WAVHART have certainly caught Reid Speed’s attention with his unique mix of classic rave and modern jumpy beats and neuro-glitch synths. In fact, since his first genre-melding and mind-melting remix of Reid and Dr. Apollo’s “Aion” in late 2020, he’s released almost exclusively on Play Me or Play Me Too. With multiple singles on both labels through 2021 and 2022, it only makes sense that WAVHART’s debut breakthrough EP, To the End would be released on Play Me Too.
To the End is a three-track snapshot for those who may have been sleeping on WAVHART of both where he is now in his sound and how much he’s developed from his already high-quality tech on “Aion.” All three tracks are D&B at core, but it’s always fun to see new artists who don’t let themselves be bound by genre from jump; they’re generally much more free to just draw from anywhere, even when focusing on one particular beat style. The result is that the tracks in To the End are also not bound by subgenre, meaning there’s something for everyone here: jumpy, dancey beats, ravey ambient work and grimy neuro/speedcore vibes all flow together seamlessly.
The three-track To the End starts with its title track, a melodic vocal track featuring new-to-D&B vocalist, Igarah. This track blends minimal drum & bass, a more jump up-inspired D&B, ameny breakdowns and glitch/experimental syncopation. With the sort of nu metal vibe of the vox and ambient support sound, that’s already a pretty intense mashup but it just gets more genre-straddling from there. The EP closer, “Impulse,” in fact, is more breaks than D&B in terms of tempo and beat structure. It also incorporates some hardstyle-style house for the steppers among us. Ineterestingly, however, this track still feels very drum & bass-y due fo the many cuts and the design of the synths. It’ll have a lot fo D&B heads squinting at it, that’s for sure. That it, before the beat takes over and they find themselves dancing to it.
Our YEDM premiere today is the very much D&B track, “Dream State.” There’s no mistaking this one, beat, tempo or vibe. With a solid jumpy beat, however, it’s not your typical…well…anything. With the uber-high-pitched and ravey (almost gabber-inspired) intro, “Dream State” intentionally doesn’t prepare listeners for what’s about to happen after the drop: an absoultely filthy neuro-inspired glitchfest in the synths. It’s a wild ride from there as the track vacillates between the twinkly happy hardcore techno track and the evil neuro stinker. If your dreams sound like this track, friends, we’ll pray for you. In the meantime, it desprerately needs to be played as loud and fast as possible on a big festie rig, like, yesterday (we’re sure Reid Speed has done that a few times already).
WAVHART is a lesson to D&B punters that we really should be past the days of strict adherence to subgenre or even genre by now. With an artist this creative and technically sound, why shouldn’t we let him go wherever he wants and follow his own vibe. If EPs like To the End are the result, we’d do well to completely shirk labels. They’re really nothing more than descriptors, anyway. Leave the words to us word nerd journalists and just get out there, find your vibe and party.
To The End drops this Friday, November 18 on Play Me Too Records. Click here for pre-order and pre-stream links.
