Producer: Mr Bong
Genre: Break Beats/Dubstep/ Drum and Bass
Remixes: Callan Maart/ Melodik/ Liver
Record Label: On A Break Records
Release Date: 22 August 2011
I was sitting across the table from another blind date setup, the conversation led to music. We were still making small talk after the starters. Cleary this date was not going the way that I saw it going earlier on in the night. She leaned across the table and put on her most convincing “I’m interested in what you have to say,” smile while trying to pry the details of my closely guarded playlist.
She had asked so nicely, so I had to oblige. The powers that be at IDM magazine were in possession of the latest single from Mr. Bong called Bong Addict, which is already available for download and purchase for mere mortals.
My date had already confessed to being a reggae and rhythm & blues fan. So listening to Bakaman deliver deft lyrics laced with sexual and alternative healing innuendo over a slight garage beat changed her opinion of me right there and then, which earned me some serious brownie points. This would later change the entire outlook of the evening.
She had honestly never heard anything like it before, which made me look a little worldlier.
This was almost like winning the lottery. It became very clear at that moment that Break Beats/Dubstep or even Drum and Bass as genres are as underground as their come. If your established music routine involves you switching on any sort of knob to access your tunes, be it radio or television, then listening to snyth beats mixed with a little techno and reggae will tilt your axis just a little.
Mr. Bong – Bong Addict passes all the tests you would expect from a dance track, regardless of how fringe the genre may be. The original version of ‘Bong Addict’ highlights the vocal prowess of Bakaman. His delivery almost has you imagining that you are bounce along to the rhythm of the beat in a dank warehouse, while twirling dreadlocks are whipping across your face.
While the beat is as accessible as any intro would be for a dub-step single, that’s expecting to sell. All that changes with the first bass drop, and the track incorporates an electro sample and the pace of the track picks up. The label of the single should carry a disclaimer… for serious injury incurred from rigorous hair twirling.
The single ‘Bang Addict’ has 3 remixes. One from Callan Maart and the other from Melodik, the remixes keep up with the current trend of Electro Dub. The songs which, although fun to listen too when the club is under siege from mammoth speakers, are moving precariously close to having an identical sound. There’s nothing that kills a genre more than over saturation, when songs and remixes start sounding the same.
To Listen – Click Here
REVIEW: Tebogo – Slymedia
