SpectraSoul – Play The Fool / Bugsy (SHA073) – Review

Following on from their début album release last year, SpectraSoul come again with two of the finest cuts of drum & bass you will feast your ears on for this year. Not straying far from the styles portrayed in their Delay No More LP, they have furthered their approach in the essence of creating smooth and musically decorated pieces.

More recently the duo have expressed their pleasure in teaming up with fellow musicians and vocalists to compose alongside with, as Jamie Jooste’s elegant voice compliments the polished ‘Play The Fool’ admirably. In an alike manner, the B-side ‘Bugsy’, flows fluently amongst elements of musicality, although taking a more rude, gritty route.

Play The Fool (feat. Jamie Jooste)

Alluring piano keys and an ambient synth-loop lay the foundation for SpectraSoul’s unmistakably supreme percussion. Jamie Jooste proceeds to lay her vocals gently over the track as it builds into a harmonic chorus, with echoes of Jooste’s voice playing delicately over her main melody.
The break makes way for a mellow but epic build-up once again into the soulfully uplifting and bass-infused second section. The chugging of a guitar-like bass rumbles elequently over the rich atmosphere illustrated by two of the most versatile producers currently around.

Bugsy

Exploring the darker and more rigorous formula of drum & bass, ‘Bugsy’ rolls into action with pulsing kicks and snapping snares, as the rhythm of a guitar riff slyly introduces itself. Vocal cuts are laid upon the rolling percussive breaks, emerging before the full onset of the murkiest drop SpectraSoul may have created yet.
Heavily bass-driven and rugged, the immensity of the main section is formidable, carrying plenty of depth amidst subtle sound effects. This piece balances out the release fittingly, displaying their dexterity in producing a wide variance of symphonic drum & bass.