February 19th, 2009 by niwa | posted in download, electronic, free music, hiphop, release |

If you already checked out the compilation EP Beatnicks vol. 2 you already know a bit what to expect from the Paris-based producer Powell, based on his 8-bit infused track ‘Dimension X’. If you don’t.. well let’s say you’re in for some bad-ass bouncing beat frenzy.

Heavy compression, freaky synths and samples, deep basses and beats that seem to jump all over the place while still keeping steady enough to nod your head to.

Did I just say 8-bit? As you may have noticed from earlier posts I kind of have a hate/love relationship with this ‘new’ beat-genre and especially when it comes to the (over)use of 8-bit material. That’s why I was really happy when I noticed the Beatnicks Tape #02 only features 2 tracks that are obviously influenced with the Commodore-driven MOS Sid Chip sound. (I’m not a tech-buff so correct me if I’m wrong, but I think Commodore was the first to utilize this kind of synthesis, and Nintendo just followed).

Anyway, back to the release. It’s just all there: samples on ‘Rise’, ‘All & All’ and  ‘Fabric’. Chipping on ‘Deck Floor’ and ‘Surface’ and everything else is just raw beats and thick synths. ‘That’s Right’ takes it up a notch and goes into some more electro-influenced dance rhythms while ‘Coded Language’ and ‘Error Data’ go more into a chilled-down mood (as far as that’s possible).

And ofcourse another beautiful thing about this release: it’s free! Check out the 2 short clips below for a small impression.

Powell – Rise

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Powell – Anti-MC

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Get the 320kbps MP3 release here!

[edit]: link was broken, is fixed now[/edit]