Monthly Archives: November 2010

I was pretty excited to have the chance to review this Suicide Dub compilation before its release on November 29th. The Suicide Dub lineup includes some notable up-and-coming artists like High Rankin and Evolve or Die, the duo responsible for a number of floor crushing remixes this past year.

High Rankin opens things up with The Things You Do, one of my favorites off the album, and undoubtedly a floor killer. Echoing vocals, instrumentals, and dramatic pauses lead into heavy drops that keep the energy of the track high.  That banger is by Flowers on Your Rave, an unashamedly DnB track with a subtly filthy synth in the background, accompanied by a dark chorus.

http://soundcloud.com/high-rankin/high-rankin-the-things-you-do-1/s-Gs45w

When I Fall by Lightshapers is one of the hidden gems amongst some of the larger names on this compilation. The drop on this track is buried 50 seconds in, and starts off with an acoustic guitar riff and instrumental backing that would be more fitting of a theatrical score, before exposing deep bass with a really dirty and distorted wobble overlay.

There’s plenty on here to love as well even if you’re not a fan of intensity and filth, State of Play by Alexis K and Hail to the King from Evolve or Die represent the more dub side of this compilation, with very relaxed vibes and vocals throughout.

Taking the idea of dubstep even further out of the confines of “brostep” vs “dubstep”, there’s collaborations like Lockdown, which brings together High Rankin, Evolve or Die, and Wizard Sleeve. It has a goofy beat, and some solid lyrics, you could see it getting some airtime on your local hip-hop station, but depending on how you feel about pop that could be a really bad thing.

http://soundcloud.com/high-rankin/high-rankin-evolve-or-die-vs-wizard-sleeve-lockdown-explicit

Take a Lick from Hostage and Forward Thinking from RackNRuin represent jungle quite nicely, I found them to be a bit repetitive on their own, but I could see them hyping up a party if mixed with the right tune or dropped at the right time.

http://soundcloud.com/high-rankin/hostage-take-a-lick/s-uFWzb

M.A.G.I.C. from Magic Mash is gripping from the start, I love the retro 8-bit style bleeps interspersed throughout. Combining some very alien sounding horns and a constantly evolving timbre makes this a really interesting track that defies any attempt to be classified.

Theres even some tasteful breakstep in the form of Moon Boots by Temper D, and the very trancey Had Enough from ConRank.

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed rinsing this album a few times while writing this review. I was drawn to a few tracks more than others, and really my only gripe is with the attempts to convert nearly every genre into some form of “step”. It works with some things, like Flowers on Your Rave, but other times as with Public Service Announcement, the combination sounds noisy and un-defined.

Overall, this is a solid compilation of various styles of dub, dubstep, and some genre-bending experimentation that is sure to provide an interesting experience for your ears. You’ll walk away with some new favorites by artists you like, and  you may find some new favorite artists you hadn’t heard of before.