It’s hard to follow the previous two albums in this series. Tempa has long known the face of dubstep and even if the true face of dubstep is indistinguishable, they seem to do a good job at capturing its many phases. From Dubstep Allstars 1 through 5, Tempa focused on producers who were pushing the dark and foreboding side of the genre; Hatcha, Youngsta, Kode9 and N-Type. Bass lines and snares that would cripple you by snapping your spine. With Dubstep Allstars 6, we saw Appleblim bring in a slightly more uplifting side of the genre. Pulling from Pinch and 2562 along with other dubstep producers who were experimenting with the once minimal genre, shifting it to a more dance-centric sound.
Cue Chef and Ramadanman. Two DJs who have also been pushing dubstep to the faster-paced dance genre, mixing in its roots with dub, ragga and drum and bass. It may not be your thing, but this current release is fast-paced and plays like a club mix. The tracklisting on the Chef side is closer to what you’d expect from the Dubstep Allstars series. Meanwhile Ramadanman seems to be splaying off into the progressive side, featuring future garage, funk, 2 step and house. It’s an interesting mix for sure. Would I call it the best Dubstep Allstars? Not hardly. Is it progressive? Yes but I don’t like where it’s going. Let’s see a 2-step-back to the roots for the next one. Slow it down a bit and bring in that gritty world we’ve grown to love. The rest of the world thinks dubstep is just jungle and mixes like this prove them right.
There are some bangers in the mix though, so it’s not a total fail. Benga, Skream, D1, Distance, Conquest and Mala have a ton of playtime. I’m not totally dogging the album, it’s just not what I was expecting. Pick it up at your shop or buy it online and let me know what you think.
Tracklist is below:
CD1 mixed by DJ Chef:
1 Dub Mechanics Main Goal
2 Chefal & Coki Feat. Doctor Stages
3 G Double E The Highest
4 Von D Feat. Lady Phe Phe Show Me
5 Von D Feat. Lady Phe Phe Show Me [Skreamix]
6 Kito LFO
7 DJ 2000F and J Kamata They Dont Know What Love Is [Chef VIP Special]
8 Dub Mechanics Spotted
9 Cyrus Sleeper [Chef VIP Special]
10 Mala Level 9
11 Mr Lager Feat. Alys Be Tell Me [Distance RMX]
12 Mr Lager Feat. Alys Be Tell Me [Von D RMX]
13 Conquest The Unknown
14 Benga Man On A Mission [Chef VIP Special]
15 Silkie 51 Times Stronger
16 Noah D / Cotti / Unknown Artist Seeeriouss [Chef VIP Special] / Real Hustler [Chef VIP Special] / Gangster For Life
17 Benga iTunes
18 Ghost Think Theyre Greezy
19 Silkie Untitled
20 Christine Vaccine Fever [Kito RMX]
21 Distance No Warning
22 LD Fibre Optics
23 Silkie Float
24 LD Day Dreamin
25 Mr Lager Four Leaf Clover
26 LD Hard Skank
27 Chef Sub Soca
28 Trolley Snatcha The Future
29 Kutz Itch [Chef VIP Special]
30 Skream WTF
31 Silkie Full Moon
32 Cluekid 09 Lick [Chef VIP Special]
33 Benga Who Remembers
34 D1 Just Business
CD 2 mixed by Ramadanman
1 Ramadanman Tread
2 Untold & D Franklin Beacon
3 Peverelist Bluez
4 Blawan Fram
5 Mickey Pearce Innami
6 Footsie Untitled
7 Untold I Cant Stop This Feeling [Pangaea RMX]
8 Scuba Tense
9 Ramadanman I Beg You
10 Shortstuff & Mickey Pearce Tripped Up
11 Pangaea Router
12 Ramadanman Old Thumbs
13 Peverelist Jarvik Mindstate
14 Martyn Vancouver
15 Headhunter OSS
16 Ramadanman Revenue [Untold RMX]
17 RSD Over It
18 D1 Subzero
19 James Blake Sparing The Horses
20 Quest Arawak
21 Joe Untitled
22 Ramadanman Humber
23 Skream Feat. Earl 16 Tune In A Dub Tribute
24 Compound One Space Odyssey
25 Pangaea Why
26 Untold Stop What Youre Doing
27 Mount Kimbie 50 Mile View
