FIRST BULLETIN OF THE YEAR 🗞️✨
And it's a big one - ENJOY 💙💙
—
NEWS
Ivy Lab to end after 2026
The biggest, and unfortunately saddest, news of the Bass music week came from Ivy Lab, who announced they will be stopping the project after 12 years of, in their words, 'spreading our wings through a wild array of leftfield beats'. In a multi-tweet post on X, the North London duo - real names Gove Kidao and Jay Fogel - let fans and followers know that 2026 will be their final year of operation, citing a desire to 'look ahead to new adventures in sound'. In spite of the sad news, they made clear that it will still be a big year for them, with several releases to come and a big tour of the US, which also includes dates in Canada and Costa Rica. The tour will simply be called 'A Farewell Tour'. They also made clear that their label Twenty Twenty London Recordings will continue to run as normal after they split. They rounded off the post with a message of gratitude for all the people that've made Ivy Lab as special as it's been, saying 'Ivy Lab is all of us'.
Full thread link: https://x.com/IvyLab_/status/2008176744868827460?s=20
I'm aware there might be some of you who aren't too familiar with Ivy Lab, and it isn't often that I say this but I'd really recommend going through their entire discography at some point if you can. Ivy Lab are, without doubt, one of the most forward-thinking duos in Bass music history. It can be easy, I think, to get into a place of thinking that Bass music is almost entirely about big builds and drops, and non-stop attention-grabbing drama. This is dependent on what kinds of Bass you listen to most of course, but that's why I'm suggesting running through Ivy Lab's catalogue when you can, if you haven't yet. They challenged Bass music convention with a high level of consistency in a way that is perhaps unrivalled in the last 10 years of the genre. If you want to have your understanding of Bass music flipped, whilst the ideas have a world of emotional depth to them, and the production is rich and textured, there are few better places to look than Ivy Lab. So get listening people!
Here's to a sensational duo, and I hope their final year in operation gives them everything they want and more! 🕊️
James Blake teases new music
One for the post-Dubstep heads! And this is going in the NEWS section because it's very significant news indeed. James Blake is back, and likely to release his first full-length solo project of music since September 2023's 11-track effort Playing Robots Into Heaven. Blake took to Instagram last week to share clips of him singing and playing out new material, with the exciting captions of 'Time to start again' and 'I think we might be sleeping'.
As of yet, there is no more information on this potential new project, but it's understandably left fans and followers of his brimming with feverish speculation as to what it could be, what 2026 James Blake sounds like. With the release of this collection, whatever it may be, should we make 2026 the year that I first cover James Blake on the channel? Why not, I say!
Lost Lands 2026 dates revealed
In other simple but important news, for anyone thinking of going to Lost Lands festival this year, the dates for it have been revealed! The (I think) 9th edition of Excision's world-renowned Bass music event will be taking place from 18th-20th September, once again in Legend Valley, Ohio. Within the announcement post, the festival's organisers said 'Information about improvements, camping maps, Couch Lands Rewind and more coming soon!' So whilst we don't have any more info beyond said dates yet, it's sure to be the event's biggest and most compelling edition so far once again. Year-on-year, it just keeps on getting better.
I will almost definitely be hitting up the Bass music Superbowl show once again. Are you planning on going? I'm hoping to do another fan meet this time around, so I hope to see some of you guys there!
MUSIC
Zomboy check-in post
Following on from my post last week about modern Dubstep musicians who I think might drop albums this year, we have a hot-off-the-press touching-base post from Zomboy! The Cornwall-born producer took to Instagram to alert fans and followers to the fact that 2026 marks 15 years of Zomboy, saying the project has 'become far more than just music to me'. He thanked his community for keeping him going - 'for standing by me through every chapter' - before ending the post by saying 'So much more to come in 2026' - whatever THAT means.
A sophomore Zomboy LP to celebrate 15 years of the alias? People have been quick to tell me that a long-form project isn't something Zomboy is focused on at the moment based on a recent interview, but too much seems to be lining up for me to feel like that's completely out of the question. I'm still keeping hopeful, that's for sure!
New Akeos trailer
I'm a simple individual - I see an Akeos post, I engage instantly. This tweet, containing a 1min snippet of a new ID, was simply titled '2026'. The material feels Complextro-y in nature, continuing the Electro energy of their recent single 'BOTTOM FLOOR'. The fact that the caption says '2026' also makes me think this is the style Akeos will be running with for the foreseeable future, and that it isn't exclusive to this new cut and 'BOTTOM FLOOR'.
Clip link: https://x.com/akeos_/status/2007566857264353747?s=20
I for one love that people are slowly but steadily bringing this style back in a big way - I'd recommend checking the latest Exobolt compilation for more music like this! Especially with the production quality of Akeos, I think she could be onto a real winner with this direction change. I can't wait to hear what she releases this year!
Fred Again.. & Viperactive ID starts circulating
Finally, this collab ID is starting to do the rounds. I first caught wind of this at Lost Lands 2024 through Viperactive's team, which was incredible to hear given how big Fred Again.. had gotten by that point. It's a true sign of how far Viperactive has come in his production journey, and it's great to see Fred Again.. involving these kinds of 'just-below-highest-band' Bass producers again after LYNY's feature on Victory Lap Five. Granted, it isn't the most exciting idea in the world, but this is just a 20-second clip lest we forget. Who knows where the track could go beyond the drop in this Hamdi-played snippet?
Clip link: https://x.com/hamdimusic/status/2007894103829491859?s=20
Are you looking forward to this collab being dropped in full?
The new grape milk album
This is just a reminder to check out the new grape milk album if you haven't yet! It came out at the very beginning of the year, and is deserving of all the ears and attention it gets. grape milk has not only become a prolific producer in terms of his output, but his style becomes more and more forward-thinking with each release, covering a wide spectrum of Bass music genres along the way. I'm hoping to drop a reaction for it on the channel at some point, so you could wait for that, but I'd definitely recommend checking it out in your own time as well.
DISCUSSION
What is "weird" Bass music?
This one from Kill The Noise got me thinking a little bit. It made me think about that funny I shared on a BBB a couple of months ago, where a show attendee remarked on the fact that Buunshin got on the mic and said "Y'all like that weird shit?" and proceeded to play 'Badders' by Skrillex, Peekaboo, G-Rex and Flowdan. Just to be clear, that track obviously isn't "weird" in any way - in the rarity of it, how it sounds, nothing at all. However, it does make me think that DJs saying that on the mic is indeed a phenomenon, and that Buunshin was taking the piss out of it there. Hence why Kill the Noise has noticed it too - it's clearly a thing. Now, can Wook Dubstep sound weird? Absolutely, because a lot of the synths and effects are quite extra-terrestrial-sounding. But is it weird in the sense of being 'different' per se, or not normal? I think most would agree that's not the case.
I wouldn't say noticing this makes Kill the Noise 'pretentious' as he calls it, it's just a different kind of music exposure. If Wook-style Bass is the only thing that someone listens to, predominantly for the fact that they find it weird-sounding so to speak, then they're gonna find it weird, and distinctly separate from more conventional music. Though if someone listens to a lot of Bass music of different kinds, they'll be aware that there are many ways in which that umbrella style can get far weirder. Again, both can justifiably be weird, it's just different kinds of exposure.
What constitutes as 'weird Bass music' to you?
Don't overdo the production!
And then one for the producers amongst you! I've been feeding back on a few of you guys' music recently, and generally speaking I would add this as a general rule for music-making. Though the nuance I would add to what Funtcase has said here is that you shouldn't put something out if you don't feel great about it. If you get to a point where you don't feel like you can add any more to a given tune, but it still doesn't click with you, I wouldn't recommend releasing it as it won't be a true reflection of your endeavour. However, if you have that feeling you can't add any more to a track, and are generally positive about it even in spite of that, you should absolutely go ahead and release it. It's all about how honest a reflection it feels of you and your project.
I also wanna add that 'caring too much', as Funtcase alludes to here, is more than okay. I experience this myself as a producer of videos / content, and there are many things that perfectionism has held me back from doing. But don't let striving for perfection - which in many ways is unattainable anyway - be the enemy of releasing good, or even very good. People can still get a lot out of something without it being the most clean-cut, refined thing possible. I think people appreciate a bit of rawness and authenticity too.
All that to say - if you're a producer, apply this thinking where you can!
FUNNIES // COOL STUFF
If Skrillex put this out ...
It's kinda true no? The way in which people eat things up simply because it's made by a certain producer - not necessarily Skrillex - is slightly concerning, and something that needs regularly putting in check in my opinion.
Props to Colour Bass artist Vanatice for saying this!
Instant classic
This doesn't quite match my horrendous Skrillex birthday tweet from years ago, but it's still impressive and I've no real notes to give.
Scarethony Monstano here
Are we all, therefore, zillennials?
Regardless of what that could mean, it's always nice to see Fantano go out of his way to share anything Skrillex-related. Zillennials unite, I say!
—
Did I miss anything from the last week in Bass music? Let me know below! 😌