Review Summary: Introducing..... Doom & Bass
There’s something in the water in Bristol. The city is well known for its ‘90s trip-hop exports, and has continued to uphold its reputation as a haven for experimental electronic music throughout the decades. Dance music labels like Livity Sound and Timedance currently lead the way through a focus on innovative sound design. But one of the lesser known labels operating out of Bristol is UVB-76, run by artists Gremlinz and Ruffhouse. Drawing inspiration from the enigmatic Russian broadcast of the same name, the label fuses deep techno and drum & bass with black-metal adjacent imagery to create a mysterious aesthetic, towing the line between multiple genres for a sound all its own. Overlook’s 2017 opus “Smoke Signals” is a perfect example of how UVB-76 stands out in the landscape of underground electronic music, providing a freshly dark take on drum & bass.
“Did you hear that?”
Overlook’s style is part of a lineage of drum & bass that was most popular in the ‘90s, but the themes and sonic approach here are different. Where the oldskool sound was often rooted in science fiction, “Smoke Signals” is permeated by a sense of unease, and at times, misanthropy, that wouldn’t be out of place on a doom metal or black metal record. In conjunction with an emphasis on drone, distortion, and an almost brutalist take on the classic breakbeat, Overlook offers a fresh take on a genre of music in line with one of its more niche sub-genres called ‘darkstep.’ In a way, Overlook manages to flip conventional drum & bass structure on its head, turning it into a texture. This is complemented by sections that eschew hi-hats and other high frequency percussion completely, focusing on the sub-bass, kick drum, and pads to further pull the listener into the murky abyss. Contributing to a rich, creepy atmosphere is the frequent use of vocal samples, which describe uncomfortable scenarios when they’re not completely scrambled and unintelligible.
The only downside to “Smoke Signals” is its length. Because the music on it is so hazy and dark, it does lack a certain variety that can make its track list start to drag around halfway through. However, when the right mood strikes, a front-to-back listen is effortless and transportive. If you let it wash over you, the music on “Smoke Signals” is liable to inspire some headbanging, or at the very least, make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. And whether or not you’re steeped in Bristol’s musical history, it should provide insight into the region's unique sonic outlook. Come on in, the water’s freaky.
