LENZMAN Vinyl & CDs

Review: Releases like this demonstrate the utter vanguard of British drum & bass. It's as if this were a G20 summit for some of the genre's most eminent lords, as we hear Goldie, Jubei, Submotive and Lenzman all team up for a four-way rampage. Both tunes on this lethal weapon, through well-placed Reeses and complex metallic snare rebounds, convey the mood of utter dark fantasy. The mood is that of being graced by the presence of monstrously regal higher sonic powers.

Review: The North Quarter label serves up nine exclusive tracks on this superb double LP which is the culmination of many years friendship of Lenzman & Dan Stezo. The former lays down the seamless flow while the latter delivers perfectly introspective lyrics in a heart aching falsetto and all the tunes are solely from The Northern Quarter associates. The liquid drum & bass grooves are soulful and soaring, with plaintive pianos draped over the silky sequences. It's a warm and emotive listen for days at home as well as once dance floors open up again. Favourites include Zero T & Unitsouled's frictionless 'Slightest Moment' and FD's deep diving closer 'Top2Bottom VIP.'

Review: Submorphics' new imprint Rosebay Music returns with its second release; this time the producer is joined by North Quarter boss and soulful drum & bass aficionado Lenzman. Fusing the former's soulful approach and the latter's high-octane neurofunk, 'Echoes Of November' harks back agog to six months ago, with snappy but swung drum lines providing the base for fast future arpeggiators, wistful soul vox chopups and bubbling synths, which almost recall the same bright guitar. As warmly merigold in tone as the front cover suggests, B-sider 'The Messenger' is just as neo-noir-at-noon, in part thanks to its deeply uplifting vocal line.