The Dubstep Oeuvre

[shonky]

Oh btw i was about to nominate this as the most pretentious thread of the year until i saw it was by boom.

It may be by Boom, but jesustittyfuckingchrist it's definitely the most pretentious thread title I've ever seen here. Damn good one though so I'll let it slide

Get the category in the forum awards and it's as good as yours Boomy

[djslate]

Shafe...

[seckle]

these days when i go shopping at the online stores, and listen to tune clips i keep getting reminded of what kode 9 said too rightly a few months ago, that dubstep has a real chance of turning into a contest for the biggest drop. horsepower and El b were so powerful because they didn't write tunes to massive "drops". it was 6 or 7 minutes of a vibe with a gradual build up.

what we're hearing more and more of is this stop-start-dropout-buildup thing for a whole dj set.
the influx of the dnb world is inevitable, and half the time i welcome it, but i think my biggest complaint with it's influence lately is that dubstep never used to be about bashing you over the head with sound every 16 bars.

designing tunes that are centered around a "drop" is relying on the formula direction which is from the dnb world. from about 1999 to 2004, you could take all the top selling 50 dnb tunes; grab a pen & paper and write down the tune structure as a map and it would be exactly the same map for nearly every tune that was coming out. the formula made the whole thing musically stupid.

personally i'd really hate to see this sound get turned into 140 bpm dnb. i like versatility and diversity, but i'd like to plead for people to stay far away from directions that have ruined other genres. keep pushing for 6 minutes of vibes and textures that aren't mapped out. that way we don't all end up feeling like we're bouncing around in a rubber castle like 5yr olds all night.

[shonky]

That's pretty much my feelings on it Seck. Trying to remember who it was here that was talking about taking the sounds of dubstep and reapplying them to drum and bass, reincorporating the minimalism and space that made the old dnb tunes so much more satisfying than a lot of the modern stuff which sounds like spanners being thrown at car alarms/game boys.

[Littlefoot]

ironically though

people are always sayign there is a bit of a battle between the minimal dubstep and the frantic dubstep...

but look at who makes/innovates these styles.. it's the same people often!

within digital mystikz for example, Coki is the prime example of in your face hectic wobbles and mental noises
where as Mala is the crowned king of deep, almost tribal beats
and Loefah is something entirely of his own!

same with Skream, he drops some of the biggest most in your face hectic dubs ever, but he's also done tonnes of dark minimal repeating/progressive dubs which are just as big in the scene

Benga's another example, he brings some massive catchy, very reckognisable hectic dubs... and he's also done some very very minimal, techno/house influenced stuff recently which has had massive reckognition in and out of the scene..



the list goes on and on


it's funny, I don't think it's the biggest drop or addiction to wobbles which will make dubstep "do a dnb", it will be people getting unbelievably pendatic and "taking sides" due to too much time on forums!!!!

[Littlefoot]

sounds like spanners being thrown at car alarms/game boys.

sounds pretty good actually...

[seckle]

That's pretty much my feelings on it Seck. Trying to remember who it was here that was talking about taking the sounds of dubstep and reapplying them to drum and bass, reincorporating the minimalism and space that made the old dnb tunes so much more satisfying than a lot of the modern stuff which sounds like spanners being thrown at car alarms/game boys.

exactly.

take photek "risc vs reward". arguably, one of the most influential drum and bass albums ever written. there's not one minute of that sound that's mapped out. every tune has a different structure.

in 2005, dubstep was undefinable. really and truly. there's wasnt 10 tunes that sounded remotely similar.

can we say that about 2007? of course not, because the sound is now global.

does that mean that because it's global and massive, that the push for creativity and originality goes out the window as well?

[thinking]

I don't think it's the biggest drop or addiction to wobbles which will make dubstep "do a dnb", it will be people getting unbelievably pendatic and "taking sides" due to too much time on forums!!!!

gotta disagree here mate. Yes the scene's growing quickly thanks to a strong online presence, and this forum is getting busier every day, but the internet still only represents a slim %age of any given scene or demographic - and internet forums are definitely not the tastemakers.


The scene is guided by the 'big names' who come up with a new direction/style, then consequently the acres of second line producers who copy them and the labels which release their tunes, and also by the punters in the raves.

[nesslei]

one big standout for me is breakage's new one clarendon/the shroud. the dubstep influence is all over it, yet it is more at dnb tempo.

yesss.

[Littlefoot]

I don't think it's the biggest drop or addiction to wobbles which will make dubstep "do a dnb", it will be people getting unbelievably pendatic and "taking sides" due to too much time on forums!!!!

gotta disagree here mate. Yes the scene's growing quickly thanks to a strong online presence, and this forum is getting busier every day, but the internet still only represents a slim %age of any given scene or demographic - and internet forums are definitely not the tastemakers.


The scene is guided by the 'big names' who come up with a new direction/style, then consequently the acres of second line producers who copy them and the labels which release their tunes, and also by the punters in the raves.

i think you read my post as "i dont like dubstepforum"
which isnt true at all...

i wasnt talking about the state of this place at all...

[Littlefoot]

The scene is guided by the 'big names' who come up with a new direction/style, then consequently the acres of second line producers who copy them and the labels which release their tunes, and also by the punters in the raves.

i dont quite see your point here? unless you are agreeing with me...

my point was that the people guiding are not taking sides, so why should we?

it's a back and forth thing

the more people into minimal and deep say they dont like wobbles, the more the wobbles will become crappy because there will be a divide, and the more the deep and minimal will become elitist..neithers gonna help anyone

what im saying is it looks like some "dubstep crusaders" are gonna start popping up and snuffing their noses at people who at the end of the day, are part of the same movement, and Ive seen this happen in other scenes, and it is the sign of the end

[shonky]

what im saying is it looks like some "dubstep crusaders" are gonna start popping up and snuffing their noses at people who at the end of the day, are part of the same movement, and Ive seen this happen in other scenes, and it is the sign of the end

People aren't going to like certain styles within a genre though. And with forums available they're going to say so. Nobody is going to stay loyal to something they don't rate, and also there's no reason to think that because people like the same music as you that you have anything else in common.

I do take issue on the "deep" vs wobbler thing - deep I often find well dull in the dance (you wanna meditate take up buddhism), and the wobblers are kinda played out to my mind. There really is way more potential to the music than funkless, dark halfstep and mindless, one-note bangers, so it's more than an either/or situation. I mean the earliest stuff was deep and had wobble and 2 step and techno, so it's not impossible is it.

[metalboxproducts]

what im saying is it looks like some "dubstep crusaders" are gonna start popping up and snuffing their noses at people who at the end of the day, are part of the same movement, and Ive seen this happen in other scenes, and it is the sign of the end

People aren't going to like certain styles within a genre though. And with forums available they're going to say so. Nobody is going to stay loyal to something they don't rate, and also there's no reason to think that because people like the same music as you that you have anything else in common.

I do take issue on the "deep" vs wobbler thing - deep I often find well dull in the dance (you wanna meditate take up buddhism), and the wobblers are kinda played out to my mind. There really is way more potential to the music than funkless, dark halfstep and mindless, one-note bangers, so it's more than an either/or situation. I mean the earliest stuff was deep and had wobble and 2 step and techno, so it's not impossible is it.

Are you mad or something. Variety's for quiters

[thump rat]

LOL at the thread title

Now i can't be arsed to read through the whole thread so my opinion has most likely been regurgitated but what the heck. Dubstep for me is healthy, plenty of styles spreading across the spectrum we call dubstep, breaky stuff, steppy stuff, wobbly stuff, deep stuff, Minimal stuff yada yada yada, now you can gripe that there isn't enough of such style, but in the end i think if you got the gripe then its upto you to dig in and make it yourself.

For me, the only danger with Dustep is segregation amongst the scene. I think the future of the genre doesn't necessarily lie with the producers, producers will continue to make music in their bedroom, it lies with the DJ's and Promoters, infact more so with the promoters. If they book the same DJ's that play the same tunes from the same exclusive camp of producers then it will stagnate. Lets face it, due to the internet you can hear all sorts of styles in your bedroom, its when you go out thats when you see how the genre as a whole can be reflected on, it will be a sad day if i have to goto a jump up dubstep rave to go nuts, or a 2-step dubstep rave to skank. But, if they book an eclectic line-up, then if the DJ is just rinsing one style its not so bad, as the next DJ is gonna switch to another style anyway. For me the next DMZ is the best line-up i've seen there, as its varied and theres different faces than i would expect, i hope to see this happen more often.

[kidkut]

There seems to be this grey area between brokenbeat, dubstep and techno that sits with me best, its pretty much what all my sets (whether live or with ThinKing on the radio) consist off.

I'm thinking of artists like kuma, borg, TRG, Pangea, 2562/Dogdaze, Juswan, Boxcutter, Burial, Peverelist, Appleblim, Martyn, Mayhem, Gatekeeper, October and Cloak & Dagger who consistantly put out material i like.

I like to introduce other genres in the mix also, like Boards of Canada, Breakage, Cinematic Orchestra, basically like this mix (self whorage!):

http://dubstepforum.com/viewtopic.php?t ... artofbeatz

Wedge - Overfiend (Gatekeeper refix) - Reduction (forthcoming)
Djunya - Brahman Dub - Immerse (forthcoming)
Borg - Kisses of Fire - Immerse (forthcoming)
Peverelist - Roll with the Punches - Dub
Kuma - Lost in Translation - Immerse (forthcoming)
Migrant - No Name - Dub
Shackleton - Blood On Your Hands - Skull Disco
23hz & Numaestro - El Rif - Dub
Ramadanman - Rosetta - Dub
Mala - Lean Forward - DMZ
2562 - Resistance Dub - Dub
Skream - Losing Control - Tempa
Distance - Delight - Planet Mu
The Cinematic Orchestra - Reel Life - Ninja Tunes
Gatekeeper - Let Go - Punch Drunk (forthcoming)
Trg - Ghetto Romance - Dub
Kuma - Dawn Stepped Outside - Immerse (forthcoming)
Burial - Forgive - Hyperdub
Boards of Canada - You Could Feel The Sky - Warp Music

I do find a taste for the more tribal sounds as well with regards to Shackleton and a new tune by Trg - Drumtribe.

Basically i like my beats deeeeeeeeeeeep, which is why i love being Bristol because a lot of people are on that vibe.

Make sure you check that broken mix of ThinKings, there aint much of that particular style of broken about but damn its good!

[bob crunkhouse]

David E Sugar - Oi New York This is London (Hot Chip vs Ragga Twins Remix)
http://www.boomkat.com/item.cfm?id=42407

i like this one, pretty good

cheers for that, big tunes.

[twenty3]

The return of ANDREAS TILLIANDER:

he had an album Ljud back in the day that was was a 2-step inspired glitch hybrid in the Mille Plateaux style that I loved.

He recently released a few 12" with an updated, more dubstep inspired sound.

http://www.boomkat.com/labels/?id=4326

None of these tunes are fully hitting the mark for me but you can see the potential for some real interesting sounds.

[grievous_angel]

Mixing up tempo is quite a good idea for production but a pig to mix. But my album goes from 100 through 120, 130, and a bunch of 138s...

Interesting point about same producers making both bangers and deep shit - some truth in that. ALso - n-type this week was playing bangers, but mixing them in a really deep way. Good trick...

[Littlefoot]

what im saying is it looks like some "dubstep crusaders" are gonna start popping up and snuffing their noses at people who at the end of the day, are part of the same movement, and Ive seen this happen in other scenes, and it is the sign of the end

People aren't going to like certain styles within a genre though. And with forums available they're going to say so. Nobody is going to stay loyal to something they don't rate, and also there's no reason to think that because people like the same music as you that you have anything else in common.

I do take issue on the "deep" vs wobbler thing - deep I often find well dull in the dance (you wanna meditate take up buddhism), and the wobblers are kinda played out to my mind. There really is way more potential to the music than funkless, dark halfstep and mindless, one-note bangers, so it's more than an either/or situation. I mean the earliest stuff was deep and had wobble and 2 step and techno, so it's not impossible is it.

yo mate, im 100% behind discussing music, i do it all day! and i agree of course everyones not gonna get alone

my point is this

im not saying everyone should have a big love in and the wobblers and the deeps should have a big hugging session, what im saying is this (actually non existant) divide is gonna damage the scene, thats my point originally, people trying to make a massive differentiation, when a lot of the guys who are setting these trends cover both grounds fully..

its a matter of flavours

I love Pizza, in general, its my favourite food. But i cant stand mushrooms, so the ones with mushrooms I avoid.. but I still love pizza! not "pizzas without mushrooms"

[grievous_angel]

BTW, another name that is not really dubstep, but very obviously on the same journey as dubstep, only a bit more mental, is an artist called Bass Soldier. Don't think he's put anything out yet but I have a TP of a techno remix he did that is just off the hook. Bass that is so wobbly it makes the sky fall, meditational and banging at the same time. Worth looking out for.