Having first appeared on the drum n bass scene as an MC, Mark System has steadily built up his reputation as a producer with tracks like “Near Miss” picking up across the board DJ support. Recent releases for Exit showed a diversity of his production and this four tracker for Digital Soundboy is sure to push him further into the spotlight.

From the tough dancefloor beats of the title track through to the closer “Love Dub” with it’s snappy breaks and sub bass packed drop, it’s quality all the way. Second track “Tension” is my pick of the bunch however with it’s half time drums and eerie atmospherics. Check out the minimix below for a preview of all four tracks.

Released 18th April.

The Hold It EP Mini Mix by Mark System

8 Bits is a new collaborative project between Spinback (one half of the mighty Total Science) and relative newcomer S.P.Y. Total Science are without question, one of the finest production teams to ever exist in the realm of drum n bass and S.P.Y is one of the most interesting drum n bass producers to materialise in recent years.

“On Your Mind” is the one of the first fruits of their labour and it’s a beauty. Lovely atmospherics and soundscapes are wrapped around a warm bassline and occasional vocal snippets (from Riya) while a fairly stripped back break rolls underneath.

Forthcoming on Digital Soundboy.

8 Bits – On Your Mind (Feat Riya)

While Breakage had built up a solid reputation as a top class drum n bass producer – the second disc of his debut album “These Things Shall Pass” showed another side to his talent, dropping the bpms, adding even more bass and depth and showing that he could work at various tempos with ease. In the past couple of years he’s been forging a name for himself in the dubstep scene with huge success and the 15th of March sees his second album “Foundation” released on Digital Soundboy.

From the opening pads of “Open Up” to the squealing guitar on the closing “Breathless”, it’s an absolutely jaw droppingly good album. With guests including David Rodigan, Burial and Roots Manuva, this is an album for thorough start to finish listening. While there are several stand out moments such as the aforementioned Burial collab, the whole package works so well that you’ll want an uninterrupted listen. My personal favourites are “Old Skool Ting” (a brilliant jungle number) and “Temper” (featuring Kemo – an eerie dubsteppy number with haunting vocals from the New York MC).

The label want to keep the album fairly underwraps and requested we didn’t stream any of the new tracks – but to give you a taster – here’s audio of previous single “Higher”.

Breakage – Higher

And the video for “Hard (featuring David Rodigan and Newham Generals)”.