Implosion＜限定盤＞

UKの重鎮ダブ・アーティストTHE BUGと、ドイツ・シュトゥットガルトを拠点に活動するGHOST DUBS(別名義:JAH SCHULZ)による、最前線ダブの頂上決戦がここに実現!

本作は、伝統的なジャマイカン・ルーツの温かみや、現在ヨーロッパで主流となっているデジタル・ダブの流れとは一線を画す、冷たく重い"ミニマル・ダブ"。緊張感漂うサウンドスケープの中で、クラシックなダブを感じさせる厳格なリディム・ループ、不気味なアンビエンス、浮遊感のあるダブテクノ、そしてドゥームメタルの容赦ないリフが交錯。ジャンルを越境しながらも、すべてがダブへと収束していく構成は圧巻です。

THE ORBの方向性とは真逆を行く、"最もヘヴィなアンビエント・ダブ・アルバム"を作るというコンセプトのもと、徹底してベースの鳴りにこだわった作品。THE BUGは、制作にあたりTHE ROOTS RADICS、BLACK JADE、ON-U SOUND の POUNDING SYSTEMに強く影響を受けたと語り、一方、GHOST DUBSは、ADRIAN SHERWOODのプロダクションや、RHYTHM & SOUNDの幻想的なサウンドスケープへの敬意を表明。本作で爆発する超ヘヴィ級のパルス、感情に訴えかける共鳴、そして骨を震わすような低音の振動は、これらの影響を感じさせつつも、聴き手をさらに深いダブの世界観へと導く大傑作。リリースは、THE BUGが主宰するレーベルPRESSUREから。マスタリングは、エレクトロニカ名門レーベルSCAPEのスタジオにて、STEFAN BETKE(別名:POLE)が担当。

Veteran sound explorer Michael Fiedler produced several flavors of abstract dub under two previous aliases, Tokyo Tower and Jah Schulz, before he debuted his Ghost Dubs project with a 2024 album on Kevin Martins Pressure imprint. The producers style of submerged, sparse ambient dub couldnt be a better match for the label, and its only fitting that his next release is a full-length split LP with the Bug himself. The two producers take turns, with the Bug providing odd-numbered tracks and Ghost Dubs doing the even-numbered ones, but it all flows together smoothly, sounding closer to a collaboration than a soundclash. Martins tracks are much more restrained than the type of material he makes with the intention of blasting at parties or accompanying guest vocalists, so even compared to the sonic weaponry collected on Machines I-V, these are some of his deepest ambient dub excursions. Of course, this material deserves to be played loud on a proper sound system so it can become an immersive sound bath, otherwise it might sound a bit threadbare. The tracks are immaculately crafted and loaded with sonic details, as subtle as they may be. Martins bass tone sometimes sounds like its purring, while Ghost Dubs gets a bit swampier and sludgier. The Bugs tracks are all dedicated to various U.K. clubs that played a role in pushing the bass music scene forward, but they come across as faded memories of the pounding systems rather than replications of the music heard during those nights. "Spectres (Plastic People, Shoreditch)" is particularly cavernous and mesmerizing. As the collection progresses, it seems to lean much closer to dub techno than dubstep, with both producers employing low-slung 4/4 kick drums on several tracks, though the Bugs tend to have more diseased, growling bass, and Ghost Dubs often has a more washed-out, Basic Channel-esque sound. A stellar effort from both producers, Implosion pushes ambient dub to the limit. ~ Paul Simpson