Sweet Headache

Sweet Headache 082: “Bass Magic”

I really admire what some artists are doing with bass: Some just let it drone in the background, some let it wobble, distort it, toss it out, get it back in, let it rise from below to fill the whole spectrum and let it disappear again. This mix is dedicated to what I consider bass magic – creative uses of low frequencies. This is especially common in Dubstep, but there are many non-Dubstep artists who do cool stuff in that area, so I felt it would be a shame to restrict myself to one genre. This mix is cross-genre, wild and bass-heavy. Let the magic begin!

Skream is certainly one of the people who made Dubstep what it is today. I have to admit I am not a big fan of all of his productions, but the track “Phat Head” from his latest EP with Benga is pretty cool. By the way, you can get their Scion EP for free. Go get it!

Knife Party is a side project by Rob Swire and Gareth McGrillen from Pendulum and has been getting quite a bit of attention lately. Their relation with Pendulum probably helped, but their music is actually pretty good. “Fire Hive” reminds me a bit of Skrillex’s “First Of The Year”, but it’s definitely a banger.

I hadn’t heard about Buzzwak before, but this track is a great track for DJs: It starts with around 127 BPM, but it has a massive Dubstep-style break that can easily be pitched to 140 BPM, thereby allowing nice and smooth transitions between different styles. I have written about mixing tracks with different tempos before, and this one is a very nice example.

Tracklist:

• Fytch & Catpain Crunch feat. Carmen Forbes – Raindrops
• Skream – Phat Head
• Reso – Busted Crunk
• Knife Party – Fire Hive
• Flux Pavilion – Lines In Wax Ft. Foreign Beggars
• Dodge & Fuski – Aerophobia
• Vinja – Bombassador (Original Mix)
• Buzzwak – Mumbling Music (Access Denied Remix)
• HECKMANN, Thomas P aka DRAX LTD II – Amphetamine (Umek remix)
• Kioskvandalen – Unterwegs
• Porter Robinson – Say My Name
• Mord Fustang – Super Meat Freeze
• Midnight Conspiracy – Discord (The Chaotic Good Remix)
• Skrillex feat. Members of The Doors – Breakn’ a Sweat (Zedd Remix)
• Adele – Rolling In The Deep (Dirty Noise ‘Meets The Dubstep’ Remix)

Image: Stephen Poff // CC-by-nc-nd