soothsayer's Full Review: The Higher Education Drum 'N' Bass Session by DJ D...
When you first listen to The Higher Education Drum’N’Bass Session, you are easily hooked, lulled into easy listening drum’n’bass, which in itself is an oxymoron. In fact, the first track is like a trap, ever luring you to deeper, harder, eviler drum’n’bass. This is a good thing for listeners unfamiliar to the genre; this CD will help listeners ease their way in. Veteran junglists will also find this CD a great addition to their library.
Many styles are represented in the CD from jazzstep to techstep. The mixes are very listenable, combining good melodies with complex beats. Sometimes when you listen to other drum’n’bass, it can sound monotonous, with very boring beats and lack of melody. DJ DB will have none of that; he stresses a well rounded approach with melodies and beats.
The CD contains 18 tracks. It starts off with a tame drum’n’bass track, the beats kept at bay so as not to scare the listener. The beats, however, get harder and harder, and more evil as you progress through the CD; once it hits Vibrations, there is nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. The CD ends on a soft note, with the jazzy EZ Rollers hit “Tough at the Top”.
Overall, the CD is excellent, and quite listenable. Here are some selections from the The Higher Education Drum’N’Bass Session.
Track 1, Memories (Kazimir).
Sparse sounding drums in ?? beat, with deep distorted bass help recreate the feel of a hazy memory, perhaps a dream? In the background is an eerie sounding horn melody. A lone voice, echoing distantly to create the effect of a hazy recollection, sings out the lyrics to the song. “Like a Melody, I want to be on your Mind. Like a memory, I want you to keep me”.
Track 6, Satellite (Control Freq)
This piece begins with hypnotic trance combined with fast drum sample (the transition from the previous track). Punk guitar with hard hitting furious drum samples combine with “satellites coursing through outer space” sound effects to give this piece grungy attitude.
Track 11 and 12 are Phunckateck tracks combining fast unrelenting beats and noise. The melody has an almost mind-numbing, hypnotic quality. It’s like having your brain reprogrammed.
Track 13, Titanium – The Metal Track (Gfs)
Evil sounding track. It has a fuzzy sounding, subdued, trash guitar yo-yoing around in the background, with various futuristic sounding electronic samples providing harmony. This track is fast paced and furious.
Track 14, The Message (Abstract).
The message is to turn up your speakers, let the subwoofer rip down your walls, let the neighbors call the cops on ya. The drum sample here is relentless, the main harmony sounds like what it would sound like if one turned up the speakers way up -- “that sound” – even if your speakers are turned low. “That sound” then gets deeper, funkier, more pulsating. I think it’s sending us a message, but we ignore it, too busy listening to the beat. The Message is an example of techstep drum’n’bass.
Track 15, 116.7 (Acen)
A voice from beyond says “One sixteen point seven”, the drum samples come online. “That sound” from the previous track is back again this time sporting a different melody, and sounding more ominous and evil.
Track 17, Vibration (Scientist 212).
This is a fast piece, the vibrations and repetitive passages reminds me of riding the subway. Drums play at a fast ?? beat while a three note ultra low bass provides vibrating listening pleasure. A xylophone touches on a simple three note melody in ascending and descending order with keyboard varying on it using chords.
Track 18, Tough At the Top (E-Z Rollers).
This is a jazzy, drum and bass remix of the EZ Rollers song. It is a fun, danceable piece featuring acoustic bass and drums in ?? beat. Funky Wurlitzer wahwah and flute are thrown for jazzy effect. The solo voice brought forward. The original EZ Rollers song on which the mix is based is a slower, less splashy song, but one that was picked up and mixed by a lot of DJs.
Track Listing:
01 Memories (Kazimir)
02 Pendulum (Pieter K)
03 Red Sky (Amar)
04 Rolling (Soul Coughing)
05 Synapse (Karl K)
06 Satellite (Control Freq)
07 I Know You Got Soul (Trade Secrets)
08 Love Dump (Static X)
09 Synapse (Karl K)
10 Black Dawn (Acen)
11 Invocacion (Phunckateck's Juju Vs. Ufo!)
12 Rollcage (Phunckateck's Ufo!)
13 Titanium-The Metal Track (Gfs)
14 The Message (Abstract)
15 116.7 (Acen)
16 Memories (Kazimir)
17 Vibration (Scientist 212)
18 Tough At The Top (E-Z Rollers)
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