Eptic makes dubstep that sounds engineered specifically to break cheap earbuds, and “OCTANE” is no exception. The Belgian has spent a decade perfecting this exact brand of cartoonishly heavy, gleefully obnoxious bass music, and he keeps finding new ways to make a drop feel violent. This one revs up like the title promises, all combustion-engine snarl and rising pressure before it detonates into a section that genuinely made me laugh out loud the first time. That’s the thing people miss about good dubstep, the best of it is funny, almost slapstick in how absurdly hard it goes. The sound design here is filthy in the best way, every wobble sculpted to within an inch of its life. I have no idea how he keeps the energy this high without it becoming exhausting, but he does. If you’ve got a subwoofer, this is the track you use to find out whether it’s bolted down properly. Pure adrenaline with zero filler. Eptic remains one of the few producers who can make heavy music feel joyful instead of just loud.
January
Chrome Daydream
Chrome stars, jelly hearts and holographic colour. A nod to the glossy, optimistic graphics of the early web.