New Zealand drum n bass/jungle producer J Plates has been busy in the studio working on his brand new single which features two tracks: The Relic and Liquid Metal. Signed to Skalator Music, J Plates is based in the UK these days. He has releases on many record labels including Offworld Recordings, Liquid Brilliants and Omni Records.
From the very start of The Relic my ears were filled with atmospheric sounds and a jungle drum beat. This tune takes me back to the late 90's DnB/Jungle scene, and it reminds me of artists like Hive and Source Direct, but with a crisper fresher feel. I really love the jungle break that comes in every 16 bars. You very rarely hear a break sample like that in new tunes anymore. How the jungle and drum n bass sound has evolved is incredible - broken up into sub-genres within a genre all originating from the amen break sample. This tune is helping jungle to make a comeback. The bass lines are big and bold and there's a solid drum beat, with the breaks and atmospheric sounds on point. The Relic is just over 6 minutes long like proper jungle tunes, and that is very good to see.
The second track on the Single is called Liquid Metal. I quite like the name of the track - it reminds of my metalhead and liquid drum n bass days, like opposite spectrums working together. The song starts off with interesting synth sounds followed by an impressive drum n bass and jungle beat. The Intro plays out for a while, then suddenly there's a bass drop, and a banshee style synth sound followed by a classic jungle riff which builds up to the strongest part of the song. The bass is brilliant, with its deep sub bass and mid-range bass sounds descending whilst harmonising with the sub bass. The mix of all the different sounds from bass to mid-range, to atmospherics and the drum beat all work together extremely well. Liquid Metal is definitely the stronger song from these singles. It has a darker feel to it, but the jungle beat is very energetic, making it a definite dance tune.
https://soundcloud.com/in-reach/premiere-j-plates-liquid-metal-skltr013
J Plates (J. Graham) has released music worldwide on labels such as; Silent Force Recordings (UK), In-Reach Records (UK), Omni Music (UK), Skalator Music (PT), Audio Theory Records (GR), Offworld Recordings (UK), Deafmuted Records (CZ), Liquid Brilliants (RU), ill Records (UK), Bare Necessity Records (UK); had tracks featured on a slew of international radio shows & podcasts including Bass Drive, The Green Room, Rude FM, DNB Dojo, Naked Beats, Jungle Train, Phuturistic Bluez, and BBC Radio 1; performed alongside artists such as Dave Owen (Good Looking Records), Calyx & Teebee (Ram Records), Concord Dawn (Uprising Records), Bulletproof (Cyanide Recordings), Truth (Deep Medi Music), Optimus Gryme (OGR), Black Sun Empire (BSE), Octane & DLR (Dispatch Recordings); and received track support from a reputable list of artists such as; Stunna, A Sides, Klute, Vice Versa, Con*Natural (aka MC Conrad), John Rolodex, René LaVice, DJ Stretch, DJ Trax, Skeptical, Random Movement and many more.
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