AI has officially gone mainstream. Its mass adoption is throwing up some concerns for creatives, from writers fretting about ChatGPT taking their jobs to artists arguing bitterly over the merit of generated art. But the opportunities it offers are also undeniable - such as being an underground dance music producer and getting vocals from The Weeknd, Kendrick Lamar and Tupac on your beats. Or, so it sounds anyway. That’s what French artist Jaymie Silk has done on what he newly coins “Rub Music” (a portmanteau of rave and club music), adding realistic AI mimicking of iconic pop and rap voices to his pacey dance productions. The tracks slap and it’s an interesting use of AI, which we’ll no doubt see used increasingly in the underground music world. Especially when unauthorised samples can have teams of major label lawyers shutting you down, or clearing samples can cost six figure sums.

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The hotbed of creativity that is Nyege Nyege’s villa studio in Kampala has delivered again with this collaboration served up by Rotherham’s Rian Treanor and Ugandan Ocen James, an Acholi fiddle player. The merging of two distinct styles - Treanor’s inclination towards unstable, electronic rhythms and James’s folk music melodies - makes for an aurally intriguing blend. Over the course of the album, sounds that can have a jolting effect on uninitiated ears gradually draw you into their mesmerising world. Standouts include ‘Naassaccade’, which brings the kind of techno weight that can hypnotise dancefloors, and ‘Rigi Rigi’ which will have you hand clapping and foot stomping in a jig.

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For the 19th edition of his self-released series ‘DRMTRK’, Scratchclart (AKA Scratcha DVA) drops a five-track set of collaborations, drawing on a diverse set of sounds including amapiano, grime and house. While ‘X Rated’, a joint effort along with Skream and Mez, will likely be the headline track, check ‘Afrotek VIP ft. Mxshi Mo’ – a weighty, growling, dancefloor destroying sub-bass feast.

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Originally released in 2011, Norwegian ambient hero Biosphere refits and expands the much-loved album for CD and digital, adding four previously unreleased tracks and modifying another. After stumbling across photographs of a nuclear power plant in Japan, he became fascinated by how the country had built so many plants next to the sea in earthquake-prone zones and decided to make a soundtrack to their architecture. Just a month after finishing the recordings, a 15-metre tsunami crashed into the Fukushima power plant causing a nuclear disaster and evacuation of around 100,000 people. The prophetic music is poignant, deep and textured, taking you from soaring synthesiser explorations to melancholic downtempo head nodders.

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Having been producing records for nearly three decades now, Reade Truth is a long-time veteran of New York City’s underground techno and house scene. Under his Fiction Life alias, his latest is a six-track 2x12” of dancefloor-oriented bangers for Brussels outfit Basic Moves. The tracks move through dark, dusty vocal house and bassline-driven techno – stacked with that ‘90s analogue warmth.

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With a reputation for inventive and bristling tech and bass, ‘Emeline’ feels like a natural step for Wisdom Teeth honcho Facta. Putting rhythm at the centre, this four-tracker spans everything from bubbling synths and outlandish bleeps and bloops in title-track ‘Emeline’ to frenetic, eerie percussion in ‘Mirage’. It’s difficult to not get taken in by the low-tempo drums and glistening keys reminiscent of old time-y jazz records on ‘Felt’; while the frenetic, grinding bassline in ‘Sick Pup’ is as unsettling as it is satisfying. One of those EPs where you can never guess what you’re going to hear next, in the best way.

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Released on ec2a’s sister imprint TWELVEZ, this two-tracker from Sheffield-based producer Silva Bumpa is a masterclass in UKG/bassline nostalgia. ‘Feel Aight’ delivers a distinctly euphoric speed garage flavour, with its glistening vocal sample intended for shouting towards a club ceiling with your eyes pursed, whereas ‘Wickedist’ is what it says on the label — bolshy kicks, choppy vocals and a naughty, wobbly bassline. Bring back Niche!

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AntsLive’s debut EP marks him out as a hybrid rapper to watch. The first track ‘Lightskin Beatle’ plays with a Spanish guitar riff with Eminem-sounding rap verses and a harmonic flute breaking up the order. Next up is the track that has really put his name on the map, ‘Number One Candidate’. A song that has been ingrained with opulence for its grand beat built from bass and brass. The EP continues to use unconventional backing tracks such as ‘Talking Stages’, which has a lo-fi feel that contrasts with the quick bars from AntsLive. Each track brings something different.

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Building from a scattered set of releases in 2022, Clavish has caught everyone’s attention and now dropped a mammoth 28-track catalogue of work. Blessed with a solid flow, Clavish sounds commanding through tracks such as ‘Rocket Science’, standing out alongside the much-loved duo D-Block Europe. Once you listen to the full mixtape you can appreciate the drive and craftsmanship behind it, as tracks such as ‘Greece’ and ‘Public Figure’ depict exemplary UK rap. On top of these tracks there’s many, many more with features, including from Fredo, Youngs Teflon, Rimzee, Tiny Boost and Teeway, reflecting a focus on the underground of UK rap that Clavish is staking his claim at the pinnacle of.

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Irish artist Jessica Smyth, AKA Biig Piig, has released a genre-bending debut album. Coming in at a tight seven tracks, the new project is nothing to underestimate. Hyperpop meets dance music on the opening song ‘Only One’, and the pace only intensifies throughout the album, with vibrant production on songs such as ‘Kerosene’, which merges a funky bassline, jumping vocal loops, Biig Piig’s soft lyrics and much more to form an upbeat track. ‘Picking Up’ featuring Deb Never sees similarities in her previous indie work taken up a notch as a fast breakbeat bounces in to give a dynamic twist. It’s just as popping as bubblegum.

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Kicking off the year on a high, London’s 1-800 GIRLS hits the ground running with a new two-track release dedicated to the early-hours ravers. Both ‘Gd 2 Me’ and ’90%’ aim to capture the “nostalgia of ‘90s rave”, according to the producer, the latter framed around a soulful vocal and fleeting percussion while ‘Gd 2 Me’ builds to a deconstructed finale. Each track finds its home in 1-800 GIRLS’ signature sound and mutation of UK bass.

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On their follow-up to 2021’s ‘Pulling Teeth’, LCY explores conformity, societal boundaries, gender, religion, and sexuality through a 16-minute record made up of six club cuts. ‘/Y\’ marks the first release under the producer’s wider project of Sacrum, and tells a tale of safety and comfort in a “fantasy narrative”. From the ambient soundscapes of the record’s opener and closer, the gaps in between give LCY space to explore club rhythms and ethereal rave stabs with tracks including ‘CHERUBIM’ and ‘0NLY 0NE’.

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To mark the launch of his brand new label formed alongside Gamma Intel, Holland’s Identified Patient brings experimental six-tracker ‘Elevator Music For Headbangers’ to Nerve Collect. Opening with the acid-tinged ‘Walk With Me’, which features a brooding vocal and dub-influenced bassline, Identified Patient then ventures into the depths of dystopian jungle on ‘The Fun Never Stops’, before rounding the EP off with his take on trip hop, ‘Second-Hand Nostalgia’, a psychedelic cut laced with elements of industrial techno.

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