Neurofunk
| Neurofunk | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | Drum and Bass, Funk, Techstep, House, Jazz, Techno, Dark ambient |
| Cultural origins | late 1990s, England, Scotland, Europe, U.S.A. |
| Typical instruments | Synthesizer - Drum machine - Sequencer - Keyboard - Sampler - Laptop - Desktop |
| Subgenres | |
| none (complete list) | |
| Other topics | |
| Drum and bass artists, Drum and bass record labels | |
Neurofunk (commonly abbreviated neuro) is a sub-genre of drum and bass pioneered by producers Ed Rush, Optical and Matrix,[1][2] during the periods of 1997 & 1998 in London, England as a progression of techstep.[3] It was further developed by juxtaposed elements of heavier and darker forms of funk with multiple influences ranging from techno, house and jazz, characterized by consecutive stabs over the bassline and rhythmically structured by razor-sharp back beats where highly nuanced, dark ambient atmospheric production is prominent.[4] The prototype sound of the early evolution of neurofunk - diverging from its techstep counterpart - at its most creative period which defined the style, can be heard on Ed Rush & Optical's debut album, Wormhole, released on Virus Recordings in 1998.
Overview
Since the early stages of neurofunk when Optical originated the style with his track, "To shape the Future" (Metalheadz/1997), Konflict redefined it's overall sound and structure into a harsher, more stripped-down form with a stronger techno influence at the forefront of their tracks such as "The Beckoning" (Renegade Hardware/1999), setting a certain standard for 21st century producers to follow suit. In 2001, Sinthetix, Cause 4 Concern, and Silent Witness & Break took Konflict´s edgy, minimalist approach to production with emphasis on colder, precision beat engineering, harder stabs over the bassline, sharper mixdowns and simultaneously, advancing the development of sound design between 2002 and 2008 along with Gridlok, The Upbeats, Noisia, Phace and Telemetrik. Gridlok, however, focused on reworking big band horn arrangements in jazz during his period on Violence Recordings, yet maintaining the crucial elements of classic neurofunk dissonance and minimalism in his music.
Between 2007 and 2008, Gridlok, Phace, The Upbeats and Telemetrik creatively upgraded the soundscape spectrum of the sub-genre, a decade after the pioneering artists first established the sound and style, with foward-thinking debut albums such as the rough-cut and raw-edged antics of Break The System by Gridlok (Project 51/2007); the minimal techno-funk fueled, Psycho by Phace (Subtitles Music/2007); the grunge-toned, accelerated funk of Nobody´s Out There by The Upbeats (Bad Taste Recordings/2008) and the experimental, My Light Year by Telemetrik (BSE/2008), featuring a diverse blending of new electronic music elements.
As the sub-genre developed during it´s course of ten years, with artists starting as purists but later changing their musical direction into a broader musical setting, new artists have emerged to fill the vacuum and to re-energize the sound by often taking production back to it´s roots, where gritty, dark funk overtones and distortion were mostly upfront on tracks, along with new labels set to promote and release their music. Since 2005, developing artists with a small, but stable flow of releases such as Axiom, Catacomb, Dose, Rregula, Chook, Subtone and Stalker, in combination with the Syndrome Audio, Disturbed and Full Force labels, are viewed as some of the most challenging talents within the scene.
Lyrical content
As an MC and lyricist, Ryme Tyme personalized the essence of neurofunk as an integral member of Ed Rush & Optical's live, DJ sets. His abstract lyrical flow and fiery, apocalyptic manifestations can be heard on "Resurrection" and "Fastlane" (produced by Ed Rush & Optical/Virus Recordings/2000), "Yes" (co-produced by Trace/1210 Recordings/2001), and "Tonka" (produced by The Upbeats/Bad Taste Recordings/2008). Ryme Tyme's enhanced, lyrical futurism was influential on neurofunk's second-wave MC's, most notable on ex-Sinthetix, MC Mecha's spoken word roundabout drawing comparisons to Ryme Tyme's assonance and aesthetics.
As a producer, his progressive recording techniques in the studio are highlighted on his set-genre track, "We Enter" (Optical Remixes/No U-Turn Recordings/1999), helping to establish neurofunk as an entity to drum and bass along with "Payback" (Parts 1 & 2/DSCI4 Records/1999), "White Lightning" (co-produced by Ed Rush & Optical/Virus Recordings/2000), "Abyss Remix" (co-produced by Nasis/1210 Recordings/2001) and "Lightsleeper" (co-produced by Matrix & Fierce/C4CLTD Recordings/2002). Some of these essential tracks by Ryme Tyme - which in part defines neurofunk - were compiled into an album entitled, Ryme Tyme (1210 Recordings/2001), consisting mainly of his 12 inch singles from his 1210 Recordings label.
Origin
One of the first mentions of neurofunk as a buzzword was in the book Energy Flash by English music critic Simon Reynolds, a history of rave and dance music culture. According to Simon Reynolds' perspective, "Neurofunk is the fun-free culmination of jungle's strategy of 'cultural resistance': the eroticization of anxiety." [5]
Besides neurofunk being a divergent of techstep, some of its origins and influences can be traced back to the late 1960's to mid 1970's period of trumpeter Miles Davis: his blending of jazz, rock and funk genres; the concept of switching his trumpet on to marshall stacks and wah-wah pedals as a new method of expression for his distinctive modes and phrasing; pioneering a new, cutting edge sound and style based on African American musical traditions such as call-and-response. His drummers during this period - Tony Williams, Billy Cobham, Jack DeJohnette, and Al Foster - made use of polyrhythmic, upfront playing techniques in interaction with a dynamic system of sharp trumpet modes and riff driven sheets of sound of heavy rock guitar rhythmic patterns, improvised jazz solos and deep funk basslines, paving the way for new electronic, trance-induced, instrumental dance music of the 1980's and 1990's. Some of Miles Davis' seminal albums from this period, In a Silent Way (1969) - stated by Matrix as an influence on his music - On The Corner (1972), and Get Up With It (1975) were the breeding ground for contemporary, experimental funk music and influential on early neurofunk tracks such as "Bluesy Baby" (Ed Rush & Optical RMX) by Ram Jam World (Higher Education/1998), "Syringe" by Ed Rush & Optical (Virus Recordings/2000), and "Serum" (Matrix RMX) by Outfit - pseudonym for Dom & Roland, Fierce and Optical - (Metro Recordings/1999).
Neurofunk's most distinguished feature is the use of an opening and closing filter on a funk influenced bassline, giving a similar effect to a wah-wah pedal on a electric bass. The concept of funk infused, distortion on bass and brass instrumentation was innovated by Miles Davis during the late 1960's after listening to Jimi Hendrix and Sly & the Family Stone, becoming essential elements in the making of jazz fusion. The techniques applied by Miles Davis as a bandleader which can best expose his input on prototype neurofunk, are the stop-time driven beats on "Black Satin" from On The Corner and the sustained, low pitched drones on "Rated X" from Get Up With It, running parallels to Ed Rush & Optical's "Mystery Machine" from Wormhole and "Climate" by Matrix & Fierce from their 12-inch single.
Another influence on the early neurofunk sound of Virus Recordings, stated by Optical, was visionary record producer George Clinton's complex recording studio techniques for Funkadelic during their early to late 1970's period when Clinton redefined funk as an advanced form of music by incorporating the skills of virtuosic musicians such as Bernie Worrell and Eddie Hazel, while developing the P-Funk mythology themes and long range instrumentals as tools for his progressive, psychedelic music influenced productions, arrangements, and concept albums. As a member of P-Funk, bassist Bootsy Collins´ playing style, often featuring his instrument in lead rather than rhythm section, originated an innovative, reverberating, heavy low-frequency bass sound highly influential on the emergence of hip hop, detroit techno, and by extension, the early foundations of neurofunk.
Media
Notes
- ^ Interview with Noisia from dnbforum.nl (Retrieved June 2007)
- ^ Interview with Phace in Mixmag, January 2007
- ^ Energy Flash
- ^ Energy Flash
- ^ No U-Turn Records
References
- Simon Reynolds "Energy Flash" Picador, (ISBN 0-330-35056-0) - excerpt.