Amman’s own rising star Toumba and Bristol-based bass scientist Duswunder are pairing up for a dubstep-infused & creepy club poem to be released on Joanna OJ’s freshly announced label Caninal
When I have been informed that lady selector-in-chief Joanna OJ was about to launch her own label entitled Caninal, it immediately felt like a blessing, truly. Known for her endless and omnivorous appetite for all things electronic, showcased through her two radio shows Canine À La Furie on the Sweden-operated Retreat Radio or Di Troglodita on Toulouse-based Egregore, the French DJ is at the core of a scene that is taking its root energy in deep techno, ambient and bass music of all kinds. And the aim of her very first compilation echoes of zygomorphy is to show the world what her sharp tastes are all about, giving some space to international and local artists.
While listening to the whole thirteen-track VA, we really felt like Joanna curated and storytelling long length: even if all songs were crafted by people scattered all over the globe, you get the feeling of a consistent album flow with a welcome fluidity between each bit. From accou’s cascade-shaped IDM to a romantic dembow anthem by les angelos, via SHALT’s dark breakbeat and Anacronym’s aquatic electro, every tune finds its right space to evolve in, avoiding too much genre collision or timeline inconsistency. If this is pretty much a tour-de-force for a first-label launching project, it is also the mark of a welcomed talent in curating audio content at an age of profusion and attention economics. Taking the path opened by fellow French imprints such as Promesses or Grid with their all-genres-included sonic volumes, Caninal starts things up with a true risk-taking and democratic point of view towards electronic music, embellished with the visual art of Morgan Patimo and the mastering varnish of Positive Education’s relative and engineer/producer Basic.
Above this article, you can now stream Toumba and Duswunder’s joint oddball “Fawda”, a fantastic neck crusher that blends influences of dubstep, dark ambient, and breakbeat into a siren-invoker, bass-rolling gem of a tune. The Bristol All Centre affiliate sub-frequency science meet with Jordan’s club music experimenter rhythm tailoring masterclass, offering a nice followup to the later freshly released Janoob EP on London hard drum revered label Nervous Horizon. Built around a stripped-down sub-pattern and plated hi-synths, the duo’s track juggles around different astral plans of sound design details and robotic glimpses emerging from one bar to another, giving the sense of pre-apocalyptic bass energy to unleash. Tooth breaking and wolf howling, as the label’s name suggests itself.
Caninal’s first VA compilation echoes of zygomorphy will be released this Friday, June 16th exclusively on Bandcamp. You can pre-order it here.
