As dubstep develops, we’ve started to observe the glut of formulaic artists going through the motions, shooting themselves in the foot by staying within a framework, one which has turned me off the genre for some time. Of course there are the exceptions, those pushing the boundaries, expanding their world.
Headhunter bring us Nomad, and what strikes first is not dubstep. Lifeform could have been Rhythm & Sound or Monolake, delicate subtle electronics, simmering in a sea of static, a slow dub techno burner. Its then the Detroit influences start to creep in, crisp synth melodies, sharp percussive journeys, and most surprisingly, slowing things down, theres no rigid 140bpm formula here. Its not until Physics Impulse that anything resembling a dubstep framework shows its head, there are still shades of Detroit, but the bass line is straight from ‘dubstep 101’, creeping back in Baseflow.
Nomad does not portray just another dubstep artist, there is far more at work here, so many more influences, so much so I’m unsure how it will be received by the dubstep diehards. A surprising album, more akin to dub techno than dubstep, but that just adds credibility points in my opinion.
Wayne Stronell
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