavering synth line, ‘Lovershell’ is one for code-crackers: an intriguing ball of chaos that slowly starts to make sense as it comes together. The dub-drenched ‘Slant’ starts out mysterious in feel, takes a swift turn for anxiety and suddenly breaks into an enigmatic poem slowly recited in a sing-song manner. 

‘Untitled’, with a yearning vocal that floats through an ambiguous atmosphere, closes the album on that typical Consequence note: with lines being tightrope-walked and left obliterated. ‘Test Dream’ grows and unfolds more with each listen, giving way to explorations of dense sound universes.



Consequence - Test Dream - EXITCD / LP010 - Preview Mix

London’s Loxy and Finland’s Resound have always been known for their ragga-tinged, hard-hitting sound, where each beat slams through with an untouchable technical precision. The two producers have been combining forces for the last three years  - including their 2009 anthem ‘Green Destiny/Storyboard’ (Digital Soundboy), remixes for Kryptic Minds, additions to Renegade Hardware compilations, last year’s ‘No Money - Deadly Venom/Driving Force’ (Def Recordings), and their contribution to Exit Records’ ‘Mosaic: Volume One’ (‘Vertigo’) earlier this year. But the duo’s long-awaited debut long player marks their first collaboration that has absolutely no boundaries: as experimental and creative as it gets. True to form, as most Exit Records releases go, ‘Burning Shadows’ sees both producers finding their stride, and treading into surprising new sonic territories from a few different directions. Taking the energy and force of early tech-heavy Drum & Bass, Loxy & Resound bring the genre into a sound that’s uniquely their own.

Exit Boss dBridge put it himself:
“I really love how there’s the reggae side to Loxy’s productions; I thought his sound would really come together as a a whole album, especially with the tech side of Resound. With an album, you’ve got 72 minutes to fill the space with whatever your heart desires. I just love what Loxy & Resound do, so I told them to write the album that they wanted to make. I feel like I got the best out of them this way.”

Deep and vibe-laden, ‘Burning Shadows’ as a whole feels like a trip into another world. There are moments of tranquility and calm, but overall it’s an intensely fast-moving and suspenseful body of work that always feels as though there’s something in wait. With a production style where each song is lead by the drums, the duo flex an incomparable understanding of rhythm and timing: every sample comes just when you least expect it, and each track builds to a point of tension and release, keeping the listener on edge and guessing throughout. 

‘Celestial March’ is a downtempo introduction into their cinematic productions, building slowly with an ascending melody. ‘Depth Excess’ teases in a small vocal throughout, swells and waves, with percussion that sounds as if it comes straight from a tribal ceremony. ‘Part Human’ has a dark sci-fi feel to its eerie atmosphere: filled with crescendos, it gets louder and more forceful with each refrain. ‘Black Hole’ is a downtempo masterpiece, one that indeed makes the listener feel as though they’re lost within a never ending abyss.

The next few tracks stand as a modern take on the technical end of D&B, with such a sharp and fresh approach. It’s noticeable in the way the bass hits on the deep roller ‘Conscious,’ for instance, or the way the rhythms create a whirlwind of tension despite having a defined lack of heavy drums on ‘Declaration.’ ‘Sin City’ is filled with all the urgency and fear of pitch-black streets at night, with sparse percussion, but a dancefloor destroyer that will keep you on your toes nonetheless. ‘Fall’ feels like it could go in any direction for the first tense 1:30, but gives into a dark bassline that leads the way to a dense atmosphere with all manner of unexpected sounds. ‘Conqueror X’ is a deep helping of vibes, bringing back the darker edge of early 00’s D&B with a new twist. ‘Inversion’ slams down with old jungle rhythms and swathes of bass: a track that shows the duo’s rare ability to make something so raw and harsh with such delicate precision. ‘Thin Ice’ brings back that inimitable Loxy & Resound Drum & Bass sound - a layered, rhythmic track that hits with immense force. ‘Vindication’ starts to slow things down, with an atmosphere filled with haunting melodies and low-slung bass frequencies, while ‘Vertigo Reprisal’ closes the journey gracefully, carrying tribal drums and a two-tone bassline that waft through jagged-cut sounds. “Take me away,” takes the listener into a hypnotic trance, as a final release from the album’s tight grip.



Loxy & Resound - Burning Shadows EXIT LP/CD010 -  Preview mix

From The Known

Preview of the forthcoming album by Dan HarbarNam on Exit Records



Exit

Jirikch