Instra:mental - 'Thomp/When I Dip' - 2010s Retrospective

In the last 100 days before 2020, I'll be counting down by doing a retrospective of some of the classic releases/EPs of this decade, and maybe a few lesser known gems. Expect broken beats, some leftfield electronics and the odd cheesy banger :) 

(2011, Nonplus Records)

With their first release since 2013 just out, now seems like a particularly good time to revisit the work of Boddika and Kid Drama, AKA Instra:mental. Formerly a drum and bass duo, at the start of the 2010s they turned their hands towards slower bpms and an increasingly hybridised approach to genre. Of course, they weren't the only ones doing this at the turn of the decade, but with this release (and the brilliant LP that followed), Instra:mental had an approach that stood apart from anything else at the time. Their angular, hardware-driven electro sound was a far cry from what most UK producers were looking towards, and thanks to electro's recent revival, it's aged remarkably well.

'Thomp' sits somewhere in the middle of electro, broken techno and the lo-fi end of grime - as though 'Pulse X' was made in Detroit. It's sparse, but not without progression: a crystalline pad has a transformative effect when introduced in the final third. Like many of the best moments of their Resolution 653 LP, the song’s subtle development evokes Instra:mental’s machines taking on a mind of their own.

There's a thrilling rudeness that runs throughout B-side 'When I Dip', from the 808 claps to its ominous bassline. It gets rowdier with the introduction of a wonky vocal sample, and even rowdier again when an acid synth drops - one that's guaranteed to get adrenaline rushing and momentum going in the dance. Last year I saw Skee Mask unleash it to an unsuspecting crowd in London, getting one of the wildest reaction's I've ever seen out – which is saying something indeed.