the genre known as dubstep - search and destroy

It's not really unique. It's a little cleaner sounding than record from the original era which if you aren't much familiar with there are many threads on ILM which detail the greatness of 92-93 (either Definition of Hardcore or The Joint would make a great intro if you just want a couple of albums to start off on.)

For stuff of a more recent (maybe) pedigree, get the three recent 12"s on Hate Records (Darkside/Injustice, Pretty Boys Don't Survive Up North and Human Resources/Cunning Love). All are awesome.

I just got Blimey on vinyl, and wow. Before I was just drawn to its brilliant arrangements of rhythm and percussion, but when you really flesh out the atmospherics that underlie it, then wow, it actually becomes just beautiful. Stunning.

Honestly, having listened to about 5 well-received albums and maybe 4 mixes, I hate the genre. In 1994, drum & bass sounded absolutely like the music of the future, and its popular strains promptly became rythmically inert, or (in the case of dubstep) drugged and inert. If its musical lineage wasn't so straining at the seams with promise I'd be more forgiving. As for Burial's critical reception, I (as a non-paid avid music listener) think this was tokenism in extremis. What sane listener would chose Burial over 90s D&B, 80s dub, or 70s roots is a mystery to me.

Maybe I've just gotten old. But dubstep ANGERS me.

so i looked at all the sites people recommended for buying mp3s (thanks!) and it looks like basically nothing is available, or at least nothing outside of a few token labels here and there, hyperdub and skull disco and tempa and maybe like 'hollybrook park'

i don't understand where this stuff gets its international appeal, really--the only way i can get anything good (the newest silkie or quest for example) is through torrents unless i import vinyl; but i live in canada, am not a dj, and am not man enough for the euro

i keep pimping this but the garage pressure podcasts are useful listening, 2 hours every friday and about 2 month's worth of archives. (and that's sydney based)

Re: the Zomby album -- before I heard it, I was prepared to be totally non-plussed by the concept. There have been plenty of homages to rave of yore, after all (including Neil Landstrumm's excellent "Restaurant of Assassins" last year. But the more I listened to the Zomby album the more I realized how *strange* it is -- sure, he's playing with classic tropes, but there's a weirdness to his sound, atmospheres and sense of proportion that makes it stand on its own.

Zomby's singles are better, IMO: I'm head over heels for "The Lie" (Ramp), a very dubby, two-steppy number with an incredible vocal hook. It's wonderfully light on its feet, the diametrical opposite of the more turgid, half-step wobble stuff that draws all of its inspiration from D&B's most macho strains.

Derelict, I'm not going to try to convince you, because you sound pretty set in your prejudices against the genre. But I think that there's a wealth of creativity right now on the margins of the genre (where, frankly, Burial sits). To my ears, there's nothing "inert" in the rhythms of Kode 9, Zomby, Rustie, Martyn, Peverelist, Joker, etc. They're playing with swing and syncopation in really entertaining ways, and they're also experimenting and having fun with timbres that I haven't heard much in dance music: where so much contemporary house, techno and dubstep tend to be really muted, these tracks are often slathered with bizarre, garish synth pads drawn from early Prince and G-funk that bring a really playful spirit to the music.

"so i looked at all the sites people recommended for buying mp3s (thanks!) and it looks like basically nothing is available, or at least nothing outside of a few token labels here and there, hyperdub and skull disco and tempa and maybe like 'hollybrook park'"

What exactly are you looking for?

haha, exactly, add in tectonic to that list and you'd have four of the best dubstep labels.

Plus I think all of Hessle Audio is on Boomkat. Deep Medi doesn't seem to be on either Boomkat or Juno, but a few of the early 12"s appear to be on Bleep.

Hah I'm really curious now. What is dude trying to find??!!?

i think i've mostly just been looking for unreleased tracks actually, when i see mixed tracks not listed as 'forthcoming' i assume the record's out (also: 'that track was charting like two months ago, i should be able to buy it now right?')

anyways, is there a place to buy unremixed versions of zomby's 'memories' or 'spliff dub'? or geiom's reminissin' remixes, sully shanks' 'give me up', or any recent deep medi stuff?

Almost all of that stuff is findable on slsk as 320s (except for the most recent Deep Medi Silkie) so I have to assume it's buyable somewhere.

New Deep Medi Silkie is worth buying on vinyl really.

that plastician rinse mix cd isnt bad but its mixed just a bit TOO seamlessly.

"New Deep Medi Silkie is worth buying on vinyl really."

Yeah the snippets have sounded great. That said I have no ability to make mp3s from vinyl and I do 90% of my listening on iPod.

Actually I am wrong about the original "Memories". I'm not sure that was ever even released.

actually, it looks like you may be able to buy it and a few others from him through his myspace (he pegs them here, it looks like the forum also banned him in that thread heh), although there isn't mention of it on the page now

It sounds like you can just email him.

Although uh reading that haha maybe not.

I dont see a lot of action on this thread. Shame, given the sounds bubbling around the edges of dubstep (and grime and funky) right now.

check some of these on our latest Rinse show here:

http://www.sendspace.com/file/tkf9wl

Tracklist here:

http://blackdownsoundboy.blogspot.com/2009/01/haarlem-rinse-and-fabric.html

been listening to a lot of old dubstep shows from 2004/05 lately... i tend to prefer any of those or the grievous angel mixes to things like dubstep all stars, for the most part.

My favourite things of the last few months are:

Jack Sparrow's "For Me" (not into the flip so much though)
Jus Wan's "Action Potential/"Afflectic" 12inch
Scuba's "The Upside (Martyn Remix)"

Very excited for the upcoming Martyn album.. it's released in March, I believe.

how do you keep up to date with dubstep these days? the stuff im interested in isnt the mainstream stuff but i dont know who/what to check anymore for that.

who from the non-mainstream do you like?

mainstream might be the wrong word. but i like the wonkier stuff and the people on hyperdub, and some of the dubstep-not-dubstep artists like ramadanman. i liked some of the beats you played for trim on your show a few months back. thought they were interesting - still bass heavy but not too wobble-ful.

yeah well for stuff like that i'd check our show, Starkey on Sub FM, any mixes Joker does.

The kind of stuff Ramadanman plays is about a lot: see also Appleblim, Pinch, Peverlist in this vein - but i'm sure you know all this.

pretty good quest & silkie set from november in 320, where to find other good quality sets?? so many sets in like 96kbps mono

when is the starkey ft durrty goodz coming, martin? i've worn this mary anne hobbs set of yours down to the kick

the round black ghosts 2 tracklisting is looking predictably boring..

hey lucas
having some minor pressing issues, so as basically as soon as i can get it out the door!
bigup

I've been trying to get into dubstep for a year or so but so far I'm still undecided about this genre although somehow I'm sure this genre has a potential to grab me. I do love some tracks, but only the catchy ones (at least to my ears). The ones that have distinct hooks. For example:

-Burial - Untrue LP
-Martyn - All I Have Is Memories, Natural Selection, Velvet, Twenty Four, Broken
-Shackleton - Death is not Final, Next to Nothing
-Ramadanman - Blimey
-Pangaea - Router

As you can see, the tracks I mentioned have some kind of warmth, which is the opposite of what I don't like about dubstep: coldness. Where do you think I should go from here?

Any love for the Zomby album, "Where were u in 92?"? Some mention of him upthread, but this record is dubstep gone rave, keeping the nasty sub-base and adding a lot of sped-up samples, heavy breakbeats and klaxons. It's really fun, despite being something of a retread. It kind of reminds me of Burial without the coffee table (sorry Burial fans)!

Durrr Durrr, it sounds like you basically like the upbeat, more 2-steppy end of the scene.

Check out Mala's tracks on DMZ, Silkie and Quest's 12 inches on Deep Medi Musik, anything on Hessle Audio, anything by Peverelist, some 2562 and Pinch (though these guys aren't always on 100% of the time).

I haven't been able to download the Silkie and Quest set above, but the December Anti Social mix on Rinse FM has some great new stuff from Silkie like "Concrete Jungle" (check this one!) and "Planet X". I think my favourite on this set though is Heny G's "Delayed Style" (I think this is the title): lush, percussive, and a great eerie build. Very Certificate 18.

The Kromestar remix of Erykah Badu's "On & On" is also gorgeous, though I don't go for Kromestar usually.

that Zomby album is the shit.

thanks, tim. i will check those out.

what's the best 2-steppy dubstep mixes?

have a look for grievous angels abstract 2step mixes

hey dan

there's a lot of older dubstep stuff that's 2steppy. check barefiles for that.

there's some 2step (sully, grievous, trg, D1, pangea, us...) on this podcast too: http://www.xlr8r.com/podcast/2008/08/dusk-blackdown

sully's very under rated imho, "trackside," "jackmans recs" and "the loot remix" are amazing, staples of our sets right now.

Durr--

There's a recent Kode 9 vs. LD (?) 12'' that you might enjoy. It's called "2 Bad".

We seem to have similar taste with regards to dubstep, and Tim made some great suggestions there.

I've also really liked some of the 2008 stuff from D1 (I'm Loving, Joy..)

woohooo, thanks everyone. martin, which set at barefiles would you recommend? there's too many stuff i don't know what to download.

Grievous' Devotional Dubz mix is here, it's amazing: http://www.sendspace.com/file/kep4k0

Kode's Groovetech ones on Barefiles are a good start...

that new kode 9 12 thats coming out - not dubstep exactly i know - is fucking sick.

thanks martin but i can't find any groovetech on barefiles. and devotional dubz is on sendspace which sucks so bad.

I think I'm in love with Martyn

@ dan http://barefiles.com/files.php?q=Kode9 "GT Radio"

Listened to the Dusk + Beatdown mix yesterday and I must say it contains too many grime for my taste. Like the dubstep part though.

this ruffage sessions second birthday mix is probably too garage heavy to be relevant on this thread but it's a lot of fun.

brackles b2b bok bok b2b oneman b2b elgato b2b ben ufo with asbo on mic

recommend me dubstep that's more step than dub, if you know what i mean.

seriously, the devotional dubz mix is you...

Durrr Durrr, download the QUest & Silkie mix that lucas posted above, it's amazing.

I knew about half the tracks already but it's such a relentless set. Simply reaffirms my belief that (the good side of) dubstep is stronger now than it ever was during the so-called golden age.

... a view which you're mostly alone in holding, probably because you dont have to listen to the vast majority of dubstep, either by volume of new "dubs" or in DJ sets in clubs.