Brazilian L-Side will be releasing his debut album on V Recordings on the 6th of April 2018.
Let me talk a bit about V Recordings without touching on the early and mid-90s… if you missed that era – pretty much every release from back then stands the test of time and the label itself has been groundbreaking and shaping the sound of drum and bass for decades. Over the years the label itself evolved into what most people would consider a liquid funk label. Each release a must listen for those that like a bit of a playful, liquid, funk, soul yet deeper kind of vibe in his drum and bass selection. Looking at the back catalog you will find tracks from producers hailing from the UK, USA, Brazil, Germany – It ain’t a London ting – It is a worldwide ting.
Here is what the promotional text reads like.
Pulsating beats and grizzled brass combine while MC Fats provides melodic vocals to forge a flawlessly fresh take on drum and bass.
New album ‘Carnal Mind’, features American rapper Jeru The Damaja, British rapper DRS, dancehall/grime artist Lady Chann, and drum and bass vocalists MC Fats, MC Darrison and MC Conrad. The release is via the legendary drum and bass record label, V Recordings.
Taking his influence from Hip Hop artists such as Jazz Liberatorz, The Pharcyde and Tribe Called Quest, L-Side is making his mark in the world of raw dancefloor focused drum and bass. Originally producing hip-hop beats before branching into Drum and Bass, he is known for his meticulous mix of upfront and aggressive sounds merged with funk and soul styles, forging a flawlessly fresh take on drum and bass.
When this PR agent approached me with a private link to the full audio for this album I did not expect an album of this calibre (no pun intended). 15 Tracks with no interludes or fillers. Let me just pick a couple of tracks and ill fill you in with my thoughts on them.
The opening tune is called “Carnal Mind” and features the vocal talents of Ras Tweed. I interpret this track to be a big salute to the sorely missed Marcus Intalex and the soul:r sound as a whole. The synths will creep under your skin, melancholic and beautiful. This tune is dancefloor friendly roller with a political message, Ras Tweed did another lovely job on this one. There is a very muted, calibre-esque sample being used that I am incredibly familiar with but unable to put my finger on it right now. 8/10 The second track is featuring MC DRS and sports some soundsystem culture attitude. This one picks up the pace and vibe from the first track and steps it up, if this does not fill the dancefloor for you, you are playing at the wrong party. 9/10 To be very honest i believe its borderline pointless writing about music so just rest assured there is more, for example, we have an excellent GLO-esque track featuring MC Conrad, a full-blown hip-hop tune with Jeru the Damaja and T.R.A.C, the uplifting “Don’t Look Back” featuring Darrison and so many more …
Have a lookout for this album.
Regards.