CRIMEAN @ soundcloud.com

The ambient and atmospheric sounds of Crimean are truly unique. Eclectic cultural influences from time living in Japan and Australasia have obviously influenced his writing, as has his deep-seated knowledge of the history and development of DnB. Crimean has been busy since leaving NZ shores to reside on the other side of the ditch.

‘This Side of Tomorrow’ rattles with more familiar Drum and Bass beats- it has an old school feel for sure- reminiscent of old Big Bud tracks and Good Looking Records from the late 90’s- a drifting roller.

It would be fair to say these are not your everyday drum and bass tracks- in fact some don’t even fit that genre label at all- they are dark and experimental border crosses- cinematic sound-scapes that make me think of night time train journeys through neon lit urban environments. ‘Lonely souls (Crimean remix)’ pulls on those inner heartstrings and is surprisingly uplifting in its pared back and melodic makings. I like this track a lot.

Listen to Crimean @ soundcloud
http://soundcloud.com/crimean/music

DJ PRESHA PRESENTS - The Way Of The Samurai @ Bath St- 2/5/09

Renegade snares and lung vibrating bass riffs transformed the dance floor from an empty bath into a decadent sea of sound and energy.

Saturday 2nd saw the return of Geoff Presha to the Southern coastal city, giving Duds a taste of Samurai Music's LP/ CD project 'Way of the Samurai'.

Presha's opening track set the atmosphere for the rest of the night immediately and got booth dwellers on their feet- TREi's bit and instant hit- planting that old familiar yet strangely new feeling in your belly. ASC who I remember from the 'warm radio' sessions on bassdrive a few years back was unmistakable, and his new work combines his distinctive atmospheric sounds with contemporary syncopated beats (check out his back-stepping yet forward marching 'Porcelain' on myspace) solidifying his role as an important, diverse and progressive producer.

As the night moved on inertia ensued... Presha bouncing off the crowds ever increasing energy and enthusiasm for good quality Drum n Bass. Reminiscing only makes me feel old but I just couldn't help feeling nostalgic; dancing in the corner with old friends to a track once new and now remixed for the umpteenth time. The re-production and recontexturalization of tunes proves good tracks are timeless and in this club the world of newbies and old hats travelled on the same journey.

After hours of solid dance floor action- Zero T and Calibre 'What I feel' described my state - body tired/ mind alert- need bed/ but can't pull myself away- "Don't wanna stay / don't wanna go". And as time disappeared into the aether Presha continued and the tracks got deeper- tunes were dropped that exist on the boundaries of DnB- hybrid tracks. Instra:mental's sound continues to permeate my brain and hearing 'Sakura' on those big ass Bath St bass heavy speakers, took the track looping on my iPod- to the next level- and 'Watching You' an explanation of Presha's position with his crowd (he's just as aware of the crowd as they are him).

This is undoubtedly good music- good times- good crowd- good party and yes Duds there is DnB life beyond Pendulum! 2nd May - one of Bath St's more memorable ones- demonstrating the future sound of Dunedin drum and bass is in force.

To check out more of the Samurai sound go to:
Samurai Distribution
Samurai Music -on myspace

VOLITION @ SENSORYBANK.COM

Returning from a short stint in the UK, VOLITION returns to NZ shores with number of golden goodies, feeling more international than ever. This underdog producer has been making and collecting since way back when, and. finally he’s posted a few products online so his experience of atmospheric DnB and downbeat can be shared.

Although contemporary, warm, feel-good tracks with deep and heart felt bass lines create a common thread within VOLITION’s works, he sneaks in the occasional old-school sound and break, demonstrating his DnB history knowledge. Look out for SUFO- reminiscent of older Paradox tunes- this roller reveals the traditions of DnB dynamics as the sounds create atmosphere and depth of space by moving from speaker to speaker.

His more down beat mellow tracks demonstrate the same warmth with a melancholic edge, only added to by BKMC (JUST SO) on vocals or acoustic guitar (THE TITLE). It’s easy to get lost in the atmospheric space created theses deep haunting but somehow uplifting tracks.

http://www.sensorybank.com/volitionproductions.html

REMARC- @ Rising Sun - 4/12/08

‘Back to the new skool, forward to your roots’

Now is the time to return to jungle. But is it even a return?

I remember when I first heard dubstep and I immediately related it to mid 90’s drum and bass. Not so much in the overall sound, more in the feeling or atmosphere the music created. Hearing a set where dubstep merges into jungle breaks seemed to make sense. One could clearly experience the influence of jungle as a fundamental road to dubstep days.

To me the music at remarc recontextualized jungle….. although harking back to scatty amen breaks, jungilism days of old were nostalgically revisited but something had changed. No longer was I in a camo-netted Dunedin bassment on a Thursday night with subs that made my liver reverberate, listening to DJ Moe…. I was experiencing high production quality, tweeters that could make your ears bleed and digital sound boys dropping music that was just a twinkle in the eye of daddy dubsteppers back in da 90’s.

Remarc played a diverse but consistent set. The beats sounded fresh. Super sharp shooter had become double deck dropper… the R the E the M the A…. anyway you get the picture- Old but new.

As for MC’s…. (a pet hate of mine) Splash put on a good front. He wasn’t obnoxious, knew when to stop, and busted out some pretty sweet calls… he even shared the mic, asking Detail what was up….. “I like this one”…..

Is it worth making?

Recently in conversation, the topic of reintroducing old styles (such as jungle into dubstep) has appeared quite a lot. The question arises 'why produce something that's already be done before?'.

My answer to this question......
New generations of music listeners and producers shouldn't be deprived of what others' have had before, once re-introduced it is never the same, and any contemporary stylistic convention can be found in old tracks and therefore the sound is never really truly 'new'.

What about the 18 year old dubstepper who has no idea of from the journey it came? These 'new' listeners could go back and play old tracks, yes, but in this environment where there is just so much information, artists, music genres and styles bombarding the listener, it takes time and energy to find paths that take you back (unless they have been discovered for you). And how do you know what to look for if you have never been exposed to it? Once a 'style' has been introduced into the new releases, it becomes a lot more accessible.

And once realized it has the power to be re-contextualized, developed and changed to create new and progressive sounds and styles. Contemporary conversations often revolve around the idea that in this day and age of mechanical reproduction, there is no original, once reproduced the original 'aura' (as Walter Benjamin called it) or feeling of the original is gone. But I tend to think every new track (even if the difference to another track is small) has the potential to lead to something else, and to transform what went before it.

The Dubstep sound/ genre... is it new? I'd propose that it isn't new but the context of the music and the way it has been labelled and grouped has created a 'genre' or feeling. Go back and listen to some of those mid-90s tracks .......... from before the birth of the category 'dubstep', tell me what you find?........... Dubstep?

DJ Presha - Samurai Music Show @ BassDrive - 16/09/08

I’m a geek, I’m not expert, but I know what I like and why. I like the music scape Presha unravels because it takes me on a journey and into an alternative space. New Zealand’s borders are pushed to new limits as the music takes one into a virtual space.

The more experimental sections of Presha’s mixes shine. Moody, melancholic and motivating tracks are the stars in the darkness. Decorum from Sabre, Instra:mental’s, Photograph (both coming on Darkestral) and New Zealand’s own Luca and Consequence (Kite Runner) , take you away from the dance floor and into a more contemplative state of mind.

Uplifting and inner reaching, Klute’s new tracks solidify his reputation as a skilled, sustaining and solid producer.

Presha doesn’t resist mixing genres and styles, even playing, an Instra:mental track Dead Zone (Darkestral) with an old school vibe…. I hear remnants of John B’s 1999 punchy snare in Starburst…. But I wouldn’t admit that out loud.

For the more upbeat listeners, Presha adds in a few tracks that you may hear on a dark and dingy dance floor.

All in all, I have to say that Presha’s show is reflective of an underground New Zealand culture, slightly dark, pretty melancholic, but always hopeful and ever-changing!

DJ Presha hosts the Samurai Music Show on www.bassdrive.com

Music

"Music is time and not space; music has no place, so it doesn't have to keep its place, it fills the air and doesn't take up space. It's mode of existence is to be in the middle of things; you can do other things while you're in the middle of it. You're not in front of it, and you don't go around it, or through it; the music goes through you, it stays inside you. It's a song you can't get out of your head."

Vito Acconci