If you love freeform bass, you’ll love what duo Psyoctave has cooked up in their two-track EP Celestial Frequencies.
It’s been a big past couple of years for bass music. Past the point of revival, bass has seen a dramatic increase in listeners and supporters, trickling into headlining spots on mainstream festival lineups and even crafting large-scale curated events of its own. As the genre flourishes, it’s been molded, divvied up and revamped into a multitude of subgenres, some of which existed well before bass music’s recent boom and others being more of a later development.
Experimental bass has gathered quite the following, swapping out angry dubstep thrashes and aggressive whomps with alien, sultry, subterranean warbles. If you’re a fan of the weird and wonderful, look no further than Psyoctave, a bass duo hailing from New York that’s no stranger to gut-wrenching basslines and raw wobbles. Though made up of just two tracks, their latest EP Celestial Frequencies secures itself as one of the hottest up-and-coming freeform releases of 2019.
Stream Celestial Frequencies below and read on for a full review and more insight about Psyoctave!
Listen to Psyoctave – Celestial Frequencies on SoundCloud:
The first track on the EP is “Drip”, a hypnotic masterpiece with wubs from another dimension.
“Drip” was the first track I ever heard from Psyoctave and is what got me hooked on the duo’s intergalactic sound design. The tune opens with haunting blips and patters before descending into a seductive swarm of elongated basslines and layered clicks and static. It’s a beautifully simple yet simultaneously complex piece that is sure to have you bending and bopping to its every will.
“Space Ghosts” is the second and final track on Celestial Frequencies. This one switches the pace from the slowed and swampy vibes in “Drip” and delves into more upbeat bass claps and energetic build-ups. The latter half of the tune calls for your nastiest of bass faces as robotic trills fall over deep wubs.
Brandon Patton and David Santana have been working tirelessly together under the Psyoctave moniker for two years.
Before finding their passion for all things experimental, the two had previous producing experience making festival trap and hardstyle. Since crossing over to the bass side, Psyoctave has seen tremendous support – and rightfully so. After the release of their Chaos Theory EP, the duo began to be recognized by notable industry acts such as Lucii, Mystic Grizzly, and Tvboo. Celestial Frequencies is Psyoctave’s first collective release that’s already being played out by other rising stars in freeform bass like Mize, Wreckno, and Engix.
Currently influenced by transformative artists like G Jones, Abelation, and Space Jesus, Psyoctave takes a wide variety of sounds and genres into consideration as part of their creative process. Having grown up on rap and rock music, both members of the bass duo try to incorporate these sounds into their music. The result: vibey, hip-shaking, mesmerizing bops that you can’t get enough of.
If you’re looking to catch Psyoctave, the bass duo will be making an appearance at Electric Forest 2019 along with several other notable up-and-comers. For the Midwest bassheads, the boys will be performing in Evansville on August 9 with more details to come. They hope to expand to performances out west and down south in the coming year, so keep your eye out for a Psyoctave set near you!
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