mxdwn.co.uk » Sub Focus https://www.mxdwn.co.uk all that matters in music in the UK Thu, 30 Apr 2026 23:26:07 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=4.1 High Contrast Teams Up with Sub Focus and Wilkinson for New Remix of ‘Freedom’ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/high-contrast-teams-up-with-sub-focus-and-wilkinson-for-new-remix-of-freedom/ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/high-contrast-teams-up-with-sub-focus-and-wilkinson-for-new-remix-of-freedom/#comments Fri, 08 Jan 2021 18:33:06 +0000 http://www.mxdwn.co.uk/?p=29276 Welsh drum and bass producer Lincoln Barrett, best know in the scene as High Contrast, has teamed up with Sub Focus and Wilkinson for a fresh new remix of ‘Freedom‘. The track first appeared on the powerful duo’s collaborative album Portals that came out on 9 October 2020 via Virgin EMI Records, and was promoted with an exclusive back-to-back DJ set at Corfe Castle. Featuring fitting vocals by the Irish singer-songwriter Emara Mi, the single perfectly reflected the gentle melodies, imaginative instrumentation and atmospheric feel of the entire record.

Fresh off releasing his latest album Notes From The Underground a month ago, High Contrast’s remix turns the heat up and adds extra power to the main drum’n’bass elements of the track. Maintaining the original melodies and gentle tones of the single, it subtly replaces parts of the instrumentation with more conventional electronic tropes, resulting in a more energetic and upbeat club hit. The Sub Focus & Wilkinson VS High Contrast Remix of ‘Freedom‘ was released earlier today, 8 January, and is available to listen and download on all major streaming platforms here.

Barrett has been active for more than 20 years, using his widely recognised artistic nickname High Contrast since 2000 when he also signed for Hospital Records. As the renowned London-based independent label describes him, he “needs no introduction any more” since “the Welsh wonder has smashed his way through the D+B scene and has become one of its iconic and much respected heroes“. A leading name in the UK electronic scene, High Contrast has released seven studio albums and 2 EPs, and has taken parts in various remix collaborations and compilations, including the Isles of Wonder, the official soundtrack of the 2012 Summer Olympics.

The Welsh DJ dropped his latest record Notes From The Underground on 4 December 2020 via 3 Beat Production where he signed back in 2016 for his previous album Night Gallery. Yet another strong release with powerful guests and somewhat oldschool approach, the album features 14 tracks that seemlessly blend contemporary electronic music, liquid funk and jungle beats. Notes From The Underground is still relatively fresh, but has already seen positive reviews from fans and critics, with DJ Mag commenting on the album that “sees him draw on sounds and techniques from the modern d&b scene’s junglist roots” while The Arts Desk calls it “a deep, elegaic and occasionally beautiful listen“.

‘Freedom‘ is the fourt track from Portals, the critically acclaimed recent team-up between the genre titans Sub Focus and Wilkinson. Released on 9 October 2020, the album was the successful result of the two DJs’ isolated collaborative work at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios in the inspiring rural surroundings of Bath.

The record featured the huge singles ‘Illuminate‘, ‘Just Hold On‘, ‘Air I Breathe‘ and ‘Turn The Lights Off‘ and managed to reach #68 in the Official Albums Chart while naturally topping the UK Dance Albums Charts. ‘Freedom‘ is the fifth official single from Portals, released today alongside High Contrast’s fresh remix of the track.

]]> https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/high-contrast-teams-up-with-sub-focus-and-wilkinson-for-new-remix-of-freedom/feed/ 0 Sub Focus and Wilkinson Celebrate Their Collaborative Album ‘Portals’ with a DJ Set from Corfe Castle https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/sub-focus-and-wilkinson-celebrate-their-collaborative-album-portals-with-a-dj-set-from-corfe-castle/ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/sub-focus-and-wilkinson-celebrate-their-collaborative-album-portals-with-a-dj-set-from-corfe-castle/#comments Wed, 14 Oct 2020 06:34:11 +0000 http://www.mxdwn.co.uk/?p=24397 To celebrate the premiere of their collaborative album Portals, English drum’n’bass titans Sub Focus and Wilkinson are releasing an exclusive one hour DJ set later today. The unique back-to-back performance will be broadcast at 7pm BST on MixmagTV with more details available on their Facebook page and YouTube Channel.

Speaking about their upcoming set, the artists stated: “The cinematic and expansive backdrop felt like the perfect physical representation of the album.” Dating back to the 10th century, the Corfe Castle stands proudly above the village of the same name in Dorset and is one of the most iconic surviving buildings from the Civil War. With its timeless ruins, grand architecture and surrounding nature one can hardly imagine a more suitable location to host Sub Focus and Wilkinson official celebration of their long anticipated experimental joined project.

Portals was officially released last Friday and is available on standard CD and LP from here, or ready to stream on all digital platforms. The album features the four main singles ‘Illuminate‘, ‘Air I Breathe‘, ‘Just Hold On‘ and ‘Turn The Lights Off‘, alongside seven other track that immediately form one of the most significant drum’n’bass project of the year. The record was received extremely well upon its premiere, with fans across social media platforms praising its fresh take on the genre, brave experimentation and vast sonic scope.

Centred around the idea of escapism and teleporting to different realities, Portals sends its listeners to a journey across the open outer space of electronic music production with its grand compositions, real instrumentations and gentle melodies. Speaking about the exciting release, Wilkinson shared his gratitude for all of the support and added: “2020 has been testing to say the least but I hope this record brings a bit of joy to you all“.

Well known for huge club anthems and drum’n’bass classics, both Sub Focus and Wilkinson approached Portals in a very different state of mind and context. Talking about their influences and recording process for UKF they agreed the album “truly represents their inspirations” and was created to allow “listeners to delve into an immersive musical journey and escape from the shambles that is life right now“.

As part of the album promotion, Sub Focus and Wilkinson performed an exciting back-to-back set for BBC Radio 1’s Essential Mix series, available to listen online. In the 2-hour performance, the DJs covered almost the entirety of Portals, iconic tracks from their own reperoirs and favourite genre classic in a brilliant mix that only reminded us how much we miss live shows. Tune in later today to witness yet another memorable set against the monumental backdrop of Corfe Castle.

]]> https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/sub-focus-and-wilkinson-celebrate-their-collaborative-album-portals-with-a-dj-set-from-corfe-castle/feed/ 0 Sub Focus and Wilkinson Premiere New Track ‘Turn The Lights Off’ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/sub-focus-and-wilkinson-premiere-new-track-turn-the-lights-off/ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/sub-focus-and-wilkinson-premiere-new-track-turn-the-lights-off/#comments Wed, 07 Oct 2020 07:24:00 +0000 http://www.mxdwn.co.uk/?p=23976 Sub Focus and Wilkinson released a brand new track ‘Turn The Lights Off‘ from their highly anticipated collaborative project. Their shared album Portals is scheduled for release this Friday, 9 October via Casablanca Records and will feature the previously released singles ‘Illuminate‘, ‘Just Hold On‘ and ‘Air I Breathe‘. Last month, the DJs revealed the record’s official tracklist and artwork alongside exciting teaser for an exclusive online set to celebrate the upcoming launch.

The latest single shares similar melodies and instrumental ideas as their previous collaborations but develops into a darker drum’n’bass tune with a menacing twist reminiscent of earlier genre classics by the likes of Noisia and Sub Focus himself. It is the second drop where the track really leaves its orbit before ending in the vast open sonic space, a recurrent theme of the upcoming Portals. The official audio visualisation was premiered on UKF immediately after its release on Monday.

Sub Focus and Wilkinson’s forthcoming collaboration is set for new horizons with more freedom to experiment, improvise and utilise life instrumentation than ever heard from their solo works. All four releases so far have showcased their signature styles but add extra sonic layers and production details worthy of a standalone project.

The team-up of such highly successful music producers, raw talents and industry titans in their own merits has sparked a lot of interest ever since Sub Focus and Wilkinson joined forces for a UK and European tour in 2019 culminating in an already iconic headline set at Rampage Festival. What followed since was a series of popular releases and collaborative live sets. Earlier this year, both DJs kickstarted their one month residency for Radio 1 with an epic back-to-back set which was the first time ‘Turn The Lights Off‘ was played live.

In an intersting article for UKF on the current state of the genre during the global pandemic, Scott Claridge states that “artists are being forced to push themselves creatively, some of them renewing their musical identities in order to adapt to a constantly fluctuating environment“. 

Those words resonate even louder in the context of Sub Focus and Wilkinson’s ambitious sonic journey that is set to bring a fresh rework on a genre that has gone somewhat stale and repetative in recent years. Recorded in Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios as one of the most creative and imaginative places for electronic music creation on the planet, Portals sounds more and more exciting with every single premiere and its Friday release simply can’t come soon enough. 

 

 

 

Вижте тази публикация в Instagram.

 

‘Turn The Lights Off’ is out now, ahead of our album ‘Portals’ which is out this Friday! Публикация, споделена от Wilkinson (@wilkinsonuk) на

 

]]> https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/sub-focus-and-wilkinson-premiere-new-track-turn-the-lights-off/feed/ 0 Sub Focus and Wilkinson Confirm Release Date for Collaboration Album ‘Portals’ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/sub-focus-and-wilkinson-confirm-release-date-for-collaboration-album-portals/ https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/sub-focus-and-wilkinson-confirm-release-date-for-collaboration-album-portals/#comments Sat, 19 Sep 2020 14:16:23 +0000 http://www.mxdwn.co.uk/?p=23306 Drum’n’bass heavyweights Sub Focus and Wilkinson finally confirmed the release date of their upcoming album Portals. The collaborative project is set to come out on 9 October 2020 via Casablance Records on digital, CD and vinyl, available to pre-order now. Recorded in Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios, the record will feature their three singles ‘Illuminate‘, ‘Just Hold On‘ and ‘Air I Breathe‘.

With over 6 million combined record sales and numerous dance chart toppers, both DJs are no strangers to producing club anthems and worldwide electronic dance hits, and have certainly set the expectations high with their recent releases. While highlighting their individual signature styles and legacy, the exciting project is set to take them to a brand new direction of more experimentation, sonic depth and instrumental variety.

In September 2019, Sub Focus and Wilkinson released their first collaboration ‘Illuminate‘ which immediately captured the hearts of drum’n’bass and dance fans worldwide, and already passed 10 million streams on Spotify. This year, the London-based producers added two more tracks to their shared repertoir – the breakbeat-infuenced ‘Just Hold On‘ and latest summer hit ‘Air I Breathe‘ featuring vocals from Celementine Douglas. 

Recent social media posts confirmed the final artwork and tracklist of Portals. The record will feature eight additional tracks alongside the three singles, and more new music has been promised ahead of the official launch. Pre-orders of any format will also guarantee an exclusive Early Access Digital pass to a 1hr DJ set online stream from Sub Focus and Wilkinson.

Last night, Sub Focus and Wilkinson appeared on Annie Mac’s Mini Mix show on BBC Radio 1 for the exclusive short set ’10 Years of D&B’ ahead of the release of Portals next month. You can still listen to their nostalgic mini mix here.

Sub Focus and Wilkinson spent big part of 2019 touring together with performances across the UK and Europe. A headline spot at the legendary Rampage Festival in Belgium in March saw them kickstart their shared career with an iconic set mixing their old classics and future collaboration hits.

Their most notable domestic appearances include teaming up with Dimension for BBC’s Radio 1 Big Weekend in May and at The Warehouse Project in Manchester in late 2019. Footage from some of their collaboration shows were used for the Official Tour videos of ‘Illuminate‘ and ‘Air I Breathe‘.

]]> https://www.mxdwn.co.uk/news/sub-focus-and-wilkinson-confirm-release-date-for-collaboration-album-portals/feed/ 0