CITY1 - Kiswahili EP

DNO Records

£14

Cat No: DNO002
Format: 12" Vinyl
Release Date: 19th June 2020
Genre: Dubstep / Bass

Though citizens the world over are trapped inside under lockdown measures, freshly minted Brighton label, DNO Records, continues traversing the globe to highlight rising talents from the international bass community.

Release number two — the ‘Kiswahili’ EP — comes from CITY1, himself something of a wandering spirit. He hails from the Okinawa islands in Japan’s tropical southern tip, a place of teeming coral reefs and long golden sands, where inhabitants are known for living long lives. Having moved to the bustling capital of Tokyo, CITY1 has since joined Goth-Trad’s Back To Chill crew.

The sound of the ‘Kiswahili’ EP is the sound of CITY1’s two worlds combined — the Pacific island’s mystical soul binding with the digital roar of the hyper-modern metropolis. A-side ‘Sifa’ draws on the polyrhythmic interplay between ramshackle percussive constructions and a gruff, oscillating low-end, built to push sound systems to their limit. Over on the B-side, beat work takes a step back, allowing thunderous atmospherics to take the fore. ‘Funza’ is a sparse futurescape, where blacksmith-hammer strikes puncture the swell of murderous subs, as swarms of acidic bleeps fire off like overactive synapses. On ‘Vitu’, flabby drum skins reverberate beneath the dominating undulation of bass and mournful Middle Eastern wails — a ritualistic death march for the dawn of a new decade. Last but not least comes the digital bonus track, ‘Cheka’. Though the most traditional dubstep offering here in terms of arrangement, CITY1 infuses the track with a coarse, Doppler effect dynamism to ensure it remains a cut above your average dancefloor weapon.

Another essential release from a label determined to make its mark, CITY1’s ‘Kiswahili’ EP arrives on 12” vinyl and digital on the 19th of June 2020.

Rhythms of postmodern realism at the very bottom of the DNO