Photo cred: Henrik Fjoord Photography
In case you missed the last edition, this series is our way of letting you know who we think you should be keeping an eye on at the moment.
This time I’ve curated a list of producers of varying sizes, each doing new and interesting things within their work that’s pushing the scene in the right direction. In addition to that, some of the guys on this list are genuinely some of my favourite producers, so when I praise them be sure I mean what I say.
Alphabetical order as usual, Juan doesn’t play favourites:
Blumey
Hailing from the south, Blumey fully brings that old skool vibe and Bristol sound we all love to his music. Combining clean production with pure flow, his tracks are full of energy and sure to wreak havoc inna dance!
‘Said & Done’ is pure evidence of that.
Cartridge
Where to begin… It still baffles me that this dude only has just under 700 followers, everything he makes is absolute weight and his production is on some Kahn level shit, you can’t afford to not pay attention - And oh yeah, he’s co-founder of Subversion Audio and part of Concept Collective and Siege Collective too.
Spooky played this on radio so I don’t really need to vouch for this one
Dystinkt
I’ve been a fan of Dystinkt for a pretty long time now and for good reason. In fact, his remix of Time by Chase & Status is one of my favourite dubstep tracks full stop. The Subliminal Sounds bossman is Bradford based and is certainly putting on for the northern scene with his consistently versatile productions.
This might not be the most accurate example of his work as it’s two years old now, but I recently heard it for the first time in a mix and I was blown away - but I’d still encourage you to look further into his dub catalogue yourself.
Gru Var
I first came across Gru Var whilst running a war dub in ‘The Circuit’ and since then he’s continued to impress me. Immaculate production coupled with an impressive natural rhythm ensure his tracks remain highly energetic in his portrayal of that wonderful dark garage kind of sound over various tempos.
‘A Mechanical Man’ is a prime example of this.
KALI
In fairness I don’t know an awful lot about KALI other than the fact he’s Manchester based, but what I do know is the guy does some serious damage with hip hop acapellas.
‘Beef’ is one of the most vibey tunes I’ve come across in a while, that ride throughout the drop gives the track so much movement.
Opus
Opus has got to be one of the most talented guys in the scene currently, and rightly so the past year or so has been very exciting for him.
With releases on White Peach, Encrypted Audio, Simply Deep and a recent signing to Crucial, it’s no surprise his music is ripping dance floors across the country a new one - seriously, if you’ve heard an Opus tune on a rig the first 3 words to go through your head were probably “what the fuck”.
This one is by no means an exception
Phill\\Clinton
Associated with the 140 Ninja imprint, Phill has been making waves for a little while now. Bringing a heavy flare and riddim like flow to a lot of his music despite it remaining on the deeper side of things.
Just don’t get the \\'s backwards
S3 Dubs
Birmingham badman S3 is truly one of the most versatile guys out there doin’ bits at the moment. At home making DNB, Funky, bassline, Grime and Dubstep, S3 Dubs is truly a musical chameleon.
Sensi
Nottingham resident Sensi provides us with plenty of variety with his music. With releases on Chameleon Audio, Grime Disciple and Siege Collective (to name a few), he’s also supported the likes of Samba, Bushbaby and TS7.
Wista
A master of minimal 140, Wista is one of those producers who’s seriously a pro at using space within his tracks. Very tricky choosing just one track for this guy, but the evil sounds of ‘Hound’ are definitely a good starting point:
Penned by Emti:
https://soundcloud.com/emtiness