J:Kenzo is an artist we have long admired here at Metalheadz and it was only a matter of time before we brought him into the fold for a full EP.

Titled 'ZegaFunk', J:Kenzo's 4 track offering was instigated by the 2020 lockdown and fiercely spurred on by Goldie over the course of the year. There is a real classic feel to the EP, so acutely influenced by the sound of 1997 with dystopian pads and groove-laden basslines readily bursting from each track. Innovative dub influences and engaging patterns keep the listener captivated throughout a slick EP with both substantial weight and flavour.

We're also honoured to have another incredibly accomplished artist join the camp in .EPOD who delivers his trademark skillset on an exquisitely reimagined version of the Metalheadz logo.
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Andre Sobota - or, as you probably know him better, Brazilian drum and bass star Bungle - delivers an extraordinary EP following on from his input to the 31 Recordings Future Beats album last year. Bungle has been at the forefront of the Drum & Bass scene for almost 10 years now, with timeless releases such as Astral Travel on Soul:R, has also had contributions to other labels including Critical Music, CIA & Hospital Records. Get ready to be blown away by Bungle's outstanding production levels. Yet another future classic to be added to the 31 Recordings back catalogue. More

The next release on Tempa marks the return of J:Kenzo, with Urban Gorilla, the dubstep firebrand's first release since last year's crushing Magneto 12". Kenzo remains one of the leading lights of the genre's current generation: his tracks are thrilling exercises in futuristic, synapse-scrambling minimalism, but still deeply rooted in the community-led sound system attitude that inspires them. Lead track 'Urban Gorilla' epitomises that aesthetic - it features the tough, ruffneck yet dextrous vocals of Ghost crew member Juiceman, famous for his loping chat on El-B's perennial 'Buck 'n' Bury'. Here he's on incendiary form with a beat to match, with his deep baritone looping around percussion and bass that slinks and scuttles - equal parts dub soundboy fury and tense dystopian nightmare. 'Expansion' trips still further into the dark, with its whiplash bolts of sub-bass and eerie, two-note refrain instantly recalling the characteristic immersive, physically powerful sets of scene lynchpin Youngsta. The EP closes with the instrumental version of 'Urban Gorilla' recast as 'Technoid', drawing out the track's contours in sharp, brusquely metallic relief. Tough yet fluid, they're potent reminders of the force coiled within J:Kenzo's music.



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*J:Kenzo is a key presence in London’s current dubstep community. Leading a new generation of artists directly inspired by the genre’s pioneers,his productions are renowned as deadly weapons in the deep dubstep arsenal, pouring across dancefloors with the unstoppable force of a tidal wave. His latest for Tempa gathers two tracks bristling with Kenzo’s customary sonic signatures – a titanium-plated sheen,razor-precise bassweight,intricate attention to space and sound design – but draws them into new territories along the way.. ‘Magneto (Feel It)’ is among the most shockingly minimal tracks Kenzo’s crafted to date. Centred around the heartbeat double-thud of a kickdrum and a few flecks of disembodied voice,its windmilling sub-bass pulsations ripple upward through the body. ‘TVR’ is faster,its swung rhythms and conga rolls arriving in energetic fits and starts to kick dancers into action. It draws to the fore Kenzo’s techno-inspired side: halfway through it explodes into propulsive action,with a spiraling electro-ish rhythm switching the track’s energy into overdrive.

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Arguably the stand out vocal track from J:Kenzo's self-titled debut album, released in 2012 on Tempa, 'Eyes Wide Open' boldly showed off dubstep's ability to be a uniquely flexible form of music. Its half-sung, half-whispered lyrics and descending arpeggio turning oceanic halfstep into a deep vocal track, equally at home in headphones, on late-night radio or cutting through the crowd at FWD>>.
*Assembled on this remix 12" are a 170 bpm reworking from multi-talented producer and owner of Exit Records dBridge, and a meditative remix by scene mainstay Youngsta, in collaboration with Metalheadz' Jubei.
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