Dub War & Infra If It's Not The Police / If It's Not The Dub

ZamZam number 20 is a stunning power-move from the new Berlin-based duo of Dub War and Infra. This is sophisticated dubwise for the head and the feet, as elegant as it is heavy, a vocal / dub combination that will satisfy the most critical and demanding dubheads. Full of menace and intrigue, 'If It's Not The Police' and 'If It's Not The Dub' feature deep studio science and sound design paired with classic dub aesthetics, dubstep bass-weight, and halftime garage swing. Analog-sounding cymbals and rim shots ride the subterranean undertow of the kick and bass to create a heaving, spacious rhythm made to move bodies and transport minds together. The vocal speaks of police and military violence disrupting the dance, but this musing is in stark contrast to the the tune itself which feels devoid of human presence--it is the sound of the city without its people: dark, spacious, and dripping wet in the blackness, as if the empty alleys and backstreets of London and Berlin were suddenly plunged into darkness and mysteriously emptied of their inhabitants. The dub eliminates the techy, lurching growl of the A side, instead forwarding congas and snatches of percussion, and dubbing the vocal and the thick atmospheres to highly evocative effect.