Peverelist’s exemplary record label, Punch Drunk, have announced a double-disc package compiling the last five years of Bristol bass music.

Pairing godfathers of Bristol’s dubstep scene such as Pinch, RSD and Peverelist himself with younger stars like Guido and Hyetal, the compilation will be titled – appropriately, given the heftiness of Punch Drunk’s 12” singles – Worth the Weight, and released on November 8. Plenty of the material it features was released on Punch Drunk, but there’s also contributions from Skull Disco (‘Vansan’), Planet Mu (‘Qawwali’) and more.

Early dubstep blogger Gutterbreakz has compiled the liner notes for Worth the Weight, and they’ll appear alongside a series of photographs. The text is well worth reading; we’ve copied his words from the press release here:

“I knew straight away that this was a sound that would fit perfectly in Bristol – there is a lot of tension in the music that carries a satisfactory darkness with it, but it’s also lazy music. You don’t have to dance hard to move with it – it was born with a reefer in its gob!”

“So said Pinch when I interviewed him in February 2005. Having witnessed the early DMZ and FWD>> raves that spawned this new sound we now refer to as Dubstep, and having gradually begun integrating it into the fabric of Bristol’s existing club scene, this young DJ’s instincts were proving correct. The following month I attended one of his Context nights – a dubsession by Loefah and Skream, on one of their earliest forays outside the Capital – and experienced for myself the sheer physical impact of dubstep at soundsystem volume. But even that was just a hint of what was to come. In April, Subloaded II sent a subsonic shockwave through the city, as Bristol shuddered under the weight of DMZ’s bass meditations. Those who survived the onslaught were changed forever, and Bristol’s destiny as dubstep’s second city became assured.

“May 2005 saw the debut release on Pinch’s Tectonic imprint, which was the first of many new dubstep labels to emerge from the city. Being so much smaller than London, Bristol’s new generation of bedroom DJs and producers mingled freely in a close-knit community centred around the Rooted Records shop and the new club spaces (Dubloaded, Subloaded, Ruffnek Diskotek, Noir, HENCH) which sprang-up over the following months to cater for this rapidly expanding scene. Beats and ideas were eagerly exchanged on freshly-burned cd-rs in a period of unprecedented communal activity and cooperation, which would ultimately draw in and re-energise many of the city’s older generation of bass-explorers. Indeed, Bristol’s historical association with bass-orientated music was a crucial factor in the formation of a distinct and cohesive sound that triggered a feedback-loop of influence back to both London and the world beyond.

“Almost inevitably, the Bristol micro-scene outgrew it’s grassroots, as producer-DJs like Headhunter, Appleblim, Joker, RSD, Pinch and Peverelist soon found themselves playing venues all over the planet. Once again, the ‘Bristol Sound’ had become an international phenomenon. Yet even today the core community still comes together for the regular mid-week Dubloaded sessions, which remain a testament to this city’s unshakable sense of strength and solidarity, as SGT. Pokes (the Honorary Bristolian who led the first charge at Subloaded all those years ago) calls the monthly congregation to prayer.”

Tracklist:

CD 1
01. Pinch ‘Midnight Oil’
02. Peverelist ‘The Grind’
03. Gatekeeper ‘Tense Past’
04. Peverelist ‘Roll with the Punches’
05. Appleblim ‘Vansan’
06. Pinch ‘Qawwali’
07. Forsaken ‘Hypnotise’
08. Headhunter ‘7th Curse’
09. RSD ‘Pretty Bright Light’
10. Komonazmuk ‘Bad Apple’
11. Appleblim & Peverelist ‘Circling’
12. Pinch ‘Lazarus’
13. Forsaken ft Mr Jo ‘Into the Sunset’

CD 2
01. Smith & Mighty ‘B Line Fi Blo’
02. Dubboy & Atki2 ‘Tiger Flower’
03. Joker ‘Holly Brook Park’
04. Guido ‘Mad Sax’
05. Hyetal & Shortstuff ‘Ice Cream’
06. Pinch ‘Get Up’ (RSD remix)
07. Jakes ‘3kout’
08. Wedge & Shadz ‘Running away’ (Guido remix)
09. Gemmy ‘Bass Transmitter’
10. Guido ‘Orchestral Lab’
11. Dubkasm ‘Hail Jah’ (Jakes remix)
12. Joker ‘Stuck in the System’
13. Hyetal ‘Pixel Rainbow Sequence’

Photo credit: Tulane Blyth

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