VA – Sonic Codes Vol.1

Since its inception in 2018, Maztek’s 0101 Music has gone from strength to strength, catering for a vast array of styles of drum and bass ranging from neurofunk to halftime. Having already springboarded the careers of emerging talents like nabepro and Bad District, the Dutch label’s Divison imprint now returns with its first compilation album, one of its most ambitious outings to date. Weighing in at a whopping seventeen tracks, Sonic Codes Vol. 1 features a combination of longstanding signees and deserving newcomers, all hand-picked for inclusion by Maztek himself to make for a gargantuan LP.

Close followers of the label’s developments will no doubt be pleased to see residents like Binary and Alerstorm contributing exclusive cuts to the new project; in fact, it even features the pair’s first ever collaboration, a barbed, mechanical number entitled “Siege”. Neurofunk aficionados will recognise a number of familiar faces making their label debuts, too: Germany’s Kaiza, whose recent contributions to Bad Taste, Citrus and Red Light have marked him out as one to watch, appears twice on the compilation, teaming up with Vertex and Fearend on the syncopated heater “Papercut” and banding together with his C4C-approved crew Instinkt for the stuttering stepper “Serpens”. Meanwhile, seasoned Belgian badman Taos showcases his gritty synth work on “Ungreyed Tones”, and the fast-rising Belarusian trio Psynchro – whose recent output includes appearances on RAM, Eatbrain and Cyberfunk – turn in “Composite”, a cinematic number punctuated by garbled basslines and murmuring subs.

True to form, Maztek has also unearthed a whole host of little-known production wizards, sourced from right across the globe. The enigmatic Loded offers up a jittering, jagged belter entitled “Break Out”, while Italy’s Eclict teams up with fellow newcomer FMD&B for the neuro juggernaut “Turbolence” and London tag team Edison & SMP excel with the dark, percussive creeper “Ganglands”. With all this and more on offer over the course of the LP, there’s plenty to get stuck into…