Pearsall presents There & Back 010: October, More Bass Explorations 1996-2023
right-click, save as to download
Recorded in Berlin, December 2024
100% Vinyl
(88:36, 203 MB, 320 KBPS MP3)
Direct link to the mix:
https://sonicrampage.org/mixes/thereandback/Pearsall-ThereAndBack010_October_MoreBassExplorations1996-2023.mp3
Tracklisting:
- Double Clapperz & EGL – Sha Ni Kamaeru ft Ralph [Ice Wave Records]
- Last Japan – Storm Trooper [Signal Life]
- Basic Rhythm – Your Love [Type]
- NA – Brass Claim [Fade to Mind]
- Leon P – Baile Grime [Sector 7 Sounds]
- Wen – Switch [Soundman Chronicles]
- Beneath – Illusion [Keysound]
- Quartz – Alchemy Burn [System Music]
- Photek & Pinch – Acid Reign (Pinch’s Dubplate Version) [Photek Productions]
- Bengal Sound – Never Mind [Bandulu]
- TMSV – Altered [Perfect]
- Om Unit – Snagged [Om Unit]
- Om Unit x Martyn – Tracksuit Dub [3024]
- Martyn – Rhythm Ritual [Ostgut Ton]
- Dave Clarke – The Woki [deConstruction]
- Joy Orbison – Off Season [Hinge Finger]
- Genaside II – Narra Mine (Armand van Helden’s West Coast Mix) [ffRR]
- Jammin’ – Tug o’ War [Bingo Beats]
- Trends & Boylan – Carnage [Sneaker Social Club]
- Boylan & Slimzee – Reinforced [Slimzos]
- Killjoy – Let’s Go (4×4 Mix) [Sector 7 Sounds]
- R1 Ryders – Cyber [R1 Ryders]
- Boddika – Syn Chron [Naked Lunch]
- Instra:Mental – Delta Zone (Advance) [NonPlus]
- Keith Tucker – Other Worlds [Mechatronica]
- Luz1e – Exploration of the Mind [Lobster Theremin]
- Randomer – Smokin [Long Island Electrical Systems]
- Icicle – Anything [Tempa]
- Goth-Trad – Departure [Deep Medi Musik]
- Cosmin TRG – Since Last Night [Tempa]
I liked the fifth There & Back mix so much that I decided to come back for more bass explorations, this time even bigger and better!
As with that previous edition, this one is all about joining the dots between different bass music styles over time, via a heady mixture of grime, dubstep, electro, breakbeat, UK bass, and even bits of bassline and Jersey club.
Phew!
Also, despite the title, this actually goes through 2024 – I got the Om Unit track’s release date wrong, and I’d already done the cover art and didn’t want to start over. Whatever.
As with the previous mix, I think it would be fun to give you a tour of the individual tracks featured on the mix. So let’s do that!
Double Clapperz & EGL – Sha Ni Kamaeru ft Ralph
Double Clapperz are (were?) a Japanese grime dj / production duo who made a few cool releases on their own Ice Wave Records, including this one. Pretty rare stuff to get in the West – I think I ordered them directly from Japan and had to eat the postage costs. But it was worth it! If you’ve never heard grime mc-ing in Japanese, well, this is for you. Great track – murky atmospherics, grimy beats, and a great flow that is totally incomprehensible to me. Good times!
Last Japan – Storm Trooper
Last Japan is a London-based producer / dj who (I think?) is no longer active on the scene – at least according to Discogs his last release was in 2017, which is now 8 years ago (gulp!). A very good and sadly under-rated producer, this is one of his earlier releases, on the Finnish label Signal Life.
I have an anecdote about meeting him one time – my friend Hon was opening his physical record store Vinyl Pimp in Hackney Wick in I think early 2013 and he asked me to play a dubstep set on the opening night, but first there was an ad being shot against the ‘vinyl wall’, which turned out to be Last Japan dj-ing with a Nathan Barley type cameraman twirling around to make dramatic action shots. It was for headphones, I think? Anyways, I can’t remember what the ad was for, but he was an excellent dj and seemed like a pretty nice guy (his girlfriend was really attractive as well lol).
Basic Rhythm – Your Love
I don’t know that much about London-based producer Basic Rhythm, but this track is a very rhythmically off-kilter track from his 2016 album ‘Raw Trax’, which features lots of samples of classic jungle and hardcore tracks integrated into a more modern bass music framework. Chonky!
NA – Brass Claim
Fun fact – I bought this in an Osaka record store in April 2016, right after it was released on the Night Slugs sub-label Fade to Mind. Honestly this is one of the highlights of the mix for me, an insane Jersey Club / grime crossover track with a total ear-worm of a horn riff. Total banger! I know nothing about the producer, apparently his real name is Daniel Pineda, according to Discogs? No clue, but still a cool track.
Leon P – Baile Grime
This is globalization in action – Leon P is a member of Florentine dubstep / dub group Numa Crew, and in this track for Bristol label Sector 7 Sounds he mashes together British grime and Brazilian baile funk to produce a unique combination of dark bass tones and stuttering Brazilian percussion. Simple but effective.
Wen – Switch
Wen is Owen Darby from London who has carved out a nice niche for himself making darkly atmospheric tracks that explore the boundaries between dubstep and UK garage, initially on the essential Keysound Recordings, before going in a more UKG direction in recent years. This particular track came out in 2015 on the label Soundman Chronicles. Hard to believe it’s 10 years old now!
Beneath – Illusion
An absolute personal favorite, this EP. This appeared on Keysound Recordings in 2012 and really re-set expectations of what UK Funky could be – percussive, spacious, dark. Just an incredible release – I also featured ‘Prangin” from the same EP on There & Back 008.
Here’s a review of this EP from Discogs:
I keep returning to this EP: minimalist, deep, dark, smoky sub-rattling tunes heavily indebted to the earliest dub-step releases. Most tracks include a deft use of obscure samples and chilling little melodies weaving in and out of lithe UK funky drum patterns, with all three elements perfectly balancing out the thick bassline murk.
Beneath’s work has got somewhat more complex and his sound has definitely broadened since this release, you can hear real progression in his skills as a producer but the tunes on this first EP seem given over to a purity of vision deftly executed making for timeless UK club music, no frills inner-city bangers.
I think all Beneath’s records are great, but the spliff induced paranoia, minimalist arrangement, rolling sub-bass and all out tribal mayhem contained on these two pieces of vinyl make this EP one of my personal favourites.
Future classic gets bandied about a lot, but I think the tunes from this EP will be ones that keep cropping up in sets again and again over the coming years… Prangin’, Blonde, Wonz, Illusion, Tribulation all massive late night tunage suitable for deployment in a myriad of sets and situations.
Quartz – Alchemy Burn
Quartz is a Cardiff-based producer who has mostly released half-time drum n’ bass on labels like Rupture LDN, Metalheadz and Samurai Music, but for this one he dropped the bpms to release a sensational track on Vivek’s dubstep label System Music. Super percussive, dark, spaced-out, this is really quite a tune.
Photek & Pinch – Acid Reign (Pinch’s Dubplate Version)
Any fan of electronic music will be well-acquainted with both Photek and Pinch. Photek was one of the original junglists, a key producer from the early days of the sound who then took drum programming to virtuoso heights in the late 90’s through his Modus Operandi and Hidden Camera releases before decamping to LA to work on film soundtracks. Pinch is the Bristol dj/producer behind the key dubstep label Tectonic, and this collaboration is suitably heavyweight, bringing together tweaked out acid lines with thunderous dubstep beats and bass.
Bengal Sound – Never Mind
Bristol’s Bandulu Records, the home of producers Kahn and Neek, has been a consistently excellent label, cultivating a distinct sound and pairing it with unique artwork on each release. For this mix, I selected ‘Never Mind’ by Bengal Sound, a dark dubstep track that is perfect for this section of the mix, which is all about taking the pressure down temporarily before exploding later.
TMSV – Altered
Continuing this minimal dubstep section is this track from Dutchman TMSV, which appeared on his own Perfect Records. He’s one of my favorite dubstep producers – I just checked my phone and I’ve used his dubstep, jungle and drum n’ bass tracks in 10 different mixes over the years. This is a classic example of his sound – stripped down, spooky, and mighty on a good system.
Om Unit – Snagged
Om Unit x Martyn – Tracksuit Dub
Martyn – Rhythm Ritual
This next little section is about the combined work of Om Unit and Martyn, including a solo track from each of them as well as a collaboration. Two of the most important producers of the last 15 years or so, on these tracks they showcase their creative approach to combining percussion, bass and synthesizers.
‘Snagged’ was from an Om Unit self-released EP from last year and is a sort of dubstep-breakbeat hybrid with a haunting synth stab. Razor sharp.
‘Tracksuit Dub’ was released on their 2021 collaboration EP on Martyn’s 3024 Records, all shuffling rhythms, pulsing bass, and woozy synths. They also released a follow-up in 2023, but sadly it was digital only.
‘Rhythm Ritual’ came out on Ostgut Ton, the home label of infamous Berlin techno club Berghain, and is sort of deconstructed techno / dubstep / indescribable dance music. It’s sort of hard to pin down exactly what it is, but it’s super rhythmic, super danceable, and super fun. Well worth tracking down.
Dave Clarke – The Woki
Dave Clarke has been one of the biggest names in techno since the early 90’s, and his 1996 album ‘Archive One’ is a well-known landmark, containing all three of his famous ‘Red’ singles, such as ‘Wisdom to the Wise’, ‘Storm’ and ‘Thunder’, but it also contained a variety of other tracks, including this weird breakbeat-techno hybrid. This is a pretty under-the-radar track – I’m not sure I’ve heard it on any other mixes. It sounds sort of like he was trying to make a Prodigy track in his own style – the breaks are quite simple, there are techno tones, and the bass is restrained but pulsing.
Joy Orbison – Off Season
Joy Orbison is yet another London producer (a theme, eh?). The nephew of jungle legend Ray Keith, he emerged around 2010 as one of the key producers in the nascent UK bass music scene that mashed together influences from dubstep, grime, house, electro, breaks, jungle, garage, and US-style club music to produce a very singular and distinctive sound. This track is a hard-hitting breakbeat track that appeared in 2017 on his own Hinge Finger label. In more recent years he’s been releasing on famous label XL Recordings, including explorations with the UK drill sound, working with rappers like Kwengface on tracks like ‘Freedom 2’ while also exploring weirder downtempo sounds on his own label.
Genaside II – Narra Mine (Armand van Helden’s West Coast Mix)
I’m a huge huge fan of NYC house legend Armand van Helden’s 90’s work, so much so that I made a full tribute mix of his stuff a few years back. ‘Narra Mine’ was a huge hardcore hit in the early 90’s, and in 1997 ffRR decided to re-release it with a set of remixes, including two from Mr van Helden, one house and one breakbeat. I featured the East Coast house version on the tribute mix I made, and thought it would be fun to include the West Coast breakbeat mix on this one. It’s a simple but effective mix of chunky breaks, a heavy-duty Reece bass, and haunting vocals. Another under-played track that is well worth tracking down.
Jammin’ – Tug o’ War
Jammin’ was the breakbeat alias of jungle legend DJ Zinc, used for a series of breakbeat garage releases in the early 2000’s on his own Bingo Beats label, as well as some other labels. Full disclosure: There & Back 011 is a tribute mix to his work in this style, so consider this a little taster!
Trends & Boylan – Carnage
Boylan & Slimzee – Reinforced
Paul Boylan is a London-based grime producer and engineer, and for the next section I’ve included two of his collaborations, one with Trends from Mean Streets records, and the other with grime scene legend Slimzee, Roll Deep dj and one of the co-founders of Rinse FM. Both tracks are what I would call breakbeat grime, basically grime with heavy breakbeat / jungle influences, a modern recasting of classic UK rave sounds. Heavy stuff!
Killjoy – Let’s Go (4×4 Mix)
A ridiculously tough 4/4 grime track on Boofy’s Sector 7 Sounds, this is a certified dancefloor slayer. It’s basically a distorted single-note bass pulse over a shuffling 4/4 garage rhythm, with a disembodied robotic voice entoning “let’s … let’s … let’s go” over and over. It’s not intelligent, but it’s fuckin ‘avin it!
R1 Ryders – Cyber
I honestly know nothing about R1 Ryders, I don’t even remember where I got this, but this is a pretty cool bassline / house / dubstep hybrid track, and I thought it made perfect sense as a bridge between grime and electro. According to their bio on Resident Advisor, ‘the Funkitek outfit’s DJ/Producer Karnak and MC Skeelo have been igniting dancefloors, connecting the dots between Grime, Dubstep, Funky and DnB.’ There you go!
Boddika – Syn Chron
Instra:Mental – Delta Zone (Advance)
Al Green, aka Boddika, is another artist of whom I am a huge fan. I love his solo work as Boddika as well as his work with Kid Drama as Instra:Mental, both their early half-time autonomic drum n’ bass sound as well as their later electro tracks. In fact I love his stuff so much I made a tribute mix of his work ten years ago, and you should check it out. With these two tracks I switch over into a section of electro bangers, all stiff rhythms and spacey atmospheres.
Keith Tucker – Other Worlds
Luz1e – Exploration of the Mind
Randomer – Smokin
Three more electro tracks, including one from Detroit producer Keith Tucker on Berlin’s Mechatronica (check out my tribute mix and interview with label bass Mejle at that link), one from Frankfurt’s Luz1e on London’s Lobster Theremin, and a heavy duty monster from Berlin-based British producer Randomer on New York’s Long Island Electrical Systems. A heavy section!
Icicle – Anything
To wrap up the mix we switch back to dubstep, first with this track by Dutch producer Icicle on scene stalwart Tempa. I really like the actual mix I made here, where the half-time rhythms snap into place on top of the previous electro track – it’s exactly the kind of exciting cross-genre connection I wanted to make when I was planning out this mix.
Goth-Trad – Departure
Since the final track is quite euphoric, I wanted to build up to it by switching into something more minimal first, and this track by Japanese producer Goth-Trad on his 2012 album Epoch on Mala’s Deep Medi Musik was perfect for that purpose. Relentless space music, powerful on headphones, unbelievable on a big sound system. Night driving soundtrack par excellence.
Cosmin TRG – Since Last Night
An all-time personal favorite, this is a sadly overlooked track, in my opinion. Romanian producer Cosmin TRG, aka Cosmin Nicolae, produced this for Tempa and it’s an incredible fusion of highly danceable beats and euphoric chords.
Honestly, why isn’t this better known? It’s amazing.
I love it love it love it, and hopefully featuring this as the conclusion to the mix will introduce it to more people.
Domnule Nicolae, v? mul?umesc pentru muzic?.