The most righteous DnB drum programming I’ve ever heard. While hitting the studio with Max D a couple weeks ago, he threw down a rubbery bassline that reminded him of a certain seminal DnB artist: Boymerang. I had never heard of their music, which prompted a youtube deep dive into Boymerang’s 1997 Balance of The Force on Astralwerks. Urban Space (Track 3) has that rubbery bassline Max was referencing (it’s so nasty), but after a 2nd listen of this album, the final track, Lazarus, absolutely stunned me.
A familiar Apache drum break skates through the 9 minutes of this track, but never remains stagnant. That’s straightup Boymerang genius; the delicate intricacy of maintaining a constantly chopped beat, seamlessly. Smooth, “lost in the dessert” synth pads creep in and out of the mix with patient pacing and deliver a sense of “yea, you’re going on a journey here, m8!” I also can feel the amount of time and attention this piece needed to assemble and that’s what makes it extra special.
You can find plenty of CD and vinyl copies of Balance of The Force on Discogs — or you can listen to the full album uninterrupted on Youtube.
Jackson Ryland 