13/01/2018: “Hard Times” by Nu-Matic

Nu-Matic were a duo active in the early days of the U.K. rave scene in the early 90s.

They were signed to XL Recordings, which released many of that scenes biggest hits.

“Hard Times” samples the reggae artist Pablo Gad, with a song of the same name from. The bit used is a nice rootsy intro, which is then used throughout the Nu-Matic song.

The reggae sample works very well for this kind of music, giving it a dubby veneer.

The Nu-Matic song kicks off with a strong bassline, initially a normal sub, that eventually morphs into an acid bassline and squelches away during the course of the track.

The song enters a breakdown every now and then, which contains a hoover bass synth, and is a lot more dissonant.

As a U.K. hardcore track, there’s a strong focus on the breakbeat drums, which provide a good deal of the drive behind the track.

The song was released in 1992 on XL, as a 4 track E.P., and was re-issued in 2004. Luckily, as with many of XL Recordings’ tracks, the song is digitally available.

 

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