Uitgebracht
September 2024
- Hyperdub's first-ever jungle album rallies two of the genre's contemporary luminaries for a triumph that feels anything but revivalist.
- It seems like another example of the Mandela effect that Tim Reaper & Kloke's In Full Effect is the first jungle album in Hyperdub's 20-year history. The seminal UK label has always felt steeped in hardcore and jungle's legacy. This is most obviously exemplified in the music of its enduring poster child, Burial, whose reverence for (and references to) early '90s rave pervades much of his output.
But this association also relates to Hyperdub's place in dance music history, with its first wave of releases chronicling a fertile period in UK music defined by dubstep, funky and grime's cultural ascension; each with clear roots in the legacy of jungle and drum & bass. Combine this with Hyperdub's longtime commitment to pushing thrilling contemporary artists, and it makes perfect sense for the label to break new ground with two of jungle's most respected new-generation producers.
But "new generation" does a disservice to the depth of both artists' catalogues. Initially a purveyor of deep, melodically rich dubstep and leftfield techno, Naarm (Melbourne)-based artist Kloke released his first head-turning breaks tune all the way back in 2017, a lush rework of ASTROBOYZ's "Collage Carrousel," replete with gleaming melodies and delicately designed drums. A year later, the hazy Diamond Life 04 was among 2018's best jungle records, showcasing an evolving, expressive sound that still retained a meaty punch.
And what's left to say about Tim Reaper? A luminary of modern jungle and hardcore, his prolific work as a DJ, producer, remixer and Future Retro label boss has been a joy to watch unfold since his first release with Relapse as a precocious teenager in 2010. From his earlier work on DJ Trace's 117 Recordings and Dublinquents, Reaper's affinity for dexterous drum programming and moody melodies, drawing reference from '93 darkside to '97 drum & bass rollers, has made him one of the most thrilling artists working today.
With multiple co-productions and remixes under their respective belts, the pair only met in person during Reaper's Australia tour in 2023. A fruitful studio session birthed the idea for Kloke's impressively detailed On Rhythm, the first album released on Future Retro. Building on this foundation, a collaborative full-length seemed like a natural next step. Enter In Full Effect, an aptly titled project that blends Reaper and Kloke's styles so well, it's hard to know where one artist stops and the other begins. Over eight deftly sequenced tracks, the album's propulsive percussion and spacey, skewed atmospherics balance heavy-duty engineering with earnest eruptions of feeling. Crucially, its 46-minute duration feels earned rather than assumed. It also, unsurprisingly, absolutely bangs.
"Continuities" sets the no-nonsense tone from the off with a scuffed-up beat that is cleverly offset by expansive pads and whirling vocals, sounding like ghostly whispers in the wind. From there, it's nothing but net. "Blood Pressure"'s crunchy bleeps and twitchy amens dive and soar over five minutes of off-kilter braindance, while tunes like "Wildstyle" and "Impasse" smush up elements of hardcore, darkside and jungle tekno into arresting new shapes that feel anything but revivalist.
But for all of the album's heft, there's something unmistakably tender about Reaper and Kloke's arrangements. Here, they establish a remarkable synthesis between peak-time motifs and the soulful, insular mood of a record like A Guy Called Gerald's Black Secret Technology. This is most clear on "Alienation," whose sinister jangles and spectral whooshes recall the unsettling atmosphere of Source Direct's enduring classic "Black Rose," but exudes a heartfelt quality that slowly reaches for optimism, rather than just stewing in its own paranoid fluids.
Though a resolutely enjoyable start-to-finish listen, the fact that any of In Full Effect's tracks could pop off as standalone singles is testament to the craftsmanship on display. By this metric, the album's raviest (and catchiest) high point comes in the shape of "Juice." As the rabble-rousing rave piano enters in the track's final third, it feels like an ecstatic victory lap for two producers operating at the peak of their powers.
Indeed, as jungle's cultural influence and dance floor popularity continues to rise, In Full Effect serves as a potent reminder that fast, breakbeat-driven music is just as emotionally and creatively fertile as ever. And, in the hands of two artists who deeply understand jungle and drum & bass's lineage, the future is looking bright.
Tracklist01. Continuities
02. Blood Pressure
03. Juice
04. Alienation
05. Roots & Reality
06. Impasse
07. Havoc
08. Wildstyle