NUKG Monthly: Conducta, Finn, Notion and more

New Wave Magazine writer Nathan Evans's UK garage and club music column covers the latest songs, remixes, bootlegs, mixes and albums that captures his attention.

Cover image credit: Prexa Shrestha

Mix of the Month: Conducta - THE KIWI EXPRESS MIX

London producer Conducta is the first name you should be looking at if you’re looking for quality UK garage right now. His exceptional tastemaking and energy-retaining transition work turn up on the Kiwi Express Mix, a Polar Express-themed mix loaded with unreleased material. In between the odd train sound effect and Tom Hanks yelling “all aboard!”, you’ll salivate at an incredible edit of slowthai’s ‘T N Biscuits’ from Kaisui, appearances from elite rapper Flowdan and colourful vocal chops from as-yet-unknown producer L1 Triangle. The best track is left right till the end - Stave’s ‘Thinking of u’ has a cutesy key line and percussion that jitters like an old printer. It rounds off a faultless mix from Conducta. Bonus points for the cover art, too.

A Toast to Finn Pushing the Christmas Dance Music Agenda

Manchester producer Finn has been UK garage’s very own Santa Claus this past month, giving us seasonal gifts that now give us a much-needed helping of Christmas-themed dance music. We’ve all been on his nice list, because he’s treated us to a Christmas special of his NTS show, an entire Christmas album and four (yes, four) accompanying B2B mixes with I. JORDAN. As he said himself, he’s brought “dance music gold, frankincense and myrrh”.

Wildcard: Pretty Girl Boiler Room Set

Mall Grab held a massive Boiler Room event in Melbourne this month, featuring the likes of Yung Singh, salute and Lady Shaka. Nestled between it all was Aussie tech house producer Pretty Girl, who first caught my ear with her wistful new single ‘Nice to See You’. It’s similar to Daniel Avery’s style of tech house, as her soundscapes are filled with progressive and weightless atmospheres and gungey bass.

Her set was made up of all her material, from what I can tell. She interjects with some live vocals, impressively so. That she remained so composed while being surrounded by ravers is testament to her commitment to a pretty unique idea. Another amazing wrinkle to this mix is one guy in the back goes crazy with the cheering but somehow weaves into the mix. Shoutout him, and more importantly, shoutout Pretty Girl.

Villager - Ow Wow

Played by salute during his recent Boiler Room set and fresh from Washington DC producer Villager’s latest EP for Chloé Robinson’s Pretty Weird, ‘Ow Wow’ creates a bandy 2-step rhythm that never lets you sit down. In its four-minute journey, you’ll hear tactile textures stretch the track, garage vocals bring a familiar grounding and a hazy sandstorm roll in. But that beat never leaves you.

Interplanetary Criminal ft. Killa P - Gangster Time

After a legendary year topping the charts with Eliza Rose, Manny DJ Interplanetary Criminal has rounded off his 2022 with the Coming On Strong EP. The standout from the 4-track is the collaboration with grime MC and Roll Deep member Killa P, ‘Gangster Time’, a dark cutter that comes alive when played deep into the night. Criminal supplies sinister washes of filtered synth that recall the golden era of dubstep, while Killa P comes in with a half-spoken, half-sung introduction before locking into large rounds of bars and heavy breaths. His violent raps have an icy-veined, trap-till-morning energy while staying atop the beat like he’s out in the freezing cold and he’s rapping to keep warm.

Pocket - Sapphire

‘Sapphire’ comes from a new two-tracker from Edinburgh producer Pocket, and is a UKG slow-burner that wafts feelings of being enamoured with someone for the first time. Tranquil synth arpeggios shimmer with technicolour before being accompanied by warbling James Blake-like keys and pitched vocals that pine, “I can’t get my head around it”. Pocket somehow managed to hide a ghostly melancholy underneath it all.

Speed Garage Bootleg of the Month: Notion - TEMPERATURE DUB

I have vivid memories of this bootleg before it was even released. Yung Singh played Notion’s ‘TEMPERATURE DUB’ at the All Points East festival last summer as broadcast on Radio 6, and his garage flip of Sean Paul’s infectious hit of the same name could make you slip a disc. Sean Paul’s chart hits make him a prime candidate for garage dubs given the natural connection between garage and dancehall MCs, and Notion brings out the fire in his vocals on ‘Temperature’. From the teasing bass that creeps in as Sean Paul makes his initial ad-libs, to the throbbing breakdown lead that sounds on high alert, this will do damage.