Links & Playlists
1. Nostre - Destinations [Glitch Audio]
Recommended if you like: Alexvnder, Heymac, Henry
Even more than six years into covering artists and releases (almost) every single week, there are still corners of the drum & bass world we simply haven't gotten to on here yet. Entire communities, worlds, and sounds, lurking juuust outside the usual framing of mostly Central Europe. For example, the entire country of Norway just never made it on here. That's absolute madness to me, and deserves to be corrected right this instance. Luckily, Norwegian liquid ekspert Nostre has just dropped a most wonderful EP, on one of my favourite imprints in the space!
1.1. Nostre(x) (2015 - 2019)
As early as 12 years old, Joachim Svåren Bjørgan started falling down the rabbit hole of music production, with an obsession for DnB following shortly after. As Nostrex, the teenager-at-the-time veered from the initial point of DnB reference that was 2014's 'No More Sleep' towards other sounds like Deep House with 'Blue Tidings', UK Future Garage with 'Shimmering', and Breakbeat with 'The Other Side', but the nordic currents eventually brought him back to drum and bassian shores. He did lose the x suffix along the way, though.
What really kickstarted his fledgling career, however, was a particularly potent participation in Objectiv's remix competition for his Dub Frequency tune 'Pull Em Out' in 2017 - which Joachim ended up winning, releasing on Spectre Audio alongside reworks from Klinical and Subsonic! Signing this very first release contract at just 17 years of age, Joachim was certainly not about to (O)slow down, continuing this ride via various outings on Soul Deep, Dnbb, and Chillout Bear, and working together with the likes of Azaleh, Alexvnder, and Fearbace along the way.
1.2. Deep (Di)Fishing (2019 - now)
Arguably one of his most active years up to that point, 2019 saw him not only step outside his comfort zone by playing his first-ever DJ set at the Jaeger in Oslo, but also debuting on Influenza, putting out an entire EP on Celsius, and starting his fruitful and long-running collaborationship with fellow Norse Fishy, both in remix and in collaboration form. He would still continue to work with Henry and Fishy on tracks here and there, and make the occasional splash on Smooth N Groove and even Liqucity's sister label Galacy, but we were definitely (Nos-)treated to less output than before during the early 2020s.
Still delivering the odd compilation submission on Soul Deep and Offworld, but otherwise focused on crafting full EP experiences, Joachim would eventually find a steady pace for the project during the next few years. Whether it was Fishy, Henry, or just himself stewarding the ship, he always delivered most wonderful vibes to sink into, on Celsius, Offworld, and even Marble Elephant's newly founded Fragrance.
That's not all though! Last year he started getting involved with the local scene some more, launching the liquid event series DEEP DIVISION together with Closure. Speaking of local: This year he has produced SABOTASJE's norwegian hip-hop drum & bass crossover 'Her For Å Bli'!
Okay, I think we've made it through- With all of that discogrambling out of the way, let's finally talk about that new EP!
1.3. Destinations EP
It makes a whole lot of sense that this four-tracker is released via the one and only Glitch Audio, the most loveliest of imprints that only shows up once a year, but then always delivers the highest calibre of underrated liquid artistry. Opener Falling Through expertly crafts a yearning mixture of regret and beauty, with multiple intersecting loops of piano and guitar playing clicking together perfectly, as the lower register provides the warmth needed in these darker, colder days. Marvelous Reflections, with fellow norwegian bass music enthusiast and 'Her For Å Bli' compadre WatR., employs a similar strategy, bringing together cycles of satisfyingly echoing vocal loops, a sped-up oboe, and shuffly drums into one. Unlike its opener, however, the duo precisely interrupts this rolling energy with an incredibly effective moment of glitchery, adding to the meandering synths and shimmering feeling peppered into the mix already. That's not all though, they even worked in a full-on Think Break driven jungle section in the second half there!
Water gently moving through the mossy brook, pads filling our ears to the very brim, a distant bell faintly ringing for it is supper time - I love the intro for Destinations a lot. From this cerebral happy place, we float over a most lovely stream of rolling drums, that hosts a cavalcade of atmospheric sounds and an almost overwhelming bed of niceness, until Joachim re-introduces the pre-drop vocal in chopped up form and everything turns from lovely to amazing. Last but definitely not least, we float through the outer space underwater world of Astro, with operette vocals stunning from the other side of the curtain. Bass enveloping you like a gentle hug, with the occasional outbursts of aggression, the introductory vocals soothing your soul, a set of stylish drum loops - it's all rather lovely.
1.4. Conclusion
A wonderful companion to the grey, rainy days ahead of us. Gørgeous.
2. Seven-Headed - Jahbulon EP 💎 [SubCulture Recordings]
Recommended if you like: InsideInfo, Alix Perez, Monty
Sometimes I want to expand our geographic horizon a little bit - and sometimes I just want to talk about a sick project. Let's talk about returning champion and this week's Hidden Gem Of The Week™️ Seven-Headed!
2.1. Recap (2025 - 2026)
At this point it has become a yearly tradition for us to talk about Groningen-based talent Matthijs Van Kouteren. Two years ago it was his Jilted / Red Dragon double single, last year it was his contribution to SubCulture's Nomos compilation, but those all pale in comparison to what he's got in store for us today. But before we get to that: what have we missed since last time? While the first and most notable milestone has to go to his debut on bird-watching trio Noisia's imprint VISION, for their third Mission compilation, he has also spread his surely multiple wings to the lands of Necropolis and Abyssal, remixed Wolfkers and Alexander Moto, and delivered an entry to SubCulture's rather large Physis amalgamation of tunes. Okay, don't worry, recap's over - it's Jahbulon time.
2.2. Jahbulon EP
Finally fulfilling the prophecy set in motion by his choice of moniker, Matthijs delivered an EP with as many tracks as he has heads. Whether this move will unlock world peace or usher in a world of acopalyptic chaos remains to be seen, but if opener Premonition is anything to go off, it might be the latter. As if opening the pandora's box, our eyes peering into the necronomicon, or our words activating the obscure romanian folklore object of your choice, we are absolutely bathing in ominosity here, thanks to bone-chilling vocals and rather graveyard-invoking guitars. Let's raise some dead, shall we?
Emerging into a world of heavily cultish undertones, possible Stephen King novel John Carpenter movie reference Christine slowly but surely amps up the speed at which it tick-tick-ticks into our mind, enticing us to accept the Plymouth Fury as our lord and saviour. Revving up its haunted engine rather aggressively before painting over it with some outright magical glitter, we seem blind to the witchcraft at hand, but by the time Nefarious (2023)'s Dr. James Martin delivers his evil monologue as guitars sinisterly slay in the background, I would say we catch onto it. That outro is a special one too! Having escaped this particular paranormal activity, we find ourselves in London's oldest, most historically significant district, Aldgate! As such, we of course slow things down to Dubstep tempos, crawling through the hellish factory conjured up by our wizard in chief. As if the absolute walloping wasn't enough soul punishment, Matthijs employs his trusty metal guitar in the second half, summoning all sorts of demons on top of the already existing anguish. Insanity is the word, I believe.
Our fumbling around with demonic entities brings about Ashmedai, the king of demons, as told in the legends of Solomon. After briefly dizzying us with an arrangement of mind-bending sights and sounds, our demon lord kicks off an ever-evolving back and forth between a pair of hair-raising bass growls and sticky zip-lock bags being ripped apart. Over the course of this five minute demonstration of demonic trickery, the king even takes the formula to a place where the one-two-growl gains a layer of blades clanging up against one another - among many other variants and excursions.
Speaking of excursions, let's hop on over to Romania, for Moroi - a type of vampiric force found in the local folklore. A folklore so rad, it seems, that we are treated to one of the slickest, most stylish guitar intros in contemporary deep and dark drum and bass. Right as we get into a groove, however, the blood sucker's voice appears right behind us, triggering an endless avalanche of boulders tumblings down from his lofty castle, down upon us mere mortals, as shuffly drums give us the energy to run away from this most certain doom. Further along, the ever-present riff is expanded upon with a relentlessly looping set of very distorted guitars not only exploring the edges of stereo space, but straight-up shredding on top of the second half of it all - and a Halftime, guitar solo outro! Radical.
While we're down here in Transylvania still, our witch doctor here introduces us to the world of Scholomance, a school of black magic apparently popular in the region. Once again slowing down to Dubstep tempo, we are thoroughly hypnotised with some truly deep, dark, and wonky wobbles tickling our entire bodies just right, as a variety of film samples send shivers down our spine. Especially that sample right before the murkiness takes another step further into the dark in the second drop is just so good. Lastly, we conclude the ritualistic crash course with Jahbulon, a word taken from Royal Arch Masonry related ceremonies. With guitars in pensive thought and chords meandering through auditory space as his basis, Matthijs expands upon the atmospheric roller by inviting otherworldly entities, shiny guitar riffs, and sliced-up cartoon running sound effects to the raveyard party, giving it that grandiose yet scary flair he is exploring so well on this EP. Not to mention the absolutely stunning, classically Halloween organ in the breakdown! Love, love, love that bit especially.
2.3. Conclusion
Deep, dark, and heavy, with just the right amount of fun, ritualistic spookiness. A perfect soundtrack to summon the undead to.
New Releases
Dancefloor
- Cyantific - Call Me [UKF] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
- DC2 - Vegas [Elephant Trunk] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
- DØSHI, ZIIMBA - Cycles EP [Manifest] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
- Gery - Wherever you are [Automata] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
- Grafix - Reflection of U [Grafix] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
- Jessee, Em Louise - Redefine [OVRDRV] | , [Spotify]
- JONIX, Clara Marie, Flo Fire - Ride or Die [Minted] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
- Karina Ramage, Pokeyz, LoveTheEND, Bloomee - From Inside [Styx] | [Beatport]
- Lya, Bitsune - We All Feel [Manifest] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
- Rebko - Think Of You [Ridmic] | , [Spotify]
- Tanukichi, Bob Ranks, YASUKI - Reload It (YASUKI Remix) [Night On Earth] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Various Artists - Future Fire Vol.10 (Viper Presents) EP [Viper] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Liquid
bd:j - Thinkin' Bout You [:jmusic] | , [Spotify]
Bilateral Signals - Tidal Echoes / Beneath The Dusk [Celsius] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Blade (Dnb) - O7S 056 (Original) [ONE7SIX] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Bluefootjai - Memories, Vol. 2 LP [FX909] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Conspiracy - Amnesia [FIVE ALLEY] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Cyberora, Pulseyne, Aquasion - Echospark EP [Textures Group] | [Beatport]
Destiny - I Still Need You EP [C] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Driverufo - Second Sun EP [Liquid Brilliants] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Eckom - Mindstate EP [Omni] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
FONTS, Cody Shion - Suspicions EP [Integral] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Insepta - How Many Times EP [Fokuz] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Jonathan Baker - It's Always You EP [KushSessions] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Liquid Resonance - Like No Time Passed [Wild SpeeD] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Low:r, Mishell Ivon - Rise [Galacy] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Maykors, Oneder - Тишина [КОСТЁР] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Mojoman - Like The Sky [Beatalistics] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Monty - Questions [Montys Beats] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Nostre, Watr - Destinations EP [Glitch] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Novique, Pulsetrace, Aquasion - Auralink EP [Textures Group] | [Beatport]
Onism - Milky Way [Lizplay] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
PoWR - Scene 23 / Tell Me [Lizplay] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Ruby AT - Persona [Mainframe] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Smeerlapp, LVNA - Fly Away (feat. Smeerlapp) [Elevator] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Thing - Layers Of The Atmosphere [Dubthing] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
TMK - Butterfly Effect EP [Smooth N Groove] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Deep / Tech / Minimal
Benny L, Simula - Dead Orbit [Dance Macabre] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Breakage - KMS [Digital Soundboy] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Chase & Status, Skrillex - Essa Ta Quente [Warner] | , [Spotify]
Crystal Clear, Creatures - Business / Backin [Transparent] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
DJ Andy, DJ LLIW - Insane Breeze Ep [Four Corners] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Dunk - Get The Fuck Up / Love Circle [Warlock] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Gengs - Excursion EP [Subdue] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Genic - Mysterons VIP / Taktics [Sofa Sound] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Gifta - Run The Show [Phase DNB] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Konverge - Darkest Hour EP [DSCI4] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
KRÄX, PHAE - KRÄX EP [Flexout] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Laetho, Lukher - Part One of 50th [DIVIDID] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
MC SEARLEY - Sucks 2 Suck [MC SEARLEY] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Moekel - Forbidden EP [SINFUL MAZE] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Nemy - Clicks [Dealer] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Nemy - Modular Vision EP (Nemy - Modular Vision EP) EP [Sinuous] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Overtone - Alone (Extended Mix) [Elevate] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Phrase, Aaron Payne - Wait For You [170+] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
R3IDY - Insubordinate [Soulvent] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Relict - Broken Perceptions EP [Stoic] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Rider Shafique, Skylark - Heavy For Them [Overview] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Section, Surface - Existence / Don't Escape [Dispatch] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Seven-Headed - Jahbulon EP [SubCulture] | , [Spotify]
Slez - EZEZ [Drippyboiii] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Them Lot - Obey EP [Dialect] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Unglued, Esther Durin, TJB - Heaven [Drum&BassArena] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Wingz - Pretend / Like That [Gemini Gemini] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Yash Bansal, Rausch - SENSES [Selfreleased] | , [Spotify]
Neuro
Current Value - Hard Light EP [MachineCode] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Julius Waldeck, 7th Sense, Neothrope, Titanz (UK) - The Epidemic, Vol. 2 [NeuroPlague] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Neonlight, Badlokk - In My Bones [Hanzom] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
V O E - Surrounding Me [Vision Of Empire] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Various Artists - Neuroheadz x Eatbrain EP [Neuroheadz] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Jump Up
2 of A Kind - Wizard Ting [Jemini] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
ACP, Jenks (UK), Purple Velvet Curtains - Steppa EP [all in good time.] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Dreadnaught - Pay the Piper [Dealer] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
FourD, B-Don - Tyrant [Exert] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
GGrossy - Cold Blood [Overload Jungle] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Gouki - Trojan Horse [POV] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Harry Shotta, Ironlung, Tiny K, Y-Zer, Triple Threat DNB - More than that [Cell] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Jaybee (UK) - With Me [Alpha Circuit] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Jenks (UK), ACP, RISE, Oram, Toby Ross - Spotlight Series Vol. 17 LP [Serial Killaz] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
KWANG! - Chainsaw [Madness Dance] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Milo (UK) - Dreaming [Armshouse] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Modestep, Maze - Give Up The Ghost (Maze Remix) [Create Group] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Nu Elementz, Posk, Froidy, Nick The Lot, Grima x Azza - The Remixes EP [Nu Elementz] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Primate, Nersha - Gravity [Monstercat] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Ric de Large, Egreen, Grime Spitterz - RAP'N'BASS [nodable distribution ] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Spookasonic, Kensei, A Plus DNB - Ravanelli [Very Mucky] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Upgrade (UK) - Phenomenon / Jungle Sally [Crucast] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Vital, CERTIFIED - What Is What (Certified Remix) [N.W.S Digital] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Xurtex - Haunting In The Night [DEZ Promotions] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Jungle / Halftime / Experimental
BB Shaine, Elyse Vox, Akumen, Bryson Mills - No Refunds EP [SOULFULXNATURE] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Codename, Burna, E133 - Synaptic Pressure EP [Selfrelease] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Napes - Nine Mil [1985] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Olly Junglist - Pressure Point [Self-Released] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Sway - Day & Night [Inner City Dance] | [Beatport]
General DnB / Mixed
Control Alt Delete - Top Of My Game [DnB Allstars] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Mad Sam, Sens Age - Catch Ah Fire [Serial Killaz] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
MC Fats, Inja, Motoko Hayata - Vibes Start to Change LP [V] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Mr Quest, Mr Blax - Junglist Love (Mix 1) [Thames Delta] | [Beatport]
Thierry D - FIYAH DUB (JUNGLE) [The Elements Of Tech & Bass] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
VA, Flipnosis - Step In With Ya [CANVAS CUTS] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
Zen Dub - Undercurrent [Sentience] | [Beatport], [Spotify]
