Neurofunk
| Neurofunk | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | Techstep, Drum and Bass, Funk, Jazz, Techno, Trance |
| Cultural origins | late-1990s, London, Scotland, Europe, eastern United States |
| Typical instruments | Synthesizer - Drum machine - Sequencer - Keyboard - Sampler - Laptop - desktop |
| Subgenres | |
| none (complete list) | |
| Other topics | |
| Drum and bass artists, Drum and bass record labels | |
 | The factual accuracy of part of this article is disputed. The dispute is about Neurofunk origins and artists. |
Neurofunk is a subgenre of Drum and Bass pioneered by producers Optical, Matrix and Ed Rush circa 1997/1998 as a progression of Techstep. It was further developed by juxtaposing elements of heavier and darker forms of Funk and Jazz and characterized by consecutive stabs over a heavy, dark Funk influenced bassline, rhythmicaly structured with rock solid back beats where overall Dark ambient atmospherics are prominent.
Since it´s rise in the late 90´s, Neurofunk has taken a faster paced, minimal Techno approach between 2002 and 2005 when it came under the influence of colder and more precise beat engineering with harder stabs over the bassline coming from the 2nd and 3rd waves of producers such as Sinthetix, Cause 4 Concern, Silent Witness & Break, Mayhem, Noisia, Phace, and the The Upbeats.
According to british writer Simon Reynold's view, Neurofunk "is the fun-free culmination of Jungle's strategy of cultural resistance: the eroticization of anxiety".
Lyrical Content
As a producer/MC, Rymetyme personalized Neurofunk as an integral member of Ed Rush & Optical's live sets and studio productions. His abstract lyrical flow and futurist manifestations can be heard on Neurofunk classics such as "Resurrection" (co-produced with Ed Rush & Optical), and "Fastlane" (by Ed Rush & Optical), as co-producer on "Lightsleeper" (with Matrix & Fierce), and "Fever" (with Younghead). Rymetyme´s original style was influential on Neurofunk´s 2nd wave of MC´s most notable on Mc Mecha´s (ex-Sinthetix) chopped-up, spoken word roundabout drawing parallels to Rymetyme´s progressive poetic impact.
Roots
No one truly knows where the term "Neurofunk" originated but one first reference is a mention in the book Energy Flash by Simon Reynolds (ISBN 0-330-35056-0), a history of rave and dance music culture. The roots of Neurofunk can be traced back to the late 1960s to mid 1970s period of Miles Davis when he fused Jazz, Rock and Funk rhythms while switching his trumpet on to a stack of marshall amps and to wah-wah pedals giving it a twisted, distorted sound effect to it. His drummers often played by advancing and delaying the breaks and back beats simultaneously in interaction with a dynamic system of dark trumpet modes and a repetitive riff driven wall of sound of heavy rock funk guitars and basslines, pioneering a new form of electric trance induced dance music.
Miles Davis' seminal albums from this period "In a Silent Way" (1969), stated by Matrix as an influence on his work, "On The Corner" (1972), and "Get Up With It" (1975) were the breeding ground for Drum & Bass driven Neurofunk. Some of the tracks by Miles Davis which can best translate the foundations of early Neurofunk are "Black Satin" from "On The Corner" and "Rated X" from "Get Up With It".
Another influence on the early Neurofunk sound of Virus Recordings stated by Optical, was producer George Clinton's highly technical studio experimentations for Funkadelic during their early to mid 70's period when he shaped Funk into a heavier, darker form of psychedelic dance music by using long range instrumentals as tools for incorporating powerful, reverberating low end driven basslines on the forefront of his mixes rather than as standard back-up for guitar and drums.
Signature Recordings (1997-2000)
- To Shape the Future - Optical (Metalheadz Records/1997)
- Where´s Jack the Ripper - Grooverider (co-written & produced by Optical/Sony Music/1998)
- Bluesy Baby - Ram Jam World - Ed rush & Optical Remix (Higher Education Records/1998)
- Funktion - Ed rush & Optical (V Recordings/1998)
- Compound - Ed Rush & Optical (Virus Recordings/1998)
- Gas Mask - Ed Rush & Optical (Virus Recordings/1999)
- Medicine - Ed Rush & Optical - Matrix Remix (Virus Recordings/1999)
- Serum - Outfit - Matrix Remix (Metro Recordings/1999)
- Climate - Matrix & Fierce (Metro Recordings/2000)
- Phone Call - Klute - Matrix Remix (Certificate 18 Records/2000)
- Fever - Rymetyme & Younghead (1210 Recordings/2000)
Signature Recordings (2001-2006)
- Ressurection - Ed Rush, Optical & Rymetyme (Virus Recordings/2001)
- Gateway - Sinthetix (No U Turn Records/2001)
- Ultraviolet - Sinthetix (Cryptic Audio/2002)
- Lightsleeper - Matrix, Fierce & Rymetyme (C4C Records/2002)
- Vapourspace - Cause 4 Concern (Metro Recordings/2002)
- Andromeda - Kiko (DSCI4 Records/2002)
- Undercurrent - Stare & Phibbs (Blindside Recordings/2002)
- Silicon - Noisia (Nerve Productions/2002)
- Chamber (Mindscape VIP Mix) - Mayhem & Impulse (Shadow Law Limited/2004)
- Rainman - Silent Witness & Break (Commercial Suicide Records/2005)
- Hot Rock - Phace (Subtitles Recordings/2005)
- Facade - Noisia (Ram Records/2006)
- Ghobi Ghost - The Upbeats featuring Teknik (Project 51 Recordings/2006)
Signature Albums
- Mysteries of Funk - Grooverider (co-written & produced by Optical/Sony/1998)
- Radio 1 Essential Ed Rush & Optical mix (Smart Disc/1998/Bootleg)
- Wormhole - Ed Rush & Optical (Virus Recordings/1998)
- The Creeps - Ed Rush & Optical (Virus Recordings/2001)
- Virus Vaults - Ed Rush & Optical (Virus Recordings/2005)
- Sleepwalk - Matrix (Virus Recordings/1999)
- Level 1 - Metro Recordings (Singles compilation/Metro Recordings/2000)
- 1210 - Rymetyme (Singles compilation/1210 Recordings/2001)