Under the Radar - August

Super Mario grime jungle? London’s Racket Recordings continue to flip the script with their series of lean green system testers. This one from P.A.B.? Please re-read the first line… NUTS STUFF!

Divoli S’vere’s unique thrust on vogue was electrified in August with two brash runway singles in ‘Bounce Back’ and ‘Tranzphat’. Body rhythmic with middle finger lyricism, the Atlanta artist represents all that is so powerful about ballroom here.

Wriggle Dublin returned last month with founding member Daddy’s Girl’s second full length album arriving with ‘Glass Shell’. An instrumental sample-led hip hop transmission tackling an abstract world where the Glass Shell rules all. A group of concerned citizens claim to retake it! Thoughtful, precise and hypnotizing from DG.

Barca squad Deprerreo unleash the canine club revolution! A not so serious yet hard hitting collection of club edits and silly bits from the ever-growing dance world of LATAM and those it has inspired. Skrillex, Armani White, DJ Yirvin all receive rethinks with acts like CRRDR, 2AT, and DataHigh all featuring.

Fly away at hi-speed! Gorgeous summer garage trax from Sheffield master DJ DEEP HEAT who returns to London’s illustrious GODDEZZ label after their April triumph ‘DT2L’. ‘Fly Away’ coughs up 3 hot trotters that carry a loved up pop-tinged energy throughout. It’s super cute for the club!

Derelict rolling hard drum from Nostro Hood System founder Galtier. There’s so much to get lost in on this one. The reverberations from that pulsating kick creates such a dense platform for everything else thrown in above. A real system tester (I mean pleaser).

Exhilarating techno tools from Berlin-based Londoner Yazzus on Never Sleep. Peering into the dimensions of dubstep, footwork and hardcore, the Ghanaian born artist has crafted 3 real think tracks here that constantly shift their shape and depth. This might be our favourite work from Yazzus yet.

Cologne hardcore starlet SWAN MEAT’s 2022 ‘BLOOD SUPERNOVA’ EP is accessed and reprogrammed by 5 unadulterated spinsters in DR DR4KKEN, Manuka Honey, Lobsta B, WTCHCRAFT, and BABii. Bardcore hardcore, samba gunk funk, medieval psytrance… okay now you’re listening :0

A surprisingly relaxed set of trax from childsplay?! The maverick London label brought in lord pusswhip last month with their alluring 3 tracker of zoned out housey electro taking fragrances of Memphis rap and breakbeat into the mix. It’s really nice, we can’t lie. childsplay got it all!!

“Rooted in collectivism and the quest to find one's tribe, Middler embodies the essence of being part of something larger than oneself. Originally bonding through their love of breaks and bass lines heard within the Ulster Sports Club, Belfast it was in the adjacent smoke-fuelled alleyway where Middler was Born.”

‘Home Port’, the debut single from Middler, gets a facelift from Matheson and Preference. Both remixes maintain the punk aesthetic and grit of the original track while stripping out the vocals. Matheson’s four-to-the-floor remix gets its energy from the wobbly bass that surges in and out. While Preference’s take is a jittery instrumental sitting underneath long, wavy subs with the punchy drums being given new life.

Protect Ryan throws everything at their productions. Like a room full of bouncing rubber balls, it’s all a bit chaotic and so very fun. ‘Very Nice Dutch’ is a tight mix of samples sprinkled throughout the track with funky percussion loops and vocal cuts throughout. ‘Spanish Hustle’ is a murkier track with lasers cutting through the array of low bass and synths. It's more focused on the types of club that have cages surrounding the DJ. A sweaty song!

Small Crab releases an incredible edit of the Reggaeton/ Latin pop song ‘Vampiros’. The free download blows apart the original track into a vicious roaring 174 bpm racer with thumpy kicks and growly basses. That instantly recognisable drone sound from the OG track remains centre stage for a fresh cut.

We can’t keep up with the almighty Tek sound coming out of South America right now! Venezuela’s Watara don’t mess around with ‘strictly 160’ grooves with their four track release. Hot ‘n’ steamy the whole way through with a Jukin Remix of DJ Spinn.

Boomtown Fair in the UK delivers one of the best festival experiences that you can immerse yourself in with its unique personality shown through ‘chapters’ and its incredible sound systems. One of the heavy-hitters that played this year was Manchester’s Chimpo with his dynamic takes on Drum & Bass. The Domino Rally EP “gives a fully respectful nod to some of those great days and artists of earlier days, but it sounds like it’s made now. It’s not just looking back trying to be that, but also looking forward. The perfect blend.”

A Berlin Electronic label release? That surely means Irish & UK representation. Aktivv releases a driving Techno roadshow with stompers from Dylan Fogarty (Dublin), Erik Burka (Dublin), Behne (Cork), Kerr Jack (Scotland) and E.DN (Edinburgh). Groove-infused Techno the whole way through.

Who are they? Who knows! What do they want? Also not very clear! Semiot, the anonymous New York artist puts out two sea themed funky tunes. High energy, balls to the wall fast House musik. The artist’s Bandcamp is an art piece in itself with thinly linked artwork, song titles, and genreless releases. It's all a bit mad.

Girlcop (DJ FEET) teams up with Wake (Matthew Hettich) for some acid house and club bangers. With 6 tracks from each artist, they face off like a tennis match hitting rave shots back and forth to each other. The energy is high and analogous with a truce called, they’ve both won.

Experimental bass from Atrice with their release ‘AWS01’. Constantly glitching and unstable through each of the three tracks, the Zurich native shows off their production finesse.