This is the first dubtec/dubstep mix that i’ve made available, so im nervous!

I always enjoy Sid Lowes Spanish Football articles, this doesn’t disappoint.

Overall the mixing is solid but unspectacular, but in a welcome relief from the dnb format of playing 18 tunes a minute in a triple-drop, teaser filled spectacular. There also seems to be a bit of attention paid to the overall structure of the mix unlike some mix CDs which have as much direction as a clearance from a sunday league centre-back. Also, and most importantly, the tunes are given plenty of air, and after all, its the selection that makes this… er.. selection!

Its also the selection that led me to buy the first CD i’ve bought in ages (I buy vinyl and MP3s – I am not pirating – don’t send the feds over). I didn’t get dubstep originally, and I thought Techno was for crusties and germans, but I did like Dub, and then I liked Rhythm & Sound, and then Basic Channel, and then all the Dubstep and Techno that was inspired by Rhythm & Sound/Basic Channel (co-incidentally, I am now looking crusty, and live in South Africa, where they sound a bit German). So this CD had to be bought, being that Appleblim is a bit of a champion of the Dubtec sound.

Anyway, highlights for me are the Martyn and 2562 contributions Suburbia and a remix of Broken Heart from Martyn, and Moog Dub and Morvern from the numerical 2652. I am also really feeling Komanazmuk – Bad Apple. I hadn’t heard any Komanazmuk before this CD, but I will definitely keep an ear open for future releases if this is anything to go by. Finally, for all the old Jungle-heads, you have to check “Pretty Bright Light” by RSD. Its basically jungle slowed down to 140ish, but retaining all the right elements.

I give this album 68 sub-woofers out of 73 and would recommend to everyone, especially crusty german wannabes.

Technorati Tags: dubtec, dubstep

John Nicholson is on his usual top form in his latest article on football365. He raises a couple of great points. Firstly, touching on John Terry’s constant blubbing after missing his potentially Champions League winning penalty, and what a contradiction that is for the “man’s man” the media portray him as. Nicholson notes that as a nation, we (the English), are supposed to display:

“…the stiff upper lip; emotion is expressed only in private and if shared then only with loved ones. Publicly expressed emotion is for the weak and the self indulgent. It is certainly not the sort of thing leaders of men indulge in.”

More importantly the fact that if you cry like that for a missed penalty, what the hell are you going to do if something really upsetting happens (which is ironic when you consider Terry was on the pitch with someone who’s mum died not long ago).

I have always had a problem with over-the-top displays of emotion. I didn’t ever subscribe to the mass outpouring of grief when Princess Diana died for the same reason Nicholson cites in regard to Terry. Its disrespectful to the people that really mean something to you in your life. That’s your real life, not the one that Heat magazine created for you.

This leads nicely on to his next point that footballers are so far removed from reality that they are emotionally stunted, and probably genuinely believe that the world is going to end every time their egos take a denting. Their constant tantrums and histrionics are a constant cancer on the game. Its funny to laugh at Rooney’s head exploding when things don’t go his way, but not so funny when the following Saturday, an eleven year old throws his hands in the air and screams and curses at the ref.

Its weird how things happen. I wrote a post on Skull Disco a week ago, and in the review of Circling/Over Here, I mentioned how much I love the Basic Channel/Rhythm and Sound influence. Yesterday I got some new vinyl in the post, including some 2562 tracks, which lean even more to the dub techno side, and i’m thinking that its not really techno, not really dubstep (not in the big wobbly bass sense of it anyway), then today there’s a post on the ill-ec-tro-nic suggesting a label for this sound, namely “Dubtec”. I’m not normally one for labels and sub-genres and so on, but I reckon this sound is far enough removed from its parents, to deserve its own name, and Dubtec is good enough for me.

If you’re not sure, then check the post, especially as they’ve got 3 tracks for free download by 3 masters of the sound, Peverelist, 2562, and the mighty Appleblim. I’ll write more about 2562, but needless to say, the releases I picked up blew me away, particularly  ‘Techno Dread’ (apt title!), and watch out for his album dropping in June!

What a final!! Drogba sent off, Ronaldo misses a penalty and cries about it, and Terry attempts to be the hero and literally falls on his arse.

Also, it has to be said that Vidic is a hero. Any other footballer would have gone down like a sack of spuds after Drogba’s limp-wristed slap, but not Vidic. Not only does he stay on his feet, he tries to rip Drogba’s head off, and god bless the ref for red-carding Drogba. I hope Nani was paying attention after his performance against West Ham.

Chelsea were the better team after United initially dominated (and should have been 3-0 up). How good was Rooney’s 70 yard pass to Ronaldo for what should have been goal number 2. How much does Joe Cole owe Mourinho for making him into the fantastic tackler he is now (in addition to all that natural ability), and is there anything Drogba or Ronaldo could do to not make me take pleasure in their failure (small-minded, me?).

Anyway, its all pretty irrelevant. The major trophy of the season was decided ages ago when Johnny “god” Woodgate swooped to win the Carling Cup (which is one more cup than Chelsea won this season!)

Heard this on an Appleblim set on Sub FM ages ago. No idea who it is, but I want it! More of a dub-house feel than dubstep, with a lovely dub-conscious vocal. Desperate to get this.

Label of choice for me at the moment has to be Appleblim and Shackleton’s Skull Disco imprint. Like a lot of the Dubstep labels I am gravitating towards, there is a heavy Basic Channel/Rhythm and Sound influence, but for me, Skull Disco gets the balance better than many. There’s still that grit in there, and proper dancefloor beats along with those deep dubbed out flavours.

If you haven’t heard any of the label’s releases before and want a quick primer, then download the free mp3 mix from their site (its a few months old, but well worth checking)

Here’s the releases that I currently own:

[SKULL05] Soundboy’s Bones Get Buried In The Dirt Vol 2
A. Appleblim – Fear AA. Shackleton – Hamas Rule

For me the AA side takes it by a long way. While its not fair to rate Appleblim on a tune made almost 2 years ago, the fact that Shackleton had already developed such a strong style by then, and continues to find ways to keep his style sounding fresh deserves the highest praise. Deep, deep bass, well mastered percussion and eastern chants. Remember all those bells, shakers and congas that you didn’t use in your production, well Shackleton did!

[SKULL06] Soundboy’s Ashes Get Chopped Out And Snorted
A. Appleblim – Vasan AA.Shackleton – You Bring Me Down

The whispering voices on the B-side will have you looking over your shoulder if you listen to it late at night (please tell me you hear them too!), and the sub will make your ribs shake (even through headphones), but this is still very much B-side, filler material. Good B-side filler material, but B-side filler material none the less (a bit like that last sentence which was word-count boosting, music review filler material).

[SKULL07] Shackleton – Blood On My Hands
Ricardo Villalobos Apocalypso Now Mix

[SKULL08] Appleblim & Peverelist – Soundboy’s Ashes Get Hacked Up And Spat Out In Disgust EP
A. Circling AA. Over Here

The B-side (Over Here), simply oozes out of the speakers. For a boring old fart like me, this is the end point as far as head music goes. This is one of those tunes that, when dropped in the right set by the right DJ, causes an entire club to put its head down and dance. No “big fish, little fish, cardboard box” no moshing, just heads down and go. As the old cliche goes, this one will take you on a journey, and we’re not talking 3 stops on the northern line, you’ll need several changes of underwear for this one!

[SKULL09] A. Shackleton – Death Is Not Final AA. T++ Remix

On the flip is the T++ remix, not feeling this at the moment, the beat is very off-key, but maybe it will make more sense to me further down the line?