quête:backbeat underground

Surrrealism label boss EdOne returns to HABITAT with the ‘Show Me Love’ EP, following the release of his track ‘Madness Diary’ on the ‘METAFLORA III’ compilation in April 2025. Dropping on 26th February,
‘Show Me Love’ is a striking four-track EP that captures the full emotional range of his meticulously crafted sound. With multiple top ten Beatport chartings and releases on respected imprints such as Innervisions, Bedrock, Global Underground, and Renaissance, EdOne now brings his signature intensity, tension, and melodic precision into one of his most complete and expressive works to date, with the package featuring a collaboration from Rotterdam’s Beswerda.

Title track ‘Show Me Love’ opens the EP, delivering a backbeat-driven, clap-heavy groove, with soothing maracas, sundrenched synths, and warm pads creating an inviting, melodic house cut. ‘DTS’ serves as a moodier counterpart; its thudding bassline, rattling central synthline, and atmospheric low-end strings build a deep, cinematic tension. On the flip side, ‘The Next Men’ leans into EdOne’s progressive, hypnotic sound, featuring preaching vocals, minor-key progressions, and steadily building emotional weight. Closing with ‘Lahn’ , EdOne and Dutch mainstay Beswerda descend into a raw aesthetic, blending industrial grit with dub-like textures for a brooding final statement.

Underground System return to Razor-N-Tape with the Looking In EP, A 5-track offering of fresh originals and remixes.

Ranging from low-slung Balearic grooves, to driving left-field funk and urgent up-tempo backbeats, the record is a fine-tuning of the US sound, complete with their signature flute and synth soundscapes, driving percussion, and catchy offbeat vocal hooks.

On the B-side, RNT mainstays Nenor and Clive From Accounts take two of the tunes into clubbier territory, with a pair of remixes primed for the dance floor.

KingUnderground Records present the instrumentals version of Lewis Parker’s sought after hip-hop record ‘Frequency Of Perception’ - a record that continued to cement Parker as a stalwart of the 90s hip-hop sound, think Tribe, Slum Village, The Pharcyde et al.

The prolific UK born hip hop legend, proves to be as tapped into the feel of a pocket as he was when he came on the scene in the 90s. “All I Got”, the album's first track, has a groove to the bassline that you won’t forget. The spacey keys show themselves early in the record and are a constant that give the record a dreamy feel, adding a mystical and psychedelic energy. Whereas “All My Life” is a well executed balance between that energy found in the flute held up by a taught backbeat, allowing it to maintain a free spirit.

The attention to detail and the intent in the sequencing and production on “Frequency of Perception” is best noticed when listening front to back.
The whole album touches on dynamics in line with the iconic sound that Parker built his reputation on for decades. All while finding new ways to tell stories by further exploring instrumentation. Lewis remains consistent in his craft, continuing to cook up beats and productions with classic techniques and fresh ingredients. There is no sense of reaching, the productions exude an attitude that reaps a true passion for his craft.

Indie pop quartet Melenas hail from Pamplona, Spain, a picturesque region nestled just south of the Pyrenees. Such beauty can't help but inform the band's songwriting, but Melenas aren't content to just sit placidly & take in the scenery. Since they burst onto the scene in 2016, the band has hit the ground running, playing incessantly both locally & on the stages at national festivals like Primavera Sound & Eurosonic as well as releasing a debut full length (2018's "s/t" album) and a 7-inch single both triple-released on local labels Elsa, Nebula & Snap! Clap! Club. Trouble In Mind is honored to be releasing their new album Dias Raros and is the first label outside of Spain to release Melenas music to the world.Dias Raros hums right from the get-go, peppering their garage-pop punch with elements of lysergic dream pop, melancholic indie rock and strident guitar jangle. The album title translates to "Strange Days" an acknowledgement - according to the band - of "...those days where you spend more time inside than outside. Inside your own self, inside your bedroom and your own universe thinking about your wishes, dreams, memories, obsessions or fears." The lyrics - sung entirely in their native Spanish - reference "those interior dialogues where sometimes you fight to escape from a situation, you wonder what another person will be thinking about or feeling, you gotta say goodbye, or you just enjoy the time by yourself. Days that, for different reasons, you're feeling different, they are strange". Opener "Primer tiempo" buzzes with an urgent organ drone, unfolding into a yearning ballad of modern guitar-pop bolstered by the group's lush harmonies & sets the tone for the rest of Dias Raros. Songs like "No puedo pensar" "3 Segundos" and "Despertar" follow suit, with the rhythm section galloping headlong into an insistent guitar strum, while ballads like the tender "El Tiempo ha Padsado" rely on the band's melodious voices bolstered by a lilting guitar riff and gentle organ swells. Elsewhere mid tempo rockers like the stomping "Los alemanes", the simmering "Ciencia Ficción" and "Ya no es Verano"s insistent jangle recall underground greats like The Pastels, R.E.M. and Shop Assistants. "Vals" ("Waltz") closes the album in 3/4 time, named for the ballroom dance as well as the last name of a close friend - a dedication to her. Its dreamy sway alluding to classic Brill Building songwriting; dusted with melancholy, but lifted by cascading voices, and organ and guitar waves and guitars that twinkle and shimmer over a cracking backbeat. Dias Raros is the perfect introduction to a band bursting with promise, confidently inhabiting their own space built upon the foundation of their influences both geographically and culturally, as well as musically.

Now, this release is really special. Warsaw's finest producer, envee (yes spelled in lower case) has been around the block since the early 2000s and is arguably Poland's #1 producer of underground dance music...with soul.

With a sound that often leans towards the UK underground, we thought that we should enlist one of envee's (and our) fave producers to remix his new Local Talk release; Manchester’s finest Zed Bias.

We asked Zed to give us that deep, soulful 2-Step rub but with a slight jazz edge and boy did he deliver.
Not only did he remix one of the tracks, he got so inspired and remixed both tracks...don!
It's proper UK deep UK 2-step / garage that will work in any (!) decent club. Yup it's that good.

We of course need to mention the original mixes from envee himself.
Sum Luv is a warm and melodic hip hop / soul jam with a slight Dilla(ish) backbeat. A proper tune!
Styrax sounds like a killer jazz-funk banger straight out the Bugz In The Attic playbook with jazzy Rhodes, breakbeats, big strings, and a bad bassline. West London meets Wars aw...bam!!