Since the beginning of 2019, it’s safe to say that Bingo Bass have been on a bit of a steam roll, putting together some absolutely scorching singles to kick off the year, including the release of Zinc’s ‘Ammergency’, coupled with it’s VIP drop the following month.

Wang Records have dropped their first release, taking form as an exquisite ode to New School UKG (AKA NUKG). The compilation offers everything and anything under the UKG spectrum, with dark basslines, lush pads and ethereal vocals.

Bass music in the UK is arguably at it’s highest point ever, with festival bookings for bass artists currently hitting record heights and line ups around the country becoming more and more bass ready. This is due to a level of consistency that the higher ranked platforms and outlets are being able to hit more than anything, with the levels of creativity and quality rising at every turn. 

With more than 10 years in the game, Amsterdam’s Rachel Green is known for her unusual selections and onpoint mixing. Rachel grew up on Hip Hop, Dubstep and Funk, and her constantly evolving inspiration can be heard when she’s playing at radio stations, stages and clubs around the world. If you love all sorts of leftfield electronic music, this #WomxnInBass is for you!

It’s safe to say that we have been super impressed with both the regularity and consistency of the Strictly Flava release catalogue in recent months, as they continue to pump out bangers after banger almost weekly at this rate. Since the start of the year we have seen them team up with the likes of Earthnut, Fork & Knife and Royal Flush, with even more exciting projects from the likes of Minista, Kobe JT and more all coming in just before the Christmas break. 

It’s been a very impressive start to the year for the super experiences team behind YosH as FooR continue to explore the realms of releasing new bass music. After employing the energetic and super resoruceful Chris Merison (1/2 Tengu), they have taken in a surge of brand new releases, showcasing just how versatile bass music can be, including releases from KXVU, Kirbs and more.

It’s an exciting time for KXVU to say the least. In the last 4 months, he has stepped into the role of breakfast show host on Trickstar Radio, along with becoming the JunoDownload podcast host, putting out three solid releases across both Southpoint and YosH and more. One particular additional attribute is his appearance in the well renowned grime producer clash tournament Beatboss, which held it’s eighth official event last Friday at Five Miles London.

When you represent some of the world’s hottest artists it can sometimes feel like an uphill battle when having to choose the biggest tracks to feature on a compilation; luckily, it’s something Toolroom appear to do with ease.

It’s been a super exciting time for the CruCast team, with last week’s release of ‘VIP’ hitting the stores and causing pandemonioum across the UK bass music community. With such a high quality roster however, was anyone expecting anything else? It’s been a continious theme with the CruCast imprint to push out high quality music from the best of the best in our scene, which is seemingly why their next drop sits so perfectly amongst the rest of their catalogue.

On something of a resurgence, A dot R has put out some tantalising new releases over the last few months; from his cold comeback effort in ‘Dragon Styli’ to the release of the ‘Bassline Legacy’ compilation, the Birmingham legend is gathering momentum by the day and in doing so is treading exciting new ground.

There is no denying that there is currently an exciting movement taking place in the sleepy southern bass outpost of Brighton, which has been producing some of the scenes most exciting names in recent times, including the likes of Bushbaby, Freddie Martin, Zero, Hamdi, Hadean, Taiki Nulight and more just to name a few. One DJ who has been consistently smashing it among the local events and has started to make a real name for herself outside of the BN zone is Chary Nicks

We live in a time where the music industry is in constant fluctuation. Trends come and go as quick as the producers that ride their waves, making it almost impossible to predict the route that dance music in the UK and worldwide is going to take. We also live in an extremely DIY era, with producers, start up labels and musical individuals of all kinds always looking for the next way to improve their product.

Higgo has gone from strength to strength in the last couple of years. With releases on a host of labels including Project Allout Records, Four40, HAUSMADE, aswell as a wealth of self releases (including his masterpiece, Dynamite), Higgo is clearly making an impression in UKG. He was recently featured in the premiere edition of Conducta’s ‘Kiwi Manifesto’, and announced his own mix series, with the first ‘Garage & Bass 01’ dropping earlier this year. Watch out for Higgo, he’s not stopping anytime soon.

A trusted and highly regarded source of Electronic music and beyond, Juno Download has become a linchpin in the UK’s underground music industry. The multi-faceted platform deals with the purchasing of music, organising charts, as well as generally bringing awareness to artists who may not have substantial backing.

If you have been following the rapid expansion of UK bass music over the past few years, you will have done well to miss the goliath project that CruCast has worked itself into. Since their inception, they have continuously worked with some of the scene’s brightest sparks, with an original roster including Skepsis, Darkzy, Bru-C, Notion and more.

One thing we reallyy value at 3000 is a label steadfastness, and their ability to move with the times without wondering too far from their original ethos. One label we feel who is managing to gracefully step between the two extremes with perfect precision is 1Forty, a project set up by LOCKT to showcase the best in grime, bass, funky and beyond.

Tailor Jae is a DJ full of surprises, you can expect bass heavy sets, quick transitions and great technicality. Having graced venues such as The Nest, Lab 11, Redbull Music Academy, Village Underground and beating 2000 plus DJ’s to be crowned Mixmag and Coorslight DJ Quest Winner 2017, Tailor continues to make waves with her non-conformist sets.

It’s been an absolute pleasure to watch from a distance as the sounds of Saucy Music have developed over the last couple of years. Moving from a more wobbly bassline sound, the imprint has really paved the way forward in recent times, developing the specific sound of its concise roster into a much more mature, forward thinking bass collective.

In a time where UK Funky is really starting to receive both it’s deserved influential credit and hype, it’s always pleasing to see the veterans of the scene keep everything lively and vibrant. Since the genre has moved back into the public eye, the majority of releases have come to us in the now universally accepted formats of digital downloads, streams or free releases.

A staple of any self-respecting UK festival line-up for the last decade, Jaguar Skills is the absolute king of mashup sets. Over the last year we’ve seen him delve into production, with a recent bassline collab with Spookz then onto a heated offering with Wheeto and Scrufizzer, both out on Four40 records.

Approaching a year on from their conception, Dissident Sound have already established themselves as an imprint which is ready to push the musical boundaries of bass music in the UK. After full releases from Heritage (a joint project consisting of label owners Tribalist and Agora); Sir Rah and 9TRANE, in addition to a free EP by Movement (aka Agora) and two various artists compilations, Dissident Sound kick things off in 2019 with possibly their most experimental release to date.

It’s no secret that over the cause of the last year or so at least, the landscape of garage music in the UK has drastically changed. This is due to a combination of factors, including a shift in the mentality of DJ’s, preferring to veer towards the content of more modern producers over older, more established originals. I for one think this is a really good thing, as it is finally giving the genre the serious update it needs.

Once again, we have the pleasure of hosting a premiere from one of our favourite UK Bass labels, Four40 and this time they present some classic summery UKG vibes courtesy of Wes Thomas.

L U C Y is Bristol based producer & DJ living in London and is one of the undergrounds most exciting young talents. Her sets consists of intricate and effortless 140, her look is mysterious and it has certainly left us wanting more.

At threethousand, we are here to explore all realms of UK underground dance music, covering as much ground as possible wherever we can. As the boundaries of genres seem to continue to blur, we are finding more and more producers to be breaking the mould and causing quite the stir across a range of styles.

There is no doubting that both garage and UK funky are both very much back in the thick of the UK dance music conversation, with both genres managing to reemerge onto the scene throughout the explosive twelve months of music that was 2018. Because of their similarly timed reappearance on a more public scale, we often see the two genres layered together, which sees us pick up some interesting crossovers.

As far as labels in the bass scene go, it’s safe to say that there are few projects that have been able to keep pace with Punks over the last couple of years. Through a combination of incredible A&R skills and forward thinking release arrangement, they have striven to provide the scene with incredibly original bass music with a particular influence on breaksy themes. 

I spoke to Nico from Beastwang about their forthcoming debut release, Avirex Airwaves, which is out next month. With tracks from names across the UKG board, including Mind of a Drago, Smokey Bubblin’ B & Royal Flush, among others, its set to make an impact in the scene. Whilst known primarily for doing lively events across the country, Beastwang has recently expanded into the world of labels, with their new label, Wang Records.

Proletariat Base is the Kaizen Karnak’s (R1 Ryders) brand new alias, christened with a stonking debut release (Adrenal / Dikcotek) that hit the stores last Friday. Adrenal begins with a strong funky drumbeat and a thick warbling bassline, reminiscent of Pharaoh K and Chris Lorenzo. Diskotek sees fast paced, crisp percussion, expertly matched with a punching bassline that hits like a freight train.

Pioneering brand new tastemaker radio platform SISTER, Carly Wilford has become a trusted voice for the underground. A ground-breaking Presenter & DJ, she takes the artists she believes in and broadcasts their music to the world. Strongly connecting both the US and UK music scenes, her roots within the UK scene have helped to bring through so many of the artists on today’s airwaves.

After ending 2018 as a Kingpin, Hatter is relentless in maintaining his status as one of Brighton’s hottest emerging talents. A multi-genre producer as well as accomplished rapper, the South Coast talisman has been keeping very busy through these Winter months – a work-rate you should be familiar with after witnessing last year’s Hatterday series: five pieces of original content released on five consecutive Saturdays.

One thing we are most certainly starting to notice about the UK bass scene is a leaning towards social media presence and online capabilities, something which a lot of people are opposed to by principal. For us, we now live in an age where online presence and social media techniques have become essential as parts of a promotional campaign, and we feel that it’s something everyone is perfectly capable of being able to get involved in, without being bogged down in stats and figures.

As ever in the bassline world, Bru-C is on job, putting in the tireless work which has seen him rise to be one of the premiere MC’s in UK dance music. Through continuous tours, high profile release campaigns, exciting music videos and a tonne of live giveaways, Bru-C has social media in the palm of his hand, keeping his finger steadily on the pulse of the UK bass scene.

It’s a very exciting time for the Leeds based bass dyanmos known as Vital Techniques right about now, who seem to be hitting a serious patch of form, both in their live performances and releases. As an entity, the boys have been smashing it with the tracks they have been putting together, catapulting themselves to the top end of the spectrum within the bass scene.

Within the now extensive circles of underground dance music in the UK, there are few that can really hold a candle to the efforts of the legendary DJ Zinc over the years. Across his vast empire of a catalogue, we have been treated to such a broad range of styles it’s often actually quite difficult to comprehend. 

We are thrilled to see that Mr Virgo has dipped into his production arsenal to put together an awesome new sample pack, designed specifically to add a touch of spice to your Bassline compositions.

As a label, Night Bass really have been setting the pace in the bass scene for quite some time now, headed up by the insatiable appetite of AC Slater, who continues to supply the US, UK and beyond with a stream of excellent, forward thinking bass music. Amongst their roster we see regular apperances from the likes of Chris Lorenzo, Taiki Nulight, Jay Robinson, AC Slater himself and many more high profile names, all forging a unique sound for the LA based imprint.

In the UK, the male to female ratio of music producers is 49:1. Nevertheless, female DJ’s and producers stay rising; breathing fresh air into the underground, in what can be intimidating, patronising and sometimes unsafe environments. In a conscious effort to bring these powerhouse talents to the forefront of your mind, I will be sharing the stories of some of my favourite producer babes in our weekly #WomxnInBass series.

It’s been a great start to their reign for FooR’s brand new YosH imprint, who have hit the ground running with a selection of very refreshing releases  from a range of diverse artists, encompassing a wide range of bass music styles and designs.

As bass music grows and the spectrum expands ever further into the unknown spheres of creativity, it’s always pleasing to see the more established labels embracing this expansion with real finesse. Today we are here to take a look at the latest offering from the Brighton based 877 Records, who boast a super impressive catalogue to say the least. With releases from the likes of My Nu Leng, Majora, Distro and Kry Wolf just for starters, it’s safe to say that label head honcho Dom certainly has his finger on the pulse of British bass culture.

In our opinion, the long standing labels that have constantly provided the scene with top draw music deserve praise above all others, as consistency within a constantly altering musical landscape is one of the most difficult thing to maintain. At 3000 we really try to keep an eye on those who have been putting the work in, which is what makes this article so enjoyable for us.

2018 proved an exciting year for relative youngster MPH; with his upcoming release ‘Business Mode’ sounding masterfully tight and boasting some huge collabs, we at 3000 are sure the trend will continue long into future. This hard-hitting release pulls no punches and is announced by eponymous artillery shell ‘Business Mode’ featuring textbook vocal cuts from none other than Dread MC. Compact drum patterns and a prominent clave motif underscore Dread’s apocalyptic introduction, which soon makes way for the track’s bouncy, dissonant main theme. The opening track does what a good introduction ought to and foreshadows much of what is to come and nicely makes way for a VIP of the previously released ‘Mud’.

War season is upon us. Not only have the Grime scene’s MC’s been going at it, but now has come the time for producer’s to get busy too. BeatBoss, the genre’s #1 clash tournament for producers, returns for its 8th instalment.  

It’s no secret that as both a producer and as a live performer, Holy Goof has been spearheading the bassline movement across the UK and beyond for the last couple of years, consistetnly delivering fantastic DJ sets and highly reveered recordings. Through collaborations with My Nu Leng and his remix of Drake’s ‘God Plan’, he boasted some of the most celebrated releases to hit shelves throughout the course of 2018. 

Beastwang have proven themselves to be one the greatest independent promoters of the last few years. Throwing parties all over their hometown Leicester, and plans to go further afield, Beastwang have shown that with hard work and artistic sense, up-and-coming promoters can run successful nights without sacrificing their integrity. We spoke to Nico Singh, the founder of Beastwang, and the newly formed Wang Records, about the history of the project, and where its headed in the future…

Bristol based producers ‘My Nu Leng’ are basically synonymous with the UK bass scene at this point. From funky releases back in the day with the likes of Majora (Hips n’ Thighs still bangs), to their latest EP on Maraki, featuring artists such as Holy Goof and Iyamah, they’ve definitely been around the block.

What a whirlwind of a year 2018 was for Southpoint, who as a label put together 19 full releases, along with 50 free drops via their secondary ‘Southpoint: Introducing’ SoundCloud channel. There are few labels that seem to be able to handle such a bulk of releases and yet still maintain their maticulous quality control across all of the artists they bring into the fold.

We have heard tell of this for a while, but we are very pleased to see that the team at CruCast have decided to expand the camp. It’s always extremely important in our eyes for independant labels to look the future, looking to bring new, upcoming faces into the fold as often as possible, without disrupting their primary release schedule. It appears that CruCast have been plotting away with this one as they finally unveil the first recruit to their ‘New Blood’ roster.

Creativity is everything within bass music in our humble opinion. We are often subject to endless repetition as producer after producer joins the slowly expanding echo chamber that exists within the heart of any genre, Therefore, when we strike a goldmine of originality, we can’t help but get involved as we continue our quest to bring you guys the low down on the freshest bass music out there.

Now to begin with, the term UK bass music is a pretty broad one. In our eyes, this can cover an extremely wide range of genres and styles, anything from dubstep to bassline to garage to funky to grime to breaks and everything inbetween in fact.

It’s been a brief minute since we last touched down to take a peek at the goings on of Inkline, who it has to be said ended up with a fantastic 2018 catalogue. Throughout the year he worked closely with a range of labels to showcase his work, which arguably boasts some of the most original sound design in the world of bass music today.

For us, the current front runner across the now vast UK Garage scene is without a doubt Conducta. Over the course of 2018, the Bristolian bred prince of UKG was at the forefront of the genre, constantly putting together new projects, releases, remixes, live show and streams to showcase just how expansive it has become. UKG is without a doubt one of the most important genres to ever emerge out of the UK’s underground music peninsula, often being used as a certified shortcut to liven up a dance.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock you’re likely to have at least caught glimpses of Distinkt’s newest release that is nearly two weeks young to date.

It’s no secret at all that we are absolutely massive fans of the Articulate Sound movement, a label founded in 2015 with an incentive to deliver creative, original bass music, often bridging the blurred gap between bassline and UK funky, two cousin genres that were estranged for quite some time. 

As one of the main contributors to the threethousand brand, it’s very pleasing for us to see Brighton based all around music man: KXVU kick off his year with a pair of hearty heaters. Following on from his inclusion on the epic sixth edition of ‘Southpoint Presents’, we seem him now team up directly with FooR and Tengu, on their latest label venture: YosH Pit.

Guildford based Xeonz has recently hit the spotlight, with tunes being picked up by bassline tastemakers Skepsis and Darkzy to name a few. It’s not just the DJs either, Xeonz has a healthy portfolio of bookings, and releases on labels such as Crucast, 3000 Bass, Listed, and now Saucy Records. Also hailing from Surrey, Contaktz is even fresher faced on the scene.

Well, what a fantastic year 2018 was for the Brighton born now Bristol based bass wizard known as Bushbaby. Since first arriving on the scene in early 2016, the young mastermind has gone from strength to strength relentlessly, building an incredible level of momentum whilst simultaneously crafting his own truly unique sound yet delivering exactly what bass fans in the UK were asking for every single time.

Whilst we have a variety of different genre’s to thank for the initial emergence of Grime, it is perhaps Dancehall which has retained the most recognisable contributions to today’s scene (from a live performance aspect, at least). The very notion of a pull-up (or a ‘restart’ if you’re asking a journalist from the Evening Standard) is derived directly from Dancehall’s sound clash culture, and has grown to be an integral part of any live Grime set.

Brighton’s premiere dance music station, Trickstar Radio, has been gracing the airwaves since 2014, and has built up a fantastic reputation not only in the seaside town, but across the South-East and UK. Founded by dance fanatic Si Twiddy. Trickstar has gone from strength to strength under his guidance. Something that surprises a lot of new DJ’s is the quality of professionalism at Trickstar – from the equipment to the staff. When Si moved to Brighton in 2013, he noticed something. “Whilst I was walking my dog along the seafront, I realised that Brighton had a huge scene dedicated to dance music, with massive DJ’s and headliners filling clubs every week – yet there was no radio station to compliment this popularity.” So he set up Trickstar as a way to give this city’s bustling music scene a voice – and 7 years later, the station is stronger and more popular than ever.

Following on from our first installment of ‘the Bass Coast’ I decided to venture deeper into the chasms of bass music on the North American West Coast. Throughout my various conversations and attended events ‘Jesse Disociate’ seemed to be a name that regularly featured in and around line-ups across the family of venues in Vancouver. I was fortunate enough to drag the man along to interview (at a café called ‘Yolks’ no less, Irish heads rejoice) which you can read in full below:

If there is one genre that has made a serious impact on UK underground music through it’s revival in 2018 it has to be UK Funky, which through a combination of inclusions from top selectors and an internal need for more rhythmic influences within the scene has become a major influence across multiple underground genres.

Within a crowded underground scene, there is massive competition large areas of different genres to stand out and be as original as possible, without losing track of the genres you are supposedly attached to. However in an age where collaborations and cross genre experiments are appearing on every corner, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to tell who is associated with what anymore.

After what can only be described as a successful year for the team at Titanium Audio, we are very excited to see them make an early return to releasing in 2019, but in an unexpected move we see the primarily grime based label move into a heavy piece of  UK Bassline in the hands of none other than high flying bass wizz kid Sammy Virji.

As a genre, Bassline is an area that breeds expansion and forward thinking producers left right and centre. Some would actually describe this expanse of variation as a more vast umbrella genre called UK Bass music.

Well as a proud Brightonian it’s always an exciting moment for me to see fellow artists from the area push themselves out onto the world stage. In recent times we have seen a large range of Brighton acts set off on tour, including the likes of Taiki Nulight, Frankie Stew and Harvey Gunn and more. The most recent name to be added to this is none other than the well deserving Hadean, who smashed 2018 out of the park through a combination of weighty live appearances and well received releases.

There is always a bit of a buzz towards the beginning of the year within our ever expanding bass culture, with the Christmas break working as both a pallet recharger and musical inspirer, kicking the year off with a flurry of vibrant creations following the expansive range of end of year giveaways.

Bassline as a genre is nowhere near as young as a lot of the newer additions to the fanbase would believe. There were many years or northern dominance within the vibrant expanse of the bassline scene before it ever ventured anywhere near the south. This was the era of compilations and mixpacks such as ‘Birmingham Bassline’, a major contributor to my younger musical influences, to the point where I would be pushing these tapes upon my friends at every available opportunity.

Over the Christmas period, it’s safe to say that the internet is a wash with compilations, both celebrating the holidays and providing a yearly round up of different label’s progress over the last twelve months. One label that continues to push the best out of their artists for their Christmas eve giveaway is Southpoint, who have yet again put together a colossal collection of heaters as they bring out the sixth edition of their ‘Southpoint Presents’ series.

In recent times we have been keeping a key eye on a number of emerging artists. In a time of such mass expansion for the bass scene, we feel it is important for us to stay tuned in to both the forefront and the team of up and comers keeping everyone on their toes.

As far as upcoming producers go, there aren’t many who have been putting in work as consistently as Southampton’s own SILK, who has spent time this year refining and formatting his potent bassline sound, rendering him one of the strongest new faces on the scene. He has been making regular event apperances as well as stacking up some seriously impressive support, which is why it made perfect sense to us when we saw that he had teamed up with the infamous Lengoland, for their label’s third official release. 

For us it’s always incredibly pleasing to see labels burst onto the scene alongside fresh, exciting new artists, brimming with ideas and futuristic sounds. For this reason, we are very excited to get stuck into this weighty four track arrangement from the likes of MPH, a Canterbury located bass wizard, who gets very busy indeed across this one.

For those readers out-of-the-loop Strictly Flava has enjoyed a steady and consistent output this year with a number of notably catchy releases from the likes of Witchdoctor, Jay Barret, and Echelon amongst others. In a fitting testament to the productive year that the London-based label has overseen, Strictly Flava has nodded to two forthcoming releases, one produced by On1 and the other, a joint endeavour from Kobe JT & Minista.

hen it comes to bass, grime, garage, funky and even dubstep to an extent, there is still a stigma around a lot of labels that they are going to be the bad guys. This for the most part is a pretty wide misconception, given that the majority of people running the independent labels often share the same passion for the music as the artists they have involved. This often leads to certain figures not getting a lot of the credit they deserve.

Bristol-based A-Bee has been going from strength to strength this year. Following several appearances on Rinse and 10-Twenty Radio, and shows alongside the likes of Jossy Mitsu, A-Bee is now the head honcho of Mangoes + Melons, one of the most exciting new UKG labels that have arisen in 2018. We spoke to her about 5 racks she’s feeling at the moment, and the list does not disappoint…

The relatively niche realm of 160bpm is one that, until recent years, has had difficulty breaking into the forefront of the underground scene. The very nature of footwork, juke, and all offshoots of this diverse tempo is that of spontaneity, often comprising of heavily syncopated drum patterns, erratic vocal snippets and unruly structures. These fast, complex rhythms were synonymous with the dancing associated with footwork,a street dance that coincided with the Chicago-born genre in the 1990s. It is therefore not surprising to see why the genre has been floating around the edges of electronic music for so many years. This is arguably what makes it so special however, placing itself within a unique corner of the underground scene, yet consistently making a global impact.

In recent years the underground scene in the UK has been blessed with a wide range of talent from outside of the nation’s Capital. Of course there has always been skilled producers, singers, and MC’s in all pockets of the country however the social media revolution seems to have leveled the playing field, allowing someone from a small town in the midlands to have more or less the same opportunities and access as those in the big cities. It’s a transition which has been of huge benefit to the musical world with the only real drawback coming in the form of over saturation.

Well it certainly appears to be an exciting time for the In:Flux Audio camp, who are currently coming off the back of a tremendous anniversary release, celebrating some of the best releases across the label’s history. As a label project they clearly pride themselves on their consistency, as it’s hard to pinpoint a a drop in quality along their long run of EP and LP releases.

It’s about time we had Tony Wonka back on the site after his fantastic premiere with us a few months back. His stock has since soared, with a lot of the scene’s top names taking a major interest in his bassy endevours. 

Over the course of 2018 there has been a major influx of new producers starting to make headway within a very crowded scene, some of them bringing a bag of original flavours to the table and therefore making a majorly positive impact on the scene. We were very pleased to see that Lijah is one such artist, consistently supplying the bass scene with potent bangers. 

The EP starts slowly, with ‘Perctrak’s gentle build leading into a sub heavy breakdown, dominated by an ethereal vocal sample. We’re then launched straight into a drop clearly inspired by 9TRANE’s previous grime and dubstep productions, with eski clicks and 808 bass abound.

As a label, Punks have been one of the most consistent outlets for bass and breaks music throughout the entirety of 2018, constantly providing the scene with original creativity within their releases, always moving forward into exciting new ground. The label has gained a lot of steam in recent months, seeing them propelled rapidly to the forefront of their genres, which is no less than they deserve in our humble opinion!

While certain blogs are concerning themselves with the idea of Grime being dead, those of us with our finger on the pulse are celebrating the rise of the next generation.A scene that remained stagnant for so long is now in the midst of what feels like a Golden Era. The hard labour conducted by Grime’s forefathers is beginning to bear fruit. The internet has provided asylum for the genre, progressing from the days of Grime Forum to bring everyone together through social media. No matter what the root cause is, the result is undeniable: Grime’s alive and kicking.

As a label project, there really are few who have contributed as much to the UK’s thriving bass music scene than the legendary Four40, who continue to surge forward moving towards 2019, pushing out solid release after release. 2019 has seen them move into some new territories, but this brand new remix from Barely Royal drops us right into the centre of a UK bass blast off. 

Infamous for his well-crafted, hard-hitting music Taiki Nulight is by now something of a household name in the scene. Showcasing his sonic diversity and talent for production over the years whilst proving instrumental in bass music’s continued popularity it is no wonder that fans and critics alike have been eagerly awaiting his latest drop.  One of the many perks of being a music writer is being able to listen to releases ahead of schedule and listening to Taiki Nulight’s ‘Murky Manor’ proved to be much more than consuming another derivative bass music release; it was an unexpected journey across a broad range of House and Bass influences.

As a producer and DJ, Manchester’s own: Hypho has gained some critical acclaim and serious support over the last few years, solidifying himself as one of the most creative names in the post dubstep / tech arena. We were thrilled to hear therefore that he is now involved alongside Xakra in setting up Manuka Records.

My Nu Leng’s latest EP Junction is an announcement: no matter how much popularity the Bristol duo may gain within one scene or another, their music will never be easily tied to one category. The four-track release represents the latest in a six-year slew of genre-fluid projects from the pair, whose penchant for reanimating established sounds drawn from across the UK’s electronic underground has positioned them as bass music’s foremost fusionists.

The last 22 months for NLMT have been nothing short of exciting for himself and listeners alike. From posting teasers on Lengoland to seeing heavy rotation from DJ’s across the scene, NLMT sat down with us to chat everything from his Dad buying his first DAW to his adolescent Dubstep duo with Darkzy. You can find the interview in full below:

Within Brighton’s tight knit musical community, there is a real mix of local veterans and rapidly rising stars, across bass, dubstep, grime, funky and even garage, really adding fuel to the extensive revival movement currently underway. As far as veterans go, there are few who are as unsung as Moony, who has been a staple within bass music in the South for the last six or seven years.

Over the last two years it has been an absolute pleasure to watch the reemergence of UK Funky. As a genre, it’s simplicity and rhythmic drive was something that was notably missing from a large portion of underground music.

Now unless you’ve been living under a very hefty rock for the last couple of years, you will undoubtedly have heard of Bushbaby. One of Lengoland and the bass scene revivals best success stories, the Brighton/Bristol based producer has been releasing banger after banger, steadily pushing his crisp neuro-bass sound to the tops of charts and line-ups.

October was a mad 31 days for urban music as a whole, but for the grime scene, we saw more up and coming artists coming through, more collaborating and even more releasing debut projects along the way.

Bass as an overseeing genre is an expansive one by it’s very nature, incoorporating hundereds of different sub-genres into it’s folds, giving us something truly beautiful in the long wrong. There are some producers who are able to use this to their advantage by crossing the boundaries of different segements seamlessly, ending up with truly innovative material at every turn.

After a really well received premiere from N.Y.T.A earlier in the month, we are thrilled to be bringing him back to the forefront of the channel again as we bring this official premiere for Zinc’s exceptional Bingo Bass imprint.This time however, we are joined by one of the most talked about MC’s in grime at the moment: Jammz, who’s flawless top draw work ethic and flawless vocal precision has recently gained him a new Rinse.FM residency alongside Jackdat.

Just between the pulsating culture of London and the cutting edge atmosphere of the South Coast, Surrey appears at first to be just another sleepy home county. Over the last few years, however, it has become a hotbed for new talent, kicked off by the likes of two – house making brothers by the name of Disclosure.

It might be unfair to portray Mr C as an unsung hero, particularly if you’re going off his local support. A producer/DJ who has dropped some of the most creative and titanic bangers in the scene to this day, (‘You’re Telling Me’ still makes me screwface nearly 4 years down the line!) Mr C has a sizeable, dedicated following that fly the flag for West Yorkshire Bassline.

If you’re familiar with the funkier side of the UK Bass scene, you’ll certainly know about Pharaoh K. With previous releases on Champion’s Formula Records, and In:Flux Audio, his absolute funky weapon ‘Chagga’ is being released on Roska’s Label ‘Roska’s Kicks and Snares’ (RKS).

It’s safe to say that the team at Saucy Records have had a pretty monumental year. As a label they have really solidified their position as an extremely forward thinking collective, pushing the boundaries of bass music into zones previously unexplored, all with a great degree of finesse along the way.As well as this, the label extended their reach to a now thriving management arm, looking after the best interests of some of the most influential artists in the scene, including the likes of PVC, Pelikann, Barely Royal and Affiliate. Along with this, the label have hosted multiple takeovers and events, all with nothing but positive feedback.

As a genre, bassline is made up of all different types of people, with new school high flyers and seasoned imprint’s constantly working in unison, providing a crowded genre with bags and bags of fresh inspiration. One label that has been established since before the epic re-rise of the genre, is Sheffield’s own: Project Allout Records. As a label, there are few who have contributed as much to the scene by way of releases, events and giving artists old and new a platform to showcase their individual prowess.

Across the recent garage revival movement that has been taking place for the last couple of years, there are few who have made such an immediate impact as London’s own: Limita. Known for his hard hitting garage designs and explosive rhythmic energies, has been making a major name for himself of recent, finding his way onto a bag of high profile releases and exciting remixes.

fter the announcement of his two pieces of good news, I had to shine a light on the blindingly obvious: the pieces in the puzzle of prosperity are starting to come together for Big Zuu. He took care of his debut show on BBC Radio 1Xtra with ease, inviting JME, Merky Ace and D7 along for the ride, and then proceeded with the roll out of his second project of 2018, named Content With Content.

When you think about Vancouver a few things might come to mind: its immense natural beauty, the towering skyscrapers or its international community. What undergoes less consideration is the sprawling underground music culture that finds its home in the heart of the city, hosted in a variety of public to semi-hidden venues.

As a platform, we are always excited to see labels going out of their way to be as innovative and creative as they possibly can in releases they support and put together. This is such an essential step in pushing our scene forward and keeping it from getting stagnant and in our eyes is a trait that labels are praised on not nearly enough.

What’s better than a banger? Yes, you are correct, a banger that is also a free download. We were thrilled to see that last night, Brighton’s Freddie Martin announced a brand new freebie dropping on his page today, much to the excitement of the bass community. It had been a little while since Freddie last released music, with his epic ‘Feel’ EP dropping on Southpoint earlier this year, along with a few top draw singles and remixes. Since the release of that EP, Freddie has made himself a staple on the UK bass circuit, performing around the country to packed out venues, bringing a potent energy to every set he touches down upon.

So, it’s time to take a peek at an artist we feel has gone without his due praise for just about long enough. As a DJ, producer and general bass music figure, Clean Shirt has established himself in both the dances and in the online communities, through providing technical and vibrant live sets and stepping up as a crucial moderator for the infamous Lengoland forum. It’s pretty undeniable that the young London based entity has played a pretty pivotal role in bass music’s assent to nightclub dominance across the country, being one of the go-to faces for quite some time.

Anyone who’s been in or around Grime for the past few years will know about Big Zuu. From the earlier days at Mode FM through the more recent sets at the now defunct Radar Radio, he’s always been a charismatic figure who warranted attention.

The past 2 years have seen a huge UK Funky resurgence, with key artists such as Roska, Champion, Marcus Nasty and Murder He Wrote bringing a huge variety of Funky sounds back to the forefront of the UK Underground. With a whole host of new talent pushing the genre, UK Funky is sounding fresh and exciting and over in Ireland a producer by the name of Ozwald is doing bits.

As one of our major representatives among a crowded bass scene, we are thrilled to be bringing man like Hot Goods into the ruckus for an exclusive #Charted listing. For us, he is without a doubt one of the brightest sparks to emerge out of the South in recent years, honing is style into a futuristic jackin tech fusion, perfect for sending dancefloors into a daze. We were in fact lucky enough to put together and official two track project with him earlier in the year by the name of ‘Loanshark’. As a release, the project received some fantastic feedback and helped propel Hot Goods into the forefront of the bass scene.

Fork and Knife is back with yet another standout single, released by a standout label in 1Forty. Right in time for Halloween ‘Real Monsters’ decorates its nerve-wracking soundscape with skippy drums, swelling basslines and nightmarish synths which make for an all-round screamer (excuse the pun).

As we draw towards the close of 2018, we can look back and say that this year was quite possibly bass music’s strongest episode so far, with festival stages around the country being stacked with representatives, radio stations taking a 4×4 hammering and the raves being dominated by bass DJs. One of the most notable names to be involved in this continued growth of the scene is none other than Sheffield’s own: Deadbeat UK.

So, the time has finally come. It’s safe to say that unless you have been living under a rock for the last three years, if you follow bass music in the UK, you are likely to have come across the formidable Lengoland storm.

Brighton and Hove has long been the creative hub of the South Coast – arguably the country – harbouring a wealth of talent throughout its history. Whether it’s Charles Dickens in the 1800s, Fatboy Slim in the 1990s, or Ocean Wisdom in 2018, the City has invariably acted as a haven for innovation, freely allowing artists to express themselves.

Newschool garage is well and truly back at the forefront of UK dance music as we conistently see heavyweight line ups across both releases and live events grace our fair shores.

J Fella is back at it again with another belter entitled ‘Gassin Ya’. Sonically this seems to be his muckiest release yet and whilst it treads familiar territory with shimmering, bell-heavy leads and vocal samples, the range of sounds utilize in this single makes for head-scratches and screwfaces.

Throughout the UK bass scene’s rise to it’s current prominence and dancehall domination, there have been a definitely few labels that can be classed as leading lights, who have consistently provided high grade fire for the rest of the scene to take inspiration from and grow. There is no doubt in our minds that the Yorkshire based giants at In:Flux audio are one of these projects.

In a discussion of artists that truly mastered the art of vocal bassline tunes, A dot R would surely have to be carefully considered. Having been around for 10+ years in the scene, it was only recently that A dot R re-emerged in the scene and started putting out teasers of his new work. We at 3000 Blog got the opportunity to have an exclusive interview with the man himself to ask where he’s been, his views on the scene and where he’s going next.

Within the UK Bass scene, there are few that have managed to make themselves as applicable across the board as N.Y.T.A. Known for his super futuristic style, blending tech inspired bass moogs and rolling percussive drum progressions, the Bristol based producer has become renowned for the defying the ordinary and yet remaining as relevant as ever, a skill few have ever mastered within UK dance music in general.

Brighton based imprint: Southpoint look set to continue their explosive run across the entirety of 2018 as they unveil the latest in a long run of EP’s, this time coming from Brighton based garage and breaks producer: Movement. As a resident writer on the site, we were very pleased to see Movement make his full EP debut with his Brightonian neighbors, having made his debut on the project in mid 2017 along with a plethora of well received appearances. 

Few Sheffield producers are creating a buzz like local lad Palizé. With a musical portfolio as diverse as it is bass-heavy, the last 3 years have taken Palizé to a variety of stages, from the lovably dingy Harley in Sheffield to the prestigious Eskimo Dance.

Einstein is said to have described creativity as “intelligence having fun”. This is a quote that really carries some weight once you’re acclimated with artists such as Hertfordshire’s Esskay. The UK’s underground scene, and Grime in particular, has always been a beacon of creativity – shining through in various different forms – Esskay’s latest project Essence is a true testament to that fact.

or the majority of the UK scene, it’s pretty obvious that DJQ has established himself as bassline royalty, both as a celebrated solo producer/ DJ and as ⅓ of the titanic trio of TQD, who’s album last year was hit with nothing but positive responses.

Since bursting onto the bassline scene during the genre’s recent resurgence, Pelikann undoubtedly proven himself to be one of the most forward thinking producers working across the scene today. Through his use of super innovative bass design and lethal drum processing, Peli has managed to nail his futuristic neuro sound down to a t, making his live sets and releases a real highlight across the UK’s bass community.

The Saucy Records imprint has been on fire as of late, putting together a bag of really experimental high profile releases from some of the most creative minds across the bass scene. We were thrilled therefore that they are clearly keen on keeping this run going as they invite back long standing associate: Barely Royal to bring that fresh heat to the table.

After inviting us down to their weekly radio show for a 3000 Bass Takeover on Pyro Radio a few weeks ago, we couldn’t be happier to be returning the favour by welcoming SISTER over to 3000 to christen our brand new multi genre mix series; ‘3000 Sessions’ in which you will see us exploring a wide range of electronic music all across the bass spectrum.

Over the last few years, bass music in the UK has surged and spread, managing to decimate dances from north to south, east to west and everywhere in between.

As the 3000 Bass Takeover at fabric fast approaches, we prepare for an onslaught of bass and feel honoured to be one of three brands flying the flag for a bass driven sound in their respected genre of music, alongside Nero Presents and Eatbrain and we couldn’t be more humbled by the experience.

You would struggle to find an artist – in any genre – with longevity comparable to Dizzee Rascal. It’s been exactly 15 years since the inception of his first album, and nowadays the Boy In Da Corner can roam freely round the room.

In the ever-expanding realms of UK Bass music, it’s often hard to keep track of those who have been setting pace for the longest. As far as labels go, there aren’t many that have held as big an influence as Cheap Thrills, headed up by long term bass expert Hervé.

Upon first listen you’d be mistaken for thinking that J Fella had been around since the scene began. With stomping kick drums, emotional vocal leads and bubbling basslines J Fella manages to touch upon that sweet spot left by old school artists that at present remains underexploited.

As one of UK Funky’s foremost DJ’s and advocates, Baloo has been introducing the UK to the infernal and exotic sounds of Funky, Carnival and Tribal music for the last two years.

As the bass scene moves forward in leaps and bounds, it incorporates styles and elements from different areas of underground music as it goes.

In my relatively short time on earth I’ve heard a veritable range of descriptors: ‘Harrowing’, ‘custardy’ and ‘stinky’ are amongst my favourites but I wouldn’t be alone in reporting I’ve even heard tracks referred to as ‘evil’ before. Mattik’s latest EP release on In:flux ‘Can’t Step’ is a cut that demands a creative description, so I will do my best below.

For those who grew up listening to grime and bassline, there are few who affected both genres with as much clout as Dexplicit. Known for it’s truly unique expressive melodies over and rhythmic perfection, it’s hard not to call ‘Bullacake’ an original banger.

Mr Virji is back at it again bringing his signature charisma and calculated creativity to a weapon of a live set.

We are thrilled at threethousand.co.uk to be introducing you all to our brand new artist led article series, bringing you off the the top tens direct from your favourite artists in underground bass music.

For us, there are few producers and DJ’s within the UKG sphere that remain as unsung as Moony, who has been Brighton’s leading light within the genre for quite some time.

If you’ve had your ear to the ground regarding bassline releases no doubt you will have at least seen a meme relating to Venz’s new release ‘a Few Venz Riddims’.

We were lucky enough to grab a slice of such insight from none other than Southpoint co-founder Josh Gunston, who has recently gone on to form his own management company whilst looking after some of the bass and grime scene’s hottest prospects.

“DJ Semtex is raised on the principle of furthering the art form and giving back to make the scene better than how he found it. That’s gold. He remains humble and being of utmost service to the culture.” – Chuck D.

Now, when it comes to UKG, it’s safe to say that within the current sphere of directly dedicated labels, Stictly Flava is one of the standout projects, consistently putting forward exciting, vibrant, modern garage music.

Following a string of super high profile releases and and a tonne of sell out shows, including notable appearances at Parklife and SW4, Notion really is looking like the man of the minute within the bass scene. We were thrilled to see another new drop from him appear on our timelines via the legendary UKF YouTube platform.

Overrated. Untalented. Uncharismatic. These are just three adjectives you will never hear when it comes to describing Ghetts. A true pioneer – there are very few artists birthed from Grime’s early days who can cause as much havoc today as they did back then.

Sister Radio recently celebrated their 50th show on Pyro Radio and we had the pleasure of taking over their airwaves with 2 great bass driven mixes courtesy of Faded and Ralston. We also stayed around for chat with their two hosts Shan Mcginley and Carly Wilford about the wonderful world of 3000.

Our new resident grime correspondent Duke Sky takes a look at the events of the most recent Rated Awards.

Having featured earlier this week in one of our ‘Ones To Watch’ series from Movement, Kobe JT is back at it as we take a look into his new project alongside the Slime Recordings team. 

3000 Blog proudly welcomes British DJ/producer Kissy Sell Out (KSO) to our new website as a special columnist, bringing you a regular series of interviews with influential players in the global bass music scene.

Starting as a club night aimed at bringing more diversity to the scene in Leeds, 1Forty are back with their third release this year, after a slew of three massive free EPs in 2017. With a pretty impressive social media presence, 1Forty is pretty hard to miss.

As the ever progressing realm of UK Garage continues to flourish under it’s current revival phase, we felt it was only write to get our resident UKG scholar: Movement on the case. He has assembled a must read ‘Top 5’ Garage artists to keep an eye on over the coming months, and we couldn’t agree more!

This collaboration sees Krudd founder and all around mic man extraordinaire: Bru-C team up with man of the moment Tsuki for a bass fueled thrill ride, injecting some serious bass flavour into the dance.

Here we see the two names combine on their brand new collaboration ‘Riot’, which has caught some serious attention, premiering now on UKF.

After returning from touring America, southern based DJ & producer Albzzy has put together a team of bass scene professionals to form his new engineering and press company: B2B Audio.

Rikki Van Berkel aka RVB has been heading up the ‘The UK Is Funky’ Facebook community, from which a bag of fresh talent has been found.

The mighty Saucy make their return to free releases here with an absolute corker from the likes of Underground Traffic.

Over the last few months, the term “Southern Bassline” has become more and more common in its usage, with critics and commentators identifying a serious talent pool down on the south coast.

What a year it’s been for the team at Maraki as My Nu Leng and FineArt’s explosive new home label continue to roll out the belters, rolling on from Bushbaby’s extremely well received ‘Force’ EP earlier in the year.

As the UK Garage undergoes a serious revival movement, it’s becoming more and more apparent that certain new school producers are spearheading the genre forward, none more so than the don dadda Conducta.

It’s without a doubt in our opinion that over the last two years, the Wolverhampton based duo of TC4 has solidified themselves as one of the most original production outfits across the bass scene.

As one of our lead writers, we were thrilled to see this brand new Cub Chop from KXVU as he gets to work redesigning Zhu’s classic ‘Faded’ original.

After a legendary appearance at SW4, Skepsis made his way backt to Rinse.FM for a super shelly appearance, providing us with some festival blues.

It’s been a hot minute since we were presented with a new drop from Brighton’s PVC, and it’s safe to say that it has been worth the weight as the Punks team unveil this potent two tracker.

Welcome to the brand new home of everything 3000 and more!

1Fortys genre-specific cycle welcome’s its latest boundary pushing release – 1FBSS002.