“Dubstep is a sound that will literally stop you in your tracks, itfs so powerful and elemental.” Mary Anne Hobbs

“The latest development in British dance music… ready to conquer the world” Gervase De Wilde, The Daily Telegraph

Dubstep’s roots are a mixture between the UK Garage scene and Jamaican sound system culture that has allowed this bass heavy genre to swallow everything in its path. Since its early origins of small dark London venues and home studios, Dubstep is now one of the world’s freshest genres. This album mixed by legendary figure, DJ Hatcha (Big Apple Records / Kiss 100 / Rinse FM / FWD>>) showcases the best of this exciting fresh sound. Including massive tracks from Kromestar as well as MRK1, Chimpo, DJ Distance, Hijak, Mac Koall, DJ Absurd & DJ Hatcha himself.

iTunes for download and more info

Darqwan :

Oris produces as Darqwan, DQ1 and RS4… He’s based in Sheffield, Steel City, home of his seminal label Texture.

A serious vinyl collector by the age of 8 and hardcore raver at 15, Oris began playing out at 16 and fast cultivated a reputation as one of the most unique and incendiary live DJs in the world… Taiwan, London, Estonia, Switzerland, the US and Australia have all tasted Oris’s vital melt of dubstep, breaks, grime, electronics, UK garage, hardcore, jungle and d&b.

So let’s rewind a little.. Oris Jay first made an impact on the Jungle scene in the early 90s tearing up the North with DJ Pioneer (Delta Romeo) and MC’s E-Man and Hero as The Reflex Crew.

As the fresh sound of UK garage hit London, so did Oris… He went home buzzing about the beats that were blazin’ up pirate radio, clubs and record shops in London, and made it his mission to pioneer UK garage in the North.

In production terms Oris’s sound has been unique from the outset, influenced by dark, edgy d&b and the vibe of 2-step and UK garage. His underground anthem ‘Biggin Up The Massive’, featuring a sample of MC Ranking, is an early example of his fire…. Legendary garage DJ EZ began to rinse it, Oris broke London and the rest of the planet was fast to follow..

Bizzy B :

For those who don’t know, Bizzy B’s Brain label was one of the most futuristic in the early days when hardcore was becoming jungle. From 92-94 they released some of the best junglistic’ardcore there was. Classics like Darkness, Weekend, Dubplate Wars, 2 Dope ep, and artists like TDK whose TOG sublabel was a peak of amen choppage).

Bong-Ra :

Bong-Ra’s trademark ‘jungle rock’ style has been moulded over the past 7 to 8 years to become a recognizable and addictive sound. Although his compostions and tracks may vary there’s always an adrenaline rush of some sort buzzing around. Mostly recognized for his part in the ‘Yardcore’ or ‘Raggacore’ sub genre, his tracks differ significantly and crossover ranges of styles which have played a part in his musical development… Since the Bong-Ra birth in 1997 there’s been list of releases on various different labels… Alongside producing and performing as Bong-Ra, both Clash Records and Kriss Records are run and owned by Bong-Ra. Clash was formed in 2001, and focusses on mainly hardocore ragga-orientated jungle. Kriss Records has a more political and/or metal edge to its sound.

When it comes to the performances it’s either a DJ set or an Audio/Visual set. Bong-Ra’s first ‘tour’ with Scud and Soundmurderer in the UK proved to be a huge succes.

This paper was originally presented as an informal talk at the Rebelstar Activist Retreat, Crescent Beach, BC, Canada on November 26th, 2001.

Musikal Resistance: A Short History (I)

History.

Rave Culture began at the juncture of several political social movements.

i) Jamaican Dub Soundsystem Culture of the 70s/80s

ii) UK Traveller Culture (ex-hippies); Punks; New Agers; also a centuries old tradition of Carnival on the Common Lands

iii) Austin, Texas, 1986: the impact of Ecstasy

iv) Continuation of Chicago Disco into house music; the rise of gay culture and the Funk Movement

v) Detroit: the artistic-social backlash to the failed modernist city-project resulted in Detroit techno and rap.

vi) The late 80s in the UK saw the rise of Acid House music (Chicago house with a 303 overtop, the combining of Chicago dance culture with UK rebellion), which took on new social importance due to its context: “dj’ed,” on turntables, mixed by djs with pitch controls (this is a new thing!), in illegal spaces: occupations of warehouses, farmlands, public and private spaces.

More here

DIRTY HISTORY…

KINGBEATSOUNDSYSTEM’s owner/ production manager DirtyHarry caught the soundsystem bug at thirteen watching sounds like Jah Shaka, Youth Sounds, and Jah Trinity play the Dub Club at the Dome Tufnell Park in 1993. Harry became a “box boy” for UK reggae outfit RDK HI-FI Soundsystem at sixteen years old, touring Europe, selecting tunes and engineering as part of the sound’s crew by the age of eighteen.

Harry launched KingBeat in 1999 as a roots and culture sound playing dates at Aba-Shanti’s resident club the House of Roots and the RootsGarden in Brighton, but clubs were closing their doors to the soundsystems. Touring soundsystems don’t suit club owners needs; staff have to be paid to come early and stay late, the speaker boxes and flight cases scratch walls and chip the paint on the way through, and any good soundsystem would make their crapy noise restricted in-house P.A look bad. Possibly more importantly as our goverment fought “antisocial behaviour” on multiple fronts club owners who exceeded strict council noise limits lost their licences. This meant only the biggest sound men could get dates, as club owners simply wouldn’t risk it for some little youth who may not get a crowd. “Dirty” Harry had been a squatter since 1998 and regularly attended squat parties and outdoor raves. This was where Kingbeat found its audience for the next few years.

The way reggae and dancehall has blown up on the London party scene is something to be very proud of. Harry, Bashment Bish (Negusa Negast), Steve Bedlam (Spiral Tribe/Bedlam Sound), and a very few others pioneered that sound playing to 20-30 people while hundreds raved to tekno somewhere else in the building. With such small numbers early on when Negusa Negast and KingBeat were both out they would either link up or Harry would host hip-hop, jungle, drum’n'bass and breakbeat DJs.That’s where KingBeat found it’s current blueprint playing reggae, reggae infused, and reggae inspired music, week in week out (2000-04) at one of the London parties, Southern outdoor raves or European Teknovals blowing up the reggae dancehall sound.

More at KingBeatSoundsystem.com

http://www.speakerplans.com/

http://www.noisecontrolaudio.com/

History of the Bristol Underground scene

Bristol has long been a multicultural city. In the 1950s and 1960s there were waves of immigration that made Bristol one of the most racially diverse cities in the UK. This mix included greater access to new strands of music such as reggae. “In 1980, following a police raid on the popular Black and White Café, the St Pauls riots erupted, the first of the decade’s civil disturbances.”

“Around this time, the Bristol underground scene was steeped in punk and reggae influences, and soon embraced hip-hop – and with it the colourful New York-style lettering at the most creative end of the graffiti art spectrum.”[6]

The 1990s was when the scene began to create work of international significance. 1991 saw the releasse of Massive Attack’s Blue Lines, an album which has met international critical acclaim. Blue Lines was named the 21st greatest album of all time in a ‘Music of the Millennium’ poll conducted by HMV, Channel 4, The Guardian and Classic FM. Stuart Bailie of BBC Northern Ireland stated that “It was soul music. But it had bold, symphonic arrangements. It featured samples of the Mahavishnu Orchestra … It had funky breaks and an emotional power that was hard to figure. It sounded anxious and lost. But there was a grandeur in the music also. People who came across the record became obsessed, spinning it endlessly.” The release in 2006 of “Live With Me” is proof that the trip hop scene is still capable of producing great work.

Darkness

The Bristol underground scene was characterised by a sparseness and darkness. Bands like Portishead and Massive Attack used sparse sounds – a simple bass line, a vocal and a few other effects, and usually very melancholy lyrics. Banksy also tends to use very few colours, concentrating on blacks and whites and sharp outlines, and often looking at controversial topics such as war.

Separately to this, some writers have talked of an undercurrent of darkness within the City due to its history.[7]

Racial tensions within the City

An article in 2008 in The Telegraph stated that: “Racial matters have always carried a historical resonance in Bristol, a city made affluent on the profits of tobacco and slave-trading. Street names such as Blackboy Hill and Whiteladies Road remain as reminders.”

“It’s a past that we feel equivocal about”, says Steve Wright. “It’s a double-edged thing. There are the beautiful Georgian terraces that we love, but they were built on the profits of slavery. It’s our shady past, and Bristolians are a bit self-effacing, a bit ashamed of it and are quite keen to layer new associations on top of it. There’s always been a defiant, subversive streak in Bristol, and Banksy’s work is very much in that tradition.”[8]

There has often been a slight undercurrent of tension both in the politics and creatively with artists and musicians in the merger of black and white culture. During the 1950s the Bristol evening post carried what many today would consider openly racist articles, warning of the dangers of black bus drivers.

Creative tensions within bands

Some of this tension spilled over into some of the artists creative work. Massive Attack for example were wrought with creative tensions over their 1998 album Mezzanine, which resulted in one of the three core members leaving. Robert Del Naja has described the dark atmosphere within the group: “There was always this tension between control and collaboration. Always… We were just trying to get the job finished… Everything became thinner and smaller. All that warmth being spun into a tiny little thread, then that thread just being cut.”[9]

Most of this is actually quoted from this article about Banksy in the Telegraph.

I & I music is to praise Haile Selassie I Jah Rastafari making a joyful noise unto the Lord, for it is Jah who has made I & I. Jah Rastafari sends his children a positive vibration that manifests through drumming (Nyahbingi) and chanting (Singing). The drum patterns of Nyahbingi have their origins in Abyssinia, the original name for Africa (Africa – Babylon word meaning ‘divided’). Thousands of years ago through a special lineage, the drumming is here today with many variations, and the one I ’stant is the bass and drum.

The bass represents the thunder and the drum, the lightning. This way of praising Jah was originated by King David through divine inspiration. I & I are in the house of King David unto this very day as written in the Holy Bible.
Nyahbingi drum patterns are the root of all modern style drumming.

Jungle is a way of life. Concrete Jungle is all InI see all day in Babylon. Jungle Music represents the Ghetto, a voice for the youth. A platform for talented artistes to speak to the world (without Babylon intervention) FREE of them. So I n I can a talk one to one million.

InI grow up the same as Ghetto youth all over the world brought to Babylon by slave-ships. Nuff hardship suffering, so InI search and don’t stop searching for Jah who is Truth until InI see Jah in all things.

Jungle music brings a message of peace, love and unity because of these positive vibrations you see the fight InI music gets in Babylon. Till they tried to kill jungle music, I don’t need to say anymore it’s already known to all true Junglists. keep the jungle fire burning….JAH LIVE.

-the Inspiration page

when people say they love jungle some really do but then they start dj ing or mc ing and then forget about jungle and start trying to elevate themselves.many forget where jungle is coming from and why it is here.be humble and let jungle lead, Jungle is bigger than flesh.producers djs mcs record labels promoters distributors magazines- jungle is bigger than that .jungle is timeless jungle is priceless – jungle is bless.

the jungle revolution

BIG UP ALL JUNGLIST

NO ONE IS TAKING JUNGLE ANYWHERE JUNGLE IS TAKING I AND I ON A JOURNEY

LOVE THE JUNGLE DONT TRY TO TO CONTROL THE POWER ITS TOO GREAT.

ASK THE YOUTHS ABOUT COOL HERC OR LEE SCRATCH PERRY THEY MIGHT KNOW THE NAMES BUT THE MAJORITY ARE REALLY INTRESTED IN THE CURRENT ARTISTES AND THE POWER HAS SHIFTED TO A WHOLE NEW GENERATION OF ARTISTES, SO HIP HOP AND REGGAE MUSIC KEEP GROWING AS PRODUCERS COME AND GO.JUNGLE HAS ALREADY OUTGROWN MANY PRODUCERS AND MC .JUNGLE HAS MOVED TO THE NEXT LEVEL .THIS IS JUNGLE MUSIC .

IF A TREE HAS NO ROOTS HOW CAN IT GROW

DONT FORGET THE ROOTS OF HIP HOP

HIP HOP AND REGGAE GIVE THE YOUTHS HOPE IN THIS HELL CITY

Jungle is a way of life…..from the life you get the music …the music from the streets is the only real music right now…..once those babylon get there hands on the street vibe they try to control it and switch it round into there pop bloodclaat ….i n i see through the smoke screen of hype , fake record sales – fake charts and playlists ……

Bob Marley and peter tosh proved that real music doesnt need goliath because real music is david……..jungle is like samson with the donkey jaw bone slewing the demons of this time with word sound and power… i n i dont come to fight flesh and blood but spiritual wickedness in high and low places….. ….bass and treble-the sling and pebble..

Congo Natty Music

Wed: 06-18-08
The Month In: Reggae / Dancehall
The Month In by Dave Stelfox

To this end, respected reissue and archive label Soul Jazz has recently pulled together a collection of tracks by a duo that perfectly illustrates British street music’s inextricable links with soundsystem culture. Starting out as deejays for North London’s Unity Sound, Flinty Badman (Trevor Destouche) and Deman Rocker (David Destouche) split off to form the Ragga Twins. Jacknifing deep-rooted Jamaican vocal sensibilities together with tearing rhythms, predominantly provided by producers Shut Up & Dance, these brothers blended dancehall with both hip-hop and rave, in the process providing many of the movement’s most explosive moments. Soon to be anthologized on Ragga Twins Step Out– out in a few weeks– songs including “Hooligan 69″, “Spliffhead”, and “Ragga Trip” may sound somewhat dated by today’s standards. However, this is far from a sticking point, bringing about rushes of fond nostalgia and providing a valuable document of a pivotal period.

Moving forward to the present day, Kevin Martin’s work as the Bug has come on leaps and bounds over the past couple of years, first blurring the lines between dancehall and experimental/industrial electronica (always a pretty porous border if you take an open-ended view of such matters) and now grime and dubstep. Following his 2004 album Aktion Pak (Rephlex/CD/UK), the soon-to-be-released London Zoo (Ninja Tune/CD/U.S.) keeps this producer’s corroded, futuristic vision of dancehall intact but also shows a friendlier face. Also, there’s a strong sense of reggae’s past at play. Accordingly, contemporary badman tunes such as “Skeng” (featuring Killa P & Flowdan) and Jah War (feat Flowdan) rub comfortably against Punany-era King Jammy-influenced tracks including “Angry” featuring veteran UK MC Tippa Irie and “Insane”, voiced by long-time collaborator Warrior Queen. Overall, it’s cohesive and infectious homage to the versatility and resilence of Jamaican music.

Meanwhile, back in Kingston, Donovan “Don Corleon” Bennett is back after a reasonably quiet patch with two fresh riddims: one sweet one-drop number and another aimed squarely at the dancehall. Secrets (7″/Don Corleon/JA) hosts Jah Cure singing his heart out on the gorgeous “Miles Away” and perennial Month In favourites TOK dropping a delightful version entitled “So Cold”. The pick of the bunch, however, comes from Buju Banton with “Sleepless Nights”, a cut that sees the veteran deejay eschewing guttural toasting in favour of heartfelt melody. It’s a prime example of one of Jamaica’s best performers at the top of his game. Double Joint (7″/Don Corleon/JA), on the other hand, is a curious affair, harking nack to the structures of late-80s digital but using contemporary garage-influenced sounds. Stripped back to the bone, the beats offer a minimalist backdrop for a host of artists, including Alaine, Vybz Kartel, and Pressure, but the top turns come from Bounty Killer with the typically uncompromising “What U Think” and the criminally underrated Bling Dawg with the storming “Grudge”.

One of a growing number of rising AutoTune-enhanced stars, Demarco has reputedly signed a $1,000,000 deal with Koch Records, but that hasn’t stopped hit turning out music on domestic shores. Beautiful Lady (7″/JA), the latest of his home-market singles comes courtesy of super-producer Christopher Birch’s Birchill Records continues an apparent unstoppable run of releases and isn’t light on the quality, either. Glossy almost almost robotic, it’s a strangely robotic and inhuman gal tune, but absolutely contemporary given that the T-Pain effect has almost entirely engulfed Jamaica at this point.

Japanese label Bacchanal sticks to the classic approach, updating the classic Tempo riddim with two new voicings from potty-mouthed female deejay Spice and long-serving stalwart Pinchers. Despite not reinventing the wheel in any way, they’re both great, the revitalised Bad Tempo instrumental giving the original a welcome shot in the arm in the shape of thumping percussion and steely key stabs. In the frts instance, “Bedroom Bully” finds Spice in an especially demanding mood, brandishing her prowess between the sheets like a weapon. “Names & Faces”, however, shows Pinchers at his best, that inimitable flow skipping over the beats like a wet pebble. After the fallow period of recent months and the resulting closure of record shops all around the world– the latest in a long line being the Ladbroke Grove branch of London’s famous Dub Vendor operation– new music like this, available on a variety of hard-copy formats, offers plenty of reasons to be cheerful. Until July, it’s over and out. Happy listening.

Okay that’s actually most of the article except the intro; something i rarely do, but hey: my printer is broke so i gotta make do with online options…. The full Month In… was originally published here:

Pitchfork website