Posted by: Cor

A few posts ago, I took the Plump DJs to task for abandoning funky breaks as they moved onto the wobbly-bass world of electro pseudo-rave. Well, that abandoned funk had to turn up somewhere, right? One of the places you might look is in the record crate of UK breaks producer Featurecast, whose recent tracks and remixes have been appearing in sets from A Skillz, Krafty Kuts and Z-Trip, to name a few of my favorite funkers. Featurecast, aka Lee Mintram, shares the same love of heavy sample-filled electro as his aforementioned contemporaries, he can scratch with the best of ‘em, and is one of the few artists we can consider the new hope for funky breaks. Get acquainted with him with this promo mix from October, and keep your eyes open for his name; the funk is strong with this one.


Featurecast - Auditorium Promo Mix

More Featurecast on…
myspace
soundcloud
beatport

Posted by: Derek

I was actually gonna post about a completely different artist, but then I saw Jay’s reference in his last to Aphrodite and couldn’t resist following up with some tunes from the man.

Gavin King, or Aphrodite as we know him, is one of the originators of the wobbly jungle sound, and if you’re a dnb fan and don’t know him…shame on you! Aphrodite provides some of those classic sounds and textures that practically define the Jungle subset of DnB, and if you wanna be really specific, Jump Up Jungle. But labels are nutting compared to tunes, and those we got for ya.

Here’s a rewind back to Aphrodite’s self-titled album, with some classic rollers from days gone by. While they do definitely sound old school, they haven’t lost their punch — turn it on, turn it up, and let it rumble!

King Of The Beats
This tune’s definitely got the edge on the sorta funk/halftime bit. Starts off slow and funky, and then kicks into high gear!

Rinsing Quince
A classic of the genre…total stoner beats.

Music’s Hypnotizing
Spacier and totally psychedelic. Pretty darn cool.

Cool Flight
This particular tune was never a single, but I’ve always loved it. That bassline just rolls on till tomorrow and don’ stop!

PLAY ALL

Posted by: Derek

DJ Dara (né Darragh Guilfoyle) should be a familiar name to anyone who’s been into DnB for a while. Originally from Ireland, he emigrated to New York just as the beats were starting to roll, and after making a name for himself in the emerging arena of jungle/drum’n'bass, he started one of the genre’s seminal labels and record shops — Breakbeat Science. Through the label and his own productions and DJ sets, he’s been a pioneer and essential element in the development of DnB as we know it today.

And holy carp, here’s a digitized version of an old mixtape of his from 1997! In some ways it’s crazy old school, but it really showcases Dara as a visionary as well, because it still sounds fresh and solid. And we got both sides of the tape here for ya!

So for those who enjoy a bit of roll n skitter…here we go:

DJ Dara - Beats 97 Side A (right click and Save As.. to download!)

DJ Dara - Beats 97 Side B (right click and Save As.. to download!)

Tracklist after the jump!
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