The Groove Thief

DJ Enso may be famed for running the revered club XXX and for throwing down banging late-night bass-music sets, but he can also assemble one mean mixtape as he proves with Future Dancehall フューチャーダンスホール Vol. 1. Drifting between jungle, hip-hop, and dancehall, the success of the ongoing “Future Dancehall” nights is elevated to a higher level through studio production and the inclusion of some of Hong Kong’s choicest MCs. XXX-regular Rahyym joins Ngabo on Major Popular’s “The Ruler,” 10z and Kafe Hu appear on a Dub Phizix & Skeptical track, while local Cantonese legend Masta Mic, EKORB, as well as my regular partner in crime MC Loki Dolo combine forces on an exclusive Enso refix of DJ Zinc x Dope Skillz. Big tracks from Rebel MC, Million Stylez, Collie Buddz (DJ Yoda remix) and The Bug keep the beats heavy while the styles switch. Hopefully this will become an ongoing series since Hong Kong is certainly in need of more mixtapes and proper releases…

The mix is available on Soundcloud, or you can DIRECT DOWNLOAD and get the jungle-thug (?) artwork as well. Enso recently appeared at the Clockenflap music festival, so check out his bass-fueled live mix as well:

Thousand Yard Prayer combine breakbeats with world music on World Without End, sharing not only influences but also band members and label with Secret Archives of the Vatican.  Thousand Yard Prayer is more focused on creating a hypnotic groove, with opener “Sassanid” combining drum and Eastern instrument loops to lock the listener in.  ”Pilgrims” features a frantic drum-n-bass style beat, while “Healer” is a bit more lush despite a fast-paced melody, and “Mughal” aims to impersonate Mid-Eastern heavy machinery before caving under the pressure of the main theme.  These are interesting tracks, with a definite core style, with an emphasis on both percussive and melodic elements.  Free stream and download:

Secret Archives of the Vatican produce mystical breakbeat electronic music.  With Middle Eastern melodies and nuanced high-tempo drums, this is engaging and unique.  Maybe if Beats Antique were sped up, that would be close, but this has more focus: a honed instrumental force designed to crush unsuspecting dancefloors.  Dubstep is no foe, and other funk, reggae, and drumstep influences creep in on tracks as well.  Here are their latest two albums, available courtesy of Broken Drum Records, for download or stream.  Barbary Lion is a bit more rugged and dubby, the gritty desert journey before Panjandrum’s heavy oasis party.  Cool tunes, awesome band name, this is ‘Transglobal Breakbeat Dub Science’ indeed:

Turntable Dubbers have mixed and mashed some bass brilliance, melding together a truly eclectic smorgasbord of styles and influences to produce a high-pace reggae-tinged dancefest.  There are mashup DJs, and then there are professional audiophiles, like DJ Z-Trip and 2 Many DJs, that can effortlessly connect songs together regardless of genre.  This is an impressive mix comparable to the work of such vinyl exploiters, one that drops an insta-party and somehow doesn’t run out of energy by the end.  Listing genres will spoil the fun, so check out the responsibly-titled Mashed-up party -Festival mix 2012:

Yami Bolo sings passionate Rastafarian reggae, and absolutely destroys the Bellyfull Riddim with his track “Babylon System.”  The long-time Jamaican artist, who has worked with heavyweights like the late Augustus Pablo and Damian Marley, has a distinct and captivating voice.  The track also gets a drum n bass rinse from epeak, with wobbling bass throughout and the genre’s trademark accelerated “Amen” sample beneath the chorus.  As a bonus is a slower gem from Yami Bolo with production work from the aforementioned Augustus Pablo:

Blend Mishkin’s Mama Proud Remixed proves what talented producers are able to do: take a riddim and utterly reinvent it.  The original riddim is solid and balances the dancehall and dubstep aesthetics well, but these remixes stretch the boundaries and blur the genre lines, letting influences like drum n bass (Turntable Dubbers), glitchy electro (Jstar), rubadub (via Max Rubadub obviously), and digi-dancehall (Motagen Sound and Balkan’s Hi-Fi).  

Backbeat Sound System feature remixed grooves aplenty on their latest EP, One Step Forward.  The first two tracks are laid-back originals, and sound great, but the gems here are the drum n bass and funky techno beats that make up the latter half of the album.  The harder beats and smooth drops fit the vocal stylings well, creating a nice sense of urgency.  This is music that want to be danced to, while still having a light sound from the nice horns with a slight ska influence.

Sacred Sound doesn’t remix like most artists.  Typically a remix slightly alters the original, maybe adds a few new elements like a heavier beat, or spaces things out a bit, or plays with the vocal track, or adds some additional vocals and a keyboard sample.  Sacred Sound crushes tracks into something new entirely.  This is drum and bass music made when machines have conquered the planet.  Take his latest two remixes for example: the first totally annihilates and re-envisions the classic “Out of Space,” first as slow and haunting and then as an accelerated assault employing the famed “Amen” break.  Then with African Simba’s “Alternative Power” the Jahtari dub track ends up deeper and heavier, like it was recorded in a pulsing jungle studio.  No pun intended on “jungle” there, really.

There’s more of this madness on Soundcloud, pushing musical boundaries is something few mainstream DJs even bother to do anymore it seems… and no, most dubstep is not pushing any boundaries other than my patience.