Those Truth fans who are expecting their new EP Without You to be another tech-charged, glitchy masterpiece like their previous Wakaan EP Druids or, really much of the rest of their discography, might get a bit of a shock this time around. In fact, the new EP out today on Truth’s own Deep, Dark & Dangerous imprint is pretty much the direct opposite; as much as it can be while still being bass music, that is.
Those who have only heard the track “Pass Me By” with Lelijveld that premiered two days ago might think the smooth, ambient drum & bass was a fluke but indeed the whole EP is full of melody, amens, 174 BPM and so many snares. Truth are one of the few artists who switch back and forth between D&B, halftime and dubstep seamlessly but this level of liquid is definitely new.
“Pass Me By” is really the intro into this new ambient, sound designy space the Truth boys are cultivating, with a steppy roller of a beat and Lelijveld providing much of the melody, which is jazz-based and supported by the only synth in the track, a piano. “Without You” is dubstep speed-wise, but most punters probably wouldn’t recognize it as such due to its ultra-chill vibes, more jazzy styling and the beat being a study in snares and amens.
Once Without You comes to the third track, “Eyes On Me,” the vibe shifts a bit and the sounds go a bit darker and heavier. This track switches between D&B and dubstep (there’s that seamless bit that Truth are so famous for) but the kick is super-heavy and complimented by a bass synth behind it that’s so heavy it can at first be mistaken for reverb. Lots of sort of cyclonic snares make bring the beats along for the quite minimal ride and while this track is much less melodic than some of the others, it still seems very chilled out and ambient for a Truth track.
With the last two tracks on the EP, Truth sort of split the difference between melodic and deep bass. “Heartbreak” has a melodic intro similar to “Pass me By” which sort of rolls into an unconventional D&B track. As it goes darker and darker, that melody sort of spaghettifies. It’s still there, but really stretched out. “Miasma” is probably the heaviest track on the EP but it’s still very dark and minimal rather than being big, full of sound and glitchy. There’s a little drone synth in there but generally it’s a nod to darkstep, done with Truth’s own genre-bending style in mind.
It seems Truth wanted to go as different as possible with this EP. Without You has a lot going on and a ton going for it but it is definitely not what fans would call “classic Truth.” That said, there really is no “classic” when it comes to Truth. While they’re definitely known for a few specific styles, the other thing they’re known for is releasing what they want and not sticking to a style so that’s exactly what they’ve done here. Dark, melodic, drum & bass…it’s all there in this EP, as long as it’s not glitch.
Without You is out today, July 3 on Deep, Dark & Dangerous. Click here to stream or purchase.