a quick history of drum and bass

UK 1991

A new style of music is taking over the country called hardcore.The style soon branched out into happy hardcore and jungle.Jungle was just hip-hop beats sped up and messed around with untill artists got more complex and in 1994 jungle had its own sound wich was filling the dancefloor up.In 1996 drum and bass started to merge from jungle not much difference apart from jungle was more about the bassline and drum and bass was more about the beat melody and bassline together giving it a more fresh and rougher sound.By 1998 it was all about drum and bass.Drum and bass is getting stronger and more complex all the time and now is enjoyed by people all over the world.Its now a way of life and it will never die.

Shy Fx-The Fast Lane Tali Lyric On My Lip Andy C Presents RamRaiders Andy C NightLife Dillinja Killa Hertz LP True Playaz Playaz4Real AndyC Drum'N'Bass Arena1 AdamF&DjFresh BreakBeat Kaos FullCycle Live

HOW TO DJ PART 1..SLIP-CUEING..

It's as easy as eating pie once you've got the hang of it,but beatmatching-making two records groove alonge with there drum-beats in the same place-is harder than hell to begin with.The brain needs to rewire itself so it can hear two tunes at once without jumbling them up.This can't be learnt without endless practice,The best piece of advise anyone can give is to learn how to slip-cue,to start the second record exactly in time with the one that's playing.This makes it much easier to compare their tempos. it's the starting line principle:watch two dogs running randomly round a field and you won't have a clue which is faster,but start them off in the same place,chuck a stick and you'll have a good idea which one to place your bets on.it's pretty much the same with records. 1.listen to the track that's playing.try to ignore all its twiddly melodies.concentrate on hearing just its kick drums-its heartbeat.nodyour head to the 1,2,3,4.-. 2.cue up your second record just before its first kick-drum beat.hold it still while the platter turns underneath. 3.now use your hand to rock that first beat back and forth in time with the track that's playing,like you'r a drummer tapping out a beat.get a feel for how you can control it and make it play exactly where you want. 4.at the right moment let it go,so the first beat of the second record is in perfect time with the first. 5.a tiny finger flick might be necessary to send it on its way at the right speed.the amount you need depends on how good the decks are.

HOW TO DJ PART 2..COMPARING TEMPOS..

the frustration...you think you've got two records perfteclty beatmatched,they bounce along great for a while,but then your mix starts to sound like a fight in a drum factory.help!what's wrong? 1.make it a race.listen for which record finishes four bars first. 2.simplify the rhythm.concentrate on the kick-drum and ignore everything else. 3.dance to the record thats playing-tap your foot or nod your head. 4.count the other record-so you're marking one beat with your body and the other with your head. HOW DO YOU KNOW IF IT'S FASTER OR SLOWER? trial and error-take an educated guess,then adjust things.if you guessedright you'll have corrected the problem a bit,if you guessed wrong you'll have made it worse. HOW CAN YOU TELL THE TWO RECORDS APART? one clue is the noise that two records make when they're out of synch.instead of a clean kick-drum boom,you'll hear b-boom.listen carefully to this noise and you can hear whether the extra b-is in the headphones or the speakers.this will tell you which record is hitting the beat first. HOW CAN YOU HEAR REALLY SMALL DIFFERENCES? practise.at first you'll only be able to hear quite big differences in speeds.but gradually your skill will increase untill you can spot tiny ones without consciously trying.the more you practise,the more obvious they become.

HOW TO DJ PART 3..ADJUSTING SPEEDS..

cue,listen,adjust.cue,listen,adjust.cue,listen,adjust.you changed the pitch control about a thousand times and still this mix refuses to fall into line.first you had it too slow,now it sounds too fast.what the hell is wrong? why carn't i beatmatch these tracks to the same tempo? there could be several reasons.if you have cheap or knackered decks they might not hold a constant speed properly-the slightest touch will cause problems.some tunes can have slight fluctuations in there tempo from bad edits and poor pressings.and if it's an old track with a live drummer,forget it-it will speed up and slow down all over the place.the most likely reason,however,is that you're just not adjusting things right. YOU'VE GOT THE SPEEDS RIGHT BUT THE BEATS AREN'T LINED UP. if the beats are drifting further and further apart you still need to adjust the speed.but if the difference is staying pretty constant(a regular b-boom),you just need to tweak the beats into line.give one of your records a tap of the breaks(a gentle rub against the platter)(or a touch of the gas). IT WAS TOO SLOW,NOW IT'S TOO FAST... when you're starting this will happen all the time.it's a sign your ears need more practise at hearing small differences in tempo.you've tried two pitch settings.the correct speed is hiding somewhere in between.just keep making finger and finger adjustments,and really listen.eventually you'll be moving the pitch control in hairbreadths.at this stage only minor adjustments are necessary to line it up(stroke the label gently to slow it down or (nip the spindle between finger and thumb.to give the platter a minute shove,)

HOW TO DJ PART 4..BLENDS..

a smooth blend of herbs and spices.or a slow,gradual slide from one record to the other with the beats synchronized.once you can match beats you can use them in a mix-a'beatmix'or a 'blend'. 1.beatmatch your two tracks. 2.fade the second record in. 3.fade the first record out. it really ia as simple as that.you can simply nudge the crossfader slowly from one side to the other,or you can use the two upfaders to do the same thing with more subtle control.when you get good at it you can start to do things like mixing with the bass out and then swapping the basslines. MONITORING IN A BLEND... the most important thing to learn now is how to separate your two records now they're both playing in the speakers.this is where your split-hearing skills get clever. TO HEAR RECORD 2... concentrate on what's in the headphones.ignore everything else. TO HEAR RECORD 1... ignore anything in the mix that's also in the headphones.concentrate on what isn't in the headphones. TWEAKING IN A BLEND... in long blends,even with the best adjustment,two records might start to drift out of synch.to,keep them in, you might have to give one a tweak-either a gental brush of the platter to slow it briefly,or a twirl of the spindle yo play catch-up.be careful here,your fingers might make noises which the crowd can hear,and any melody(especially strings)will sound awful if you start bending it to much.finally:yes,really experienced djs do make their corrections without ever touching the record.this supernatural technique requires microscopic use of the pitch control and an ability to hear tempo differences befor thet even happen.if you're starting now,you'll manage it in 10 years.

HOW TO DJ PART 5..CUTS..

cuts work like an edit-as if you've spliced two songs together.they work best for music with a lot of space in it-sparse,percussive music like hip hop or garage.when you're practising cuts you should tape your mixes and listen back to them to see if they worked or not.otherwise it's very hard to hear any mistakes. RUNNING CUTS... once you can beatmatch,it's simply a question of getting two records running toghther and then cutting the crossfader sharply from one side to the other. 1.beatmatch the two records 2.wait untill the right moment 3.quickly crossfade from record 1 to record 2. the actual technique is very easy to learn.what takes skill and experience is timing it right and putting it in the right place.aim to move the fader across in the tiny silence between the beats.and anticipate what it's going to sound like.wait for a moment when moving from record 1 to record 2 is goin to really work. THROW-IN CUTS... also called'drop mixes'.this way there's no waiting.you start record 2 at the exact same time as you cut it in. 1.cue up the first beat of record 2. 2.wait till the right moment 3.start record 2 and immediately crossfade over. this is harder but it requires less planning and anticipation.it also means you don't have to exactly beatmatch the two records.to prepare for this kind of cut,you need to get a really good feel for where that first beat is.rock the beat back and forth in your headphones until you know where it is by touch. SCRATCH CUTS... to build up some drama befor a cut,you could scratch the first beat back and forth over the outgoing tune a little before you start it off.this is a good way of getting a feel for scratching.

long distance

ALBUM REVIEW OF THE MONTH: DYLAN & TECHITCH PRESENT ''TECHNICAL FREAKS''THE ALBUM!

Dylan and techitch joins forces to unleash the nastiest drum and bass LP of the year! featured will be some of the hottest tracks from the tech freaks themselves such as ''dark heart'',''slave to life'' and the brand new ''soldiers remix'' as well as some guest appearances from bad company,cause 4 concern,paradox,b kay,kryptic minds,loxy,concord dawn,ink, and more! released on 5 piece vinyl,a double cd,and a mix cd, with an exclusive 2x12 limted edition sampler and styles ranging from doom droping dance floor killers to deep menacing rollers,this album is a must have for not only dark soldiers,but headz from all sides of the spectrum. RELESED ON THE 1st OF MAY

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THE OFFIICIAL DRUM AND BASS TOP 10 COMPILED FROM SPECIALIST RECORD STORES NATION WIDE FOR TUESDAY THE 25th OF MAY

10 : Zinc : Stepping Stones / South Pacific

9 : Calibre : Pur

8 : Total Sciance : No 1 Sound

7 : Fresh : Floodlight / Tomb Raider

6 : Various Artist : Ram Vol 5

5 : Dj Friction Presents : R.Type ( Shogun Audio Remix )

4 : Trinity : Dune / Foxy Lady

3 : Influx Uk : Ghost People ( 2004 )

2 : Ebony Dubsters : No.1

1 : Calibre : Mr Maverick / Highlander

Check back next tuesday for the updated chart

TOP DRUM AND BASS EVENTS: