Over the years the Playaz label has been known to unleash filthy club bangers a plenty into the DnB world, all of which have been embraced with open arms and rinsed on the dance floor. However, as time has gone on the Playaz camp have begun to show other sides to their arsenal and this was highlighted with the release of the first Playaz ‘Flavours EP’ earlier this year.
The release encompassed all aspects of DnB, from Jump Up, Neuro and a smattering of Tech Step from a diverse mix of artists from stalwarts like Sub Zero, Jaydan, Need for Mirrors alongside rising talents such as Tayza and Shimah. The release was well received and the tracks were rinsed by DJ’s across the board of the musical spectrum we know as Jungle.
Listeners to (One half of the Head Honcho’s behind Playaz) DJ Hype’s radio show for the last 6 months will have known that another Flavours EP would drop later this year. Keen listeners to sets from the Playaz camp both live, on mixtapes and radio shows have been teased with tunes that we heard might appear on the anticipated released. Those people (including me) finally rejoiced this week as the second instalment of the Playaz Flavours EP was finally unleashed on the general public.
After listening to it I can safely confirm that it is bigger, badder and better than the last! Featuring tracks from the likes of Netsky, Sub Zero, Potential Badboy, Wickaman, Hoodlum, Mavrick, Shimah, Erb n Dub and Legacy it offers some absolute heavyweights for your listening pleasure.
When ‘Tomorrow’s Another Day’ was first released a couple of years back, it was probably one of the first times I’d come across a new producer by the name of Netsky. Since that time, the rise of the ‘Boris’ sound has been nothing short of amazing, and finally Pascal and Hype have decided to give us the long desired VIP of one of his earliest tracks. If you’re a fan of DnB (which I’m sure by visiting this site you are) you’ll know this straight away and it’s been rocking dance floors up and down the country for yonks.
The Wickaman, Hoodlum & Mavrick track ‘Na Fool Me Again’ is a lovely little rolling shuffler, with a haunting vocal, ragga sample, piano and bleep bassline. I like this is as it’s a useful tool to have in your set to move things along, whilst keeping things quite tough.
Potential Badboy offers another slab of bouncy ragga-dance hall style DnB on ‘Can’t Stop Me’ complete with auto-tone style chorus and squelchy bass line. If you like his previous productions, you’re going to absolutely love this song and I know this is going to stay in my bag for some time to come!
Things take on a more diverse turn once we arrive at Shimah’s Electro Step. I’ve heard a lot of Hype sets over the years, and on a lot of his feature mixes and radio shows I’d definitely say I’d heard more of this very synth heavy, deep, not too hard, but rolling sound of DnB in recent times. I concede that I wouldn’t usually make this a track of my choice, but there is something about it and I am definitely looking to use this in future sets.
The biggest shock of the EP falls to one of the most established artists on the Playaz roster, Sub Zero. Known for making tracks which sound like a parking lot fight between a loading Spectrum 48k and a broken microwave (I freaking love them!), recent releases from Sub Zero have suggested a shift in sound. ‘Make You Wanna Do Right’ is another shot in this direction and is a dark roller, which focuses on a tight beat, rising strings, vocals and a brooding bassline. The quality of the production speaks volumes and I can see many DJ’s rinsing this one in their sets to great dancefloor delight.
The final track on the EP Erb N Dub & Legacy’s ‘Alaska’ is a downright slice of pure DnB filth, with it’s epic future sounding breakdown which then shifts into a grinding bassline and stilted kicks which will rock any crowd. I can definitely say I’ve heard this played out a lot and am now glad that I can use it to play in my sets.
If you buy one DnB release this week, I think you should make it this one! I’m sure there’s a few of you that might disagree, but there really is something for everyone on this. I’ll be awaiting Volume 3 which I’m sure we’ll be seeing in 2012!!
