Raise your vibrational frequency with these weighty yet ethereal Dub Techno cuts from elusive French producer and 777Hz label head, Hiss Is Bliss.
Dub Techno has various shades—a musical palette composed of hazy sonic gradients from green to gray. From the dank and humid air of Jamaica to the bleak, abandoned, and derelict warehouses after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Dub has a home in the hearts of those who seek out the supernatural powers of a soundsystem.
Hiss Is Bliss is the enigmatic producer behind the Dub Techno label 777Hz with an emphasis on the “Dub” / roots reggae side of the sound. With a steady stream of releases already under their belt, Hiss Is Bliss caught the attention of ZamZam Sounds, a Portland-based label focused on small runs of proper Dub and soundsystem smackers on 7” vinyl records.
The A-side “Nope” features a menacing rasta vocal delivered by Ray Lys over a definitively “stepping” beat. This is a term that refers to a danceable Dub track with 4-on-the-floor kicks rather than a typical one-drop pattern. Contrasting the otherwise dread-inducing atmosphere are saturated chords that swell in and out around the pulsating percussion, creating a sense of space that feels like pulling night sky wide open and streaking it with pink, green, and purple pastels.
Listening to the B-side, “Abbadia” feels like breathing in the cool and misty air on a moonlit beach, with echoes of the waves crashing along the shore and ripples blurring the boundary between sea and sky in the distance. Blissful hisses of noise close out the track, making the spirit of the phase “living inside the speaker” breathe with renewed energy.
This 2 track release is strictly limited to 800 copies for the world. No digital, no repress. Art, design and screen print by Polygon Press. Mastered by Sam at Precise, pressed at Cascade Record Pressing.
Do not pass this one! ZamZam does not miss, and these cuts are nothing but dubby bliss.
-Alex Dahm
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