- MC and drum & bass scene stalwart Mark System settles into his production guise for dBridge's Exit label with two techno tinged drum & bass rollers. "Peach Fuzz" is set off by an indecipherable automaton chant that sets the tone for its rigid robot funk style. Synth chimes, buzzers and riffs revolve around the central motif of the machine-like voice, tic-toc beats and subby bass, while the occasional and unexpected growl gives the track a looming sense of danger and excitement that is never fully released. The monotonic groove and the stark minimalism in the end are too much: While it's a catchy DJ tool, "Peach Fuzz" is a bit forgettable on the whole.
"Voices" is on a similar tip but here the arrangement of melodic elements and breakbeat science help build a much more memorable and better tune. What starts off as a steppy bass and beats combo slowly progresses into a breakbeat-driven number as the menacing and shadowy vibe gives way to a wistful sense of melancholia. Sounding like glitchstep wunderkind Martsman hooking up with the Metalheadz crew back in 1997, System juxtaposes and mixes up different sides of the drum & bass ethos resulting in a new and exciting blend.
Tracklist A Peach Fuzz
B The Voices