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Terabyte Records’ eighth instalment marks a return to the depths of the deep DnB sea,
where Norwich-based duo Volatile Psycle lie in wait, ready to pounce on any ears that
venture to close to the sea floor. Despite this release being their debut on Terabyte, the pair are all too familiar in the music scene, with glitch-hop/dnb tipped releases on Caliber Music, Adapted Records and Heavy Artillery Recordings, disproving the old adage “jack of all trades, master of none’.
Their appeal is definitely reflected in their bookings; between now
and the end of the year the bass-heavy double are set to appear in their home region Norfolk, their archrival region Suffolk, as far afield as Belgium in December, and will be expecting plenty more bookings in between.
As the daylight hours slowly but surely begin to close in, the sounds of this Volatile Psycle single remind you that the winter is coming. The pair describe this sound as ‘yard’ music, and perhaps they’re right; it certainly isn’t for a middle-class garden party.
Kicking things off in spectacular style is the A side, ‘Twisted Imagery’ is a heavyweight
monster, combining Foreign Beggars-esque vocals over a murky minimal roller concocted in the bleak Norfolk marshes. Itʼs got all the requisite elements: razor sharp drum work impeccably arranged with some real step to it, murky low-slung vocals that accentuate itʼs dark and dirty feel and what is really a lesson for any up-and-coming producer in sub bass manipulation that wouldnʼt sound out of place coming out of the Dispatch camp. The track has already received attention from Seb aka Skankandbass on Youtube, receiving 4,000 hits before it had even found a home with Terabyte.
The B side, Barricade, acts as exactly as the name suggests, trapping you in a dark and
moody stomp forbidding you from leaving the dancefloor. Definitely one for the darker heads, and is a great tool for the DJs amongst you. With many of the same elements as its opposite number, minus the vocals, itʼs a little more forward thinking in its outlook.
The drum arrangement is a more complex than the regular 2-step beat and while the bassline is more subtle, what it loses in size, it makes up for in depth. All in all it is, at times, a haunting, evocative piece of music and at others a full-blooded piece of D&B that skips effortlessly between the two.
Whilst Terabyte recently forayed into the liquid side of the genre, they laid breadcrumbs carefully to allow them to head back to their standard catalogue where they left off;
bassheavy minimal drum and bass. This release definitely does not disappoint.
For all inquiries, please contact james@terabyterecords.co.uk or sam@terabyterecords.co.uk
- Genre
- Drum & Bass