DEF CON is one of the world’s largest and longest running annual hacking conferences, and for the last two years Austin-based label Gravitas have supplied the accompanying official soundtrack for the event. Based around this year’s DEF CON 22 event in Las Vegas, this third pay-what-you-want volume in the series sees all donations going to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and collects together a cast of predominantly US-based artists that features more recognisable figures such as Mochipet, Opiuo, DJ Spooky and KRS One alongside a range of less widely known names. As the above reference points suggest, the predominant mood here falls upon hip hop and beats, with lashings of wobble-heavy dubstep and bass music thrown in. DJ Spooky kicks things off with ‘Antarctic Rhythms’, eschewing his usual turntable-dominated production style in favour of an opulent drift through sheeny synths, majestic orchestral strings and juddering MPC-punched hip hop rhythms that comes coated in slightly more gloss than you’d usually expect from him.
The Digital Connection’s ‘Drippin’ meanwhile shifts from a gentle intro section comprised of angelic female vocals and glinting refracted synth pads into dark churning dubstep more akin to the likes of Niveau Zero and Downlink as robotic sub-bass drops and footwork snares surge and roll against pitched-down MC samples and buzzing powerline-esque digital effects. Elsewhere, Starcadian’s ‘Chinatown’ offers up a sidetrip into retro eighties electro-funk, sending liquid guitar riffs sliding against buzzing analogue synths and gauzy vocoder-treatments in an offering that calls to mind a more muscular disco take on Air, before Dale Chase’s ‘Security Kate’ brings the hip hop back to the forefront, with a rapped love letter to a female airport security guard that calls to mind MC Lars (who’s also featured amongst the tracklisting here), draped in additional layers of swaggering synth-funk. A consistently strong and diverse compilation that’s well worth seeking out – you can download ‘DEF CON 22: The Official Soundtrack’ from http://music.gravitasrecordings.com/album/def-con-22-the-official-soundtrack
