Pressure is a new garage project produced by Dusky. Still typically resemblant of their trademark sound, this musical excursion looks back to their formative years and early productions that were heavily influenced by UK and US garage. Covering everything from murky 2 step sounds to uplifting vocal bubblers and soulful US influenced 4x4, the project includes collaborations with Manchester's garage revivalist Interplanetary Criminal, two-step pioneer El-B and London-based songwriter Mariella. "When we were writing our most recent album JOY we really enjoyed the process of creating 'Eros', one of the more garage influenced tracks on the album. It reignited our interest in the genre's sound world, so once JOY was complete we got stuck into writing a load of similar material and this project is the result.” - Dusky

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Dusky’s music has always been built on the pleasure principle, but JOY – as the title makes absolutely clear – takes that to new levels of purity and intensity.
Looking back to more innocent times and to rave music’s halcyon days, the duo of Alfie Granger-Howell and Nick Harriman have tapped into that special moment when raving was still a voyage into the unknown.

This project is a distillation of the spirit of people coming together in hard times, forgetting their troubles and celebrating life. All of the core elements here are familiar from the peak rave era and the birth of hardcore – the cascading pianos, the infectious bleep melodies, the Chicago and Detroit grooves, the rugged Belgian techno riffs, and the proto-jungle break beats – but retooled, rewired, and refreshed for this brave new world.

It’s both a natural development and noticeable evolution from the pair’s previous work. Natural, because these musical elements have always been apparent in Dusky’s sound, but a clear evolution in they way they are presented, with such an unreserved and joyous tone.

The result is a celebration - and expression - of the communal ecstasy of the dance floor experience. An expression of 18 months yearning to be back out there communing and celebrating. An expression of everything that dance music - and dance culture - is about at its very best.

JOY brings together all the finesse and subtlety that Dusky have honed while traversing the various corners of clubland over the past decade, all their understanding of fundamental dance floor dynamics, and channels it all to a single, unified purpose. At a time when we’ve all suffered, we’ve all struggled, and we’re all uncertain, we’ve never needed this sense of unity more. All the release we’ve so badly wanted is here: we all need JOY.
credits

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Third Son is back for his third EP on 17 Steps ‘Faint Harmonics’. Four tracks filled with his usual gritty percussion and pulsating electro basslines.

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Klose One and Claus Fuss return to their collaborative techno alias OneOneOne with the Pipeline EP. As a DJ, Klose One’s knack for fusing a house music backbone with elements of UKG, bass and grime has allowed him to endure as a staple of London’s fast moving underground scene. Claus Fuss is a classically trained producer and composer, and a master behind the scenes as co-creator of Zed Bias’ live set, and more recently the head of live sound for German synth pioneers Tangerine Dream. As OneOneOne they take an improvisational approach to production, channeling their ideas through analog equipment and live sequencing. Title track ‘Pipeline’ and closer ‘Bewusst’ demonstrate an economic use of individual elements to create tightly wound dance floor rollers with a tough edge. The two let loose on ‘Squeak’ and ‘Jolt’, a pair of stripped back and anthemic techno bangers, primed for a grunge-y basement setting.


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17 Steps present ‘New Atlantis’, a 5 track EP from versatile DJ, producer and dance music historian Chrissy. The EP takes its name from an unexpected source – a 17th century utopian novel of the same name by Sir Francis Bacon, depicting a future society in which science has become the ruling principle. It’s an inspiring idea for Chrissy – an antidote to the assault on truth and intellectualism led by climate change deniers, anti-vaxxers, flat earthers, creationists, unfit-for-office demagogues and the slow suffocation of fact-based journalism. ‘New Atlantis’ explores the utopian worldview implicit in early rave music, drawing on classic Chicago house, UK hardcore and Drexciyan electro. The result is a collection of jacking breaks and bass infused dance music washed with a bittersweet euphoria – celebrating and lamenting an era’s forgotten optimism.A1. In Paradise, A2. New Atlantis, B1. New Instruments, B2. In Paradise (Loods Remix), B3. Composition for Sample, Flexatone & Vibraslap


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Joris Biesmans debuts on 17 Steps with his Big Mouth EP. The Berlin based Belgian follows hit records on Rhythm Cult, Aeon and his own Tve Recordings with an EP crafted in his trademark style – propulsive, analogue driven house and techno, rich in melody and colour. ‘After All These Years’ and the title track ‘Big Mouth’ are anthemic, brimming with extrovert synths and acid lines. On ‘DrumatiXL’ Biesmans channels vintage, celestial electro through his hardware. It’s a slick, sci-fi inspired three track selection primed for the Berlin dancefloors he calls home

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London based producer Christian Piers has a decade of production experience and a discography that spans house, techno and drum and bass. He is a long-term friend of 17 Steps, and became the second artist to release on the label after label heads Dusky back in 2015. Acclaimed releases on Curle and with Leon Vynehall as Laszlo Dancehall have sustained Christians' reputation as a truly versatile producer. With ‘Virus’, his debut LP under this alias, Christian puts himself forward an exceptional and compelling voice in UK techno, drawing on his experience in drum and bass and breaks, a sample heavy hip-hop inspired approach to production and a dubbed out, industrial techno aesthetic. Opener ‘Extrinsic’ lays the foundations, combining cavernous drones and rattling breaks over submerged kicks, conjuring up images of chasmal warehouses, dusty basements and rattling window frames. Elsewhere delay soaked stabs bounce off combative breaks. A dialogue between Christians’ influences ensues that’s as captivating as it is individual. Christian creates passages of intense energy without breaking a sweat. Cold atmospheres are navigated with an unhurried authority and confidence that prevents them from becoming desolate. Behind the gritty haze and forceful bassweight Christian hides the playful, agile rhythms that have become his signature – percussive sounds stumble and roll in the background, whip like snares slice through the fog. ‘Virus’ is an exhilarating ride; right up to the final bars of the teasing, anti-climactic dancefloor weapon ‘Resource Depletion’. The infinite rising tones of the closer are a bold and forward looking statement of intent from an artist whose evolution continues to unfold.

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Third Son returns to 17 Steps for his diverse 'Avril' EP. Bringing Electronica and Acid soundscapes alike, the 4 tracks highlight the endless benefits to his vulnerable, raw and unconstrained production technique.

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Dusky are back with a new EP as we move towards the back end of summer. Following up on the massive release that was Life Signs Vol. 1 on Gerd Janson's Running Back Records, the duo now return to their own imprint, 17 Steps. The 'Imagine What' EP is their first 17 Steps release since the Aset Forever EP at the end of 2018 and marks the 25th release on the label. In their own words - "Imagine What is a personal journey through shimmering melodies, proto-rave vocals and shuffling drums, arriving at a deep, eyes-closed peak. L.I. takes classic electronica as it’s main inspiration, along with the deeper side of D&B. A chance experiment with an arpeggiator led to the main melody, while a solid wall of low frequencies and electro leaning beats propel the rest of the track. And Cedar uses sampled breakbeats combined with ambient soundscapes that touch on early Speedy J and Warp vibes.”

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