Djrum – Plantain [Samurai Red Seal]

Samurai Music continue the relaunch of their trio of labels with a new single from Djrum on Red Seal. Samurai’s expansion beyond the confines of traditional D&B and into the wider worlds of electronica seems set to continue, with the tracks on this single melting down the merest hints of jungle into a sonic pot alongside a plethora of other influences to create something almost impossible to pigeon-hole.

Plantain brings together ethereal soundscapes, hewn from soft strings and mournful vocal samples, with constantly evolving percussion lines which at once seem quite junglist in heritage and on the other hand are anything but. The unusual combination of sounds bring to mind some of DJ Shadow’s best work, albeit without the hip-hop shine.

The rather obtusely titled What I Was Doing When I Was Doing What I Was Doing ups the tempo somewhat, with more insistent yet unusual drumwork layered under a tapestry of weird samples and spaced out atmospheres. The detail present in both tracks is incredible, with every crackly edit and drum hit seeming perfectly and lovingly placed. As usual Samurai can be counted on to push the envelope in exciting and unusual directions, unconcerned with genre tropes or mainstream popularity. Check out the clips below and grab this one from the Samurai Store now!

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