Juno Recommends Dubstep: July 2022

Review: Infernal by name, intrepid by nature... The mighty Zygos takes a stand with three rather cheeky twists and flips. 'Svensk Riddim' takes a Terje-fied trip to Cuba with insatiably funky results while 'Ekte Dub' plays the consummate foil with its stripped back subs and ghostly riff. 'Waves' finishes the set with a Lafayette-a-min horn heaves and the smokiest 808 hits you've heard this side of Atlanta. XXX rated.

Review: Putting the Head into Headland, New Zealand beat conjurer Gene Warriner gets his cosmic thing on for this superb System release. Each track laden with weight and hypnotic charm, 'Dogtooth' sets the scene and lures into the mist with its slow and sludgy diversions. It's followed by a whole stack next level sorcery; 'Roamer' is a disarming creeper from another dimension, 'Industry' was actually made out of your dreams while 'Sour' was made out of your nightmares. Finally Epoch goes bananas on the remix as he takes Headland's last single 'Garbo' and takes it to some very strange places. System smash it once again.

Review: Canadian producer Conducts lands on Wheel & Deal Records with a fierce four track EP that lays bare his devastating style. The rich sound designs are paired with floor-destroying bass and for that reason this one has already been getting big drops from the likes of N-Type, Hatcha and Muhla. 'Trim' in particular has a killer low end that tumbles down the scale with oscillations so fuzzy they melt your whole body. 'Same Area' is a more textural and muscular workout and '1645%' keeps it street level and late night.

Review: The Deep Heads crew comes through with a first sampler from their third volume of Deep Heads Dubstep cuts. It's another one all about heavy bass and heady atmospheres and another one that proves that dubstep can still be a vital sound when done right. Kromestar opens with 'Another Day' and its dreamy space synths, then 'Congi' cooks up lurching beats and lunging chords for a lovely late night vibe. Biome's 'Night Flight' is an exquisitely programmed drum work out that floats in mid-air and Josh Vishnu closes down this fine EP with the darker mood and cavernous bass of 'Truth'.

Review: Feeling Peaky? Good... We have just the tonic as the northern crew start up a new black label series. Anonymous producer, serious vibes - both cuts really bite into that classic mid-2000s sound and groove and mindset. 'Nine Lives' will curl your whiskers at 20 paces thanks to its classic wobble and trippy overlays. 'Dubplate' maintains those deep vibes with a measured groove, brilliant spoken word sample (possibly from the late great Leon from Music House) and a mutated bassline that twists and turns as the track progresses. Proper business. Limited to 300. No represses.

Review: The Deep heads crew have put together some superb sounds for the third volume of their Deep Heads Dubstep Volume 3 and now they are issuing plenty of the cuts on a series of tasty samplers. Danny Scrilla kicks this off with some classic urban soundscapes and reflective synths and Escapism Refuge's 'Traps' then gets a nice bump on. Sukh Knight's 'Havoc' introduces some nice frosty low end wobble and Synpal & Ras Stimulant close down with the midnight shuffle of 'Ital Being.' This is cutting edge stuff that shows there is plenty of life in the dubstep sound yet