News / drum and bass
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6 min read
The 25 Best Drum & Bass Tracks of All Time, Ranked
The 25 best drum & bass tracks of all time, ranked. From Goldie to Photek to a #1 pick that built the whole genre. Yes, your favorite is too low.Read more . . . →Subscribe →Weekly digestOne email per week with the tracks worth your time. No spam, no Coldplay. -
7 min read
Every Subgenre of Drum & Bass, Explained (With a Track for Each)
DnB isn't a genre, it's a federation. Jungle to halftime, neurofunk to liquid — 9 drum & bass subgenres explained with one track each.Read more . . . →Subscribe →Weekly digestSundays. One email. Zero ballads from white guys in beanies. -
1 min read
Freaks & Geeks x DUX - Cut Em Down
Read more . . . →Monstercat dropping a Freaks & Geeks and DUX collab is the kind of news that makes me check my phone twice. “Cut Em Down” is a brutal, no-nonsense slice of drum and bass that wastes absolutely no time getting to the point. The intro is barely there before the whole thing caves in on itself in the best way, a drop so heavy it feels almost rude. There’s a darkness to the bass design that gives it real teeth, the sound of a track made by people who like their DnB mean. What I appreciate is the economy of it,...
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1 min read
Viridity - Up To Fate
Read more . . . →Shogun Audio has been a quiet powerhouse in DnB for years, the label that puts out the stuff serious heads geek out over while the mainstream looks elsewhere. Viridity’s “Up To Fate” is squarely in that lineage: technical, deep, and built with obvious care rather than chasing a trend. This sits in the darker, more cerebral end of the genre, where the focus is on detailed drum programming and a low end that hums with quiet menace instead of screaming for attention. It’s headphone music in the best sense, full of small details that only reveal themselves on the third...
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1 min read
Dawn Wall - You Believe
Read more . . . →Dawn Wall keep flying slightly under the radar and I don’t fully understand why, because tracks like “You Believe” are exactly what people claim they want from modern drum and bass. It’s got that uplifting, slightly euphoric quality the genre does better than almost any other, built around a vocal hook that lodges itself in your skull within one listen. The drums are crisp and snappy, the bass is rolling and full, and the whole thing just moves with this effortless forward pull. What gets me is how clean the arrangement is, nothing wasted, every drop earning its place. There’s...
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1 min read
OKO & XLVR - Think About Your Love
Read more . . . →Another Monstercat drop, and this one swings the other direction from the heavy stuff: bright, melodic DnB built around a soulful vocal sample that loops just enough to get stuck in your skull for the rest of the day. OKO and XLVR clearly know each other’s instincts, because the track flows like one brain made it rather than two producers emailing stems back and forth. The breakbeat is fast without feeling frantic, which is harder to pull off than people think. What gets me is the restraint. They could have buried the vocal under a wall of synths and instead...
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1 min read
Sustance - Take Cover
Read more . . . →Two Sustance tracks on Shogun in the same drop. “Take Cover” is more aggressive than “Loving You” — same artist, different mode. The range is impressive. More like this Sustance - Loving You Sustance - Dub Special w/ Mad Sam Sustance - Digital Waveband
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1 min read
L.A.O.S x SOL:US - No Less Than Never
Read more . . . →Two artists with punctuation in their names teaming up on Liquicity sounds like a recipe for trying too hard, and then “No Less Than Never” turns out to be one of the most assured liquid tracks I’ve heard all month. L.A.O.S and SOL:US lock into a groove that’s slick without being slippery, the bassline rounded and deep enough to feel in your chest on a decent system. The title is a little nonsensical when you sit with it, but the music more than covers for the wordplay. What stands out is the production polish. Every element has room to breathe,...
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1 min read
Gracie Van Brunt - HOURGLASS
Read more . . . →Gracie Van Brunt on Monstercat with this DnB-flavored electronic thing that has no right being this good. The title track energy is real — feels like something ticking down toward a drop that keeps getting delayed just long enough to make you anxious. More like this OB1 - Jasmine Nights Primate - Booyah Sabre - The Hex
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1 min read
Gardna & Shapes - Snakes & Ladders
Read more . . . →Shogun Audio DnB with Gardna doing the MC thing and it actually works. “Snakes & Ladders” has that UK bass music grit that the label’s been putting out for years — sounds like it was made by people who actually go to raves, not just make music for them. More like this The Elite - Illumination (Used Remix) (Official Drum & Bass) Kanine, Sota & Mila Falls - Toucown Oliverse & Molly Morgan - Secret For You
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