DeeZNauts Comes Correct with Dual-sided "Hindsight" Release

There’s something that stews in the air of New England — some sort of odd chemical mutation in the oxygen molecules — and while there’s no telling whether or not it will create some kind of Bostonian Magneto, there’s ample evidence to suggest that it has an incredible effect on the output of New England’s electronic producers. DeeZ and Smigonaut have created their own respective careers from scratch, putting in the time and indelible effort required by touring creatives for years on end. When not working on their individual projects, they’re almost certainly communicating and collaborating on one another’s, and given that they’re both drinking from the same water supply, their combined efforts are a standout display of fidelity and attitude in contemporary bass music. Their most recent laboratory machinations come in the form of the double-sided release, Hindsight.

DeeZNauts · Hindsight EP (Out Now on Bandcamp)

There’s few things that cut through speaker cones like razor-edged, precision synthesis, and it’s the natural main ingredient in both songs on the record. The namesake track is a half-time tank-buster, replete with phased bass lines, transient impact, and vicious drum breaks competing for the center of the stereo space. Slowing it’s roll for just the briefest few phrases, the sparse melody grounds the track musically, but avoids constraining the beat’s emboldened personality. Complimenting the break-neck pace to “Hindsight”, “Grungus” is a subdued neuro gun-slinger, brandishing taloned mid-range cuts and shredded modulation. It’s the kind of track that underpins all of the most satisfying elements of grungy, broken-beat bass music, and the clear standout tune of the pair.

The DeeZNauts formula for success involves slicing off small morsels of massive production power, leaving us just satisfied enough, but always yearning for the next earful. It’s made all the more tantalizing by the striking fluidity of the combo, given their distinct individual catalogs and stylistic preferences. Whether by the sheer force of brainpower or by oxygenated chemical manipulation, we may never know, but we can be sure of one thing; the next handful of DeeZNauts will assuredly outweigh the last.

FOLLOW DeeZNauts: Soundcloud / Bandcamp / Spotify / Facebook

Voljum - Electric Forces (Smigonaut Remix) [EXCLUSIVE PREMIERE]

Voljum’s debut EP cyberglobe put a laser focus on the intersection between jazz, sound design, and intuitive sample play, solidifying his unique production narrative. Looking to merge new perspectives with his high fidelity palette, cyberglobe (Remixes) makes landfall at the end of this week, and The Rust has been tapped to premiere the Smigonaut remix of “Electric Forces”.

The Rust Music · Voljum - Electric Forces (Smigonaut Remix)[EXCLUSIVE PREMIERE]

With a natural inclination towards all things swing, Smigonaut’s arrangment philosophy slides into the design of “Electric Forces” with ease; Reframed rhythms bring down the energy ceiling of the track without compromising the weight and the mass behind each measure. It’s a careful twist on a playful composition, balancing moody hues and sharp clarity to fully pronounce the song’s attitude. On their own, Voljum and Smigonaut are electrified forces in their own right, so it should come as no surprise that their combined might oozes out of the “Electric Forces” remix.

Pre-order the Bandcamp Remix EP release here

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FOLLOW Voljum: Bandcamp / Spotify / Soundcloud / Facebook

FOLLOW VALE: Bandcamp / Soundcloud / Facebook

DeeZnauts - Disruptor

DeeZ and Smigonaut are two Boston-dwelling bass mages practiced largely in the crafts of halftime and glitch hop. In the past, the convergence of their sound waves on tracks like “Moonlit Excursions” and “Lost at Sea” has been revelatory. It’s also hinted at the potential for crossover between the two producers while boosting each individual’s signal into the other’s territory. Now, the inevitable has happened. The two have alchemized their labor into a single project and Street Ritual now blesses the world with Disruptor, the first release from the hilariously-named DeeZNauts. This EP - the 150th release from Street Ritual - is fittingly a testament to the evolving sounds of the next generation of electronic enthusiasts.

The title track plays largely to the Smigonaut sound, emphasizing a glitch hop rhythm and swagger, and plunking out a midi melody cobbled from snare rims. The fuzzy distortion on the midbass shines bright as a firm halftime presence. They create a funky time signature and squeeze these sounds into unpredictable shapes, pitches, and patterns. By contrast, the crowded cacophony in “Scale the Perimeter”, while frenetic, is a short-lived two minutes and 20 seconds of tightly-wound go-hard with no wonky side-trips. The track has a distinct DeeZ halftime feel, introducing heavier flow through furious drum breaks. Smigonaut’s influence is felt in the occasional Mario-sounding chiptune throwback.

The truly majestic fusion that illustrates the potential of DeeZNauts appears on lead-off single “Escape Pod”. The contemplative synth wanders through a dark and spacey halftime dub with a quickly shuffling snare pattern, while textural elements are brought to the fore. After ambience is built with wood percussion and echo chambers, the final third drops into a growling space engine that shifts gears and blasts the listener into a different headspace. This track, the most balanced of the bunch, tells its story well. “Observatory”, a collaboration with Hullabalo0, is the wildcard of Disruptor. It presents a smattering of lounging solos in keys and guitar, while a smoky crowd speaks leisurely over a reverb-dipped sax. The rhythm is almost an afterthought, a structure to prop up the smooth jazz experiment with sweet melodies to swim through while soft fuzz'n'pop moments resonate with a vinyl nostalgia.

With Disruptor, DeeZNauts establishes itself as a new force of bass magic, a stunning challenge to co-create your art with neighboring aesthetics, and a testament to the influence the pair of producers have on one another. This EP is a brilliantly curated listen that emphasizes every element of the combination in turn, speaking its story in a scant four tracks but wasting no time. Armed with a diverse spell book of new music and a name sure to elicit laughs when read off a lineup, DeeZ and Smigonaut declare here their continued commitment to the craft and culture.

FOLLOW DeeZNauts: Soundcloud / Facebook

FOLLOW DeeZ:   Bandcamp  /  Soundcloud   /   Facebook   /   Instagram

FOLLOW Smigonaut:   Soundcloud   /   Facebook   /   Twitter   /   Instagram

Smigonaut - Constructs EP

"The small dude facing the big skyscraper...the individual's struggle with society as a whole" - Josh Kipersztok a.k.a. Smigonaut (Artist: 5AM)

You heard the Boston-based producer Smigonaut become untethered on Oxidized Vol. 2, now prepare yourself for a visceral and intellectual music experience; Constructs EP, his most outstanding work to date.  

"My big theme for the EP and the artwork [created by 5AM] was feeling like sometimes it’s you vs. the world, and how that can feel alienating especially when you try to defy conventional norms,” says Josh Kipersztok a.k.a. Smigonaut. “How many of these feelings are just based on social constructs?"

Having first heard him on collaborations with Jade Cicada, we’ve always known Smigonaut to possess exceptional production capabilities. Josh was recently promoted to the Quality Control Department of the award-winning production plug-in designers Izotope, so we trust his ear to say the least. In this instance, Smigonaut goes for the jugular with his sound design again and again, particularly on the title track “Constructs”. This was a tasty ID on Smigonaut's Tipper & Friends Mix, and it bangs even harder the second time around. 

Every sound on the four-track EP is deliberate, defined, and delicious, be it a split-second crunch on “Pocket Drones”, oscillating sub-bass on “Double Life”, or the music box melody on the downtempo track “Anomolous”. The work is also exceptionally mastered, polished to pulse with a cerulean luster. Andy Widdecomb a.k.a. DeeZ performed the mastering on the first track “Pocket Drones”, and Sandy Finlayson a.k.a. Seppa is to be credited for the rest.

The Constructs EP is the most jammin’ example to date of that sound which makes Smigonaut special; propulsive and dirty left-field bass presented through melodious, jazzy songwriting. Hear this on “Double Life”, when the producer pulls the rug out from under a Saturday Night Fever-ish bassline and whimsical key lead to reveal a hyped-up wobbler. Josh played classical piano throughout his childhood and adolescence. He says he's "out of practice", but he clearly crafts his music with a fundamental understanding of note relationships. 

Utilizing the emotive power of these note relationships within the context of electronic textures and timbres creates dramatic moments, as when an indulgent piano lick swaggers in on the heels of some absolute filth on “Constructs”. Where the music is so precise and mechanized, it is also so human, so dependent on feel. The high technicality would be hollow without the intuitive, emotional threads woven often with the piano. By the same token these catchy and accessible melodies wouldn’t strike nearly as hard without Josh’s reinforced electronic synthesis. 

The prevalence of technology is hinted at across the work. “Pocket Drones” reminds us of “black mirror” or other such ominous nicknames for the smart phone. The turn of phrase conjures dystopian themes, particularly the concept of surveillance, and the album artwork syncs up with this thread.

From the subtle play of ideas, to the daring sound design, through the personal relevance for the artist all tied together by the alluring artwork, this is a magnum opus of sorts for Smigonaut. "The individual should not fear their own path even if it doesn’t follow the norms,” Josh says, again touching on the theme for his EP. In other words, being anomalous or different is not something to fear, but something to embrace. In his creative endeavors, Smigonaut has been faithful to this ethos. In this instance,  it's led to his most outstanding and impressive work to date. Pick up Constructs here.

FOLLOW Smigonaut:   Soundcloud   /   Facebook   /   Twitter   /   Instagram

Smigonaut & Tsimba Collab on Elemental Minded Compilation "Neurons Vol. 1"

Elemental Minded Promotions (EMP) has earned a reputation for touring top-shelf bass music through Connecticut and the greater Northeast. They now embark on a new venture with the release of Neurons Vol. 1, a dynamic 11-track compilation of exclusive tracks from EMP’s favorite up-and-coming producers.

Taking an alternative approach, tracks will drop every Monday, Wednesday and Friday throughout November instead of all at once. The first cut, "Nautilus" by Pluto Era, premiered earlier this week. The compilation contains tracks from each artist represented by the management arm of EMP - DeeZ, Keota, Scatz, Smigonaut, & Tsimba - and The Rust will highlight each one.

Today we offer "Headspace" by Smigonaut & Tsimba, the first collaboration between these producers. It's not what we expected. We can't recall any drum & bass releases from Smigonaut, and haven't heard this tempo from Tsimba in years. 

“We were both chillin’ one night listening to some drum & bass and talking about how we want to make more of it,” says Mark Evans Musto a.k.a. Tsimba. “He [Smigonaut] approached me with the melody and it was on.”

Simple but clean synth pads backlight the track. A subtle bassline beneath balances well with the prominent piano melody above, creating a mellow but driving groove. Tsimba’s drums are physically engaging throughout, with the hi-hats running like a 100-meter dash. When the song appears to be verging on reprise, it drops into a half-time shakedown with all the fuzzy sound design and off-kilter percussion that we have grown to expect from these two.

Mark has been working with EMP longer than any other artist. "He really was basically there for the birth of EMP," says founder Tyler Hettel.  "We kind of wanted to see how far we both could make it within the music business and what two kids from CT could do."

The path which led Josh Kipersztok a.k.a. Smigonaut to EMP was more roundabout. A superior sound sculptor, Josh attended Berklee College of Music (where he met  collaborator Skyler Golden a.k.a. Jade Cicada) and currently works for iZotope, a company that designs award-winning audio software and production plug-ins. “I met Josh through Andy [DeeZ] when Andy remixed 'Lost At Sea'," says Tyler. "I loved Andy's remix and when I dove deeper into Smigonaut's catalog I was thoroughly impressed." Forgive us, Tyler, but impressive is an understatement, and "Headspace", is a unique and unexpected addition to that catalog.

We would be caught off guard if either performer dropped “Headspace” in a set. Our next opportunity to hear this comes when the Swarm Tour swoops through Smigonaut’s hometown of Boston on 11/30. Josh will be lending support alongside fellow EMP artist Keota.

Stay chooned to The Rust throughout November as we highlight more choice cuts from Neurons Vol. 1 (full track list below).

1. Pluto Era - Nautilus
2. tsimba & Smigonaut - Headspace
3. Maxfield - Little Death In The Morning Sun
4. Scatz - Illgamesh
5. iX - Desert Form
6. Jizzy Fra - Sensi Star Dub
7. Face Plant - French Press
8. Phydra - Particle Board
9. Keota - Wook Flu
10. DeeZ - Juice ft. Frequency Fodder
11. Zoo Logic - Void

Follow Smigonaut:   Soundcloud   /   Facebook   /    Bandcamp 

Follow Tsimba:   Soundcloud   /   Facebook   /    Bandcamp   /   Instagram