It was released 3 years ago, but that’s recent enough to prove drum & bass is still cranking out A+++ music–the best is not all behind us. Both of these artists, Maduk and vocalist Veela, are alive and well doing their thing better than ever. Maduk and Veela have collaborated before to create “Ghost Assassin” which is a stellar song in its own right, but “Got Me Thinking” blows it out of the water.

In the present song, Veela sounds a bit different than we’re used to. There is an uncanny smoothness to her delivery. That’s not to say that her singing is normally rough, but it’s as though she sounds more relaxed while recording this. It’s this sound which gives the song its feeling of intimacy; Veela’s breathiness during the intro conjures images of a lover telling a secret.

Let’s not forget Maduk’s contribution. The song has discrete sections which combine for a great progression. These are:

• Lvl 0 – Intro
• Lvl 1 – Vocal Intro
• Lvl 2 – Build (pre-drop)
• Lvl 3 – Instrumental Chorus
• Lvl 4 – Main Chorus (vocals come in again)
• Lvl 5 – Frantic Chorus (vocal delivery increased)
• Lvl 2 – Build (pre-drop 2)
• Lvl 4 – Main Chorus 2
• Lvl 5 – Frantic Chorus 2
• Lvl 1 – Vocal outro

Around the 2:00 minute mark there is a distinct lack of pause (no dip into what I’d call level 0 or 1 mid song). The song goes right back into the action which is one of the things that gives it such a high-energy vibe. Throughout the entire 3.5 minutes we get an energizing experience.

If we had a system here at Arcane[DISCORD] to provide a medal or stamp of approval, it would be all over this song. Get your “replay buttons” ready.

Both Feint and Laura Brehm are regulars on this site. In fact, we’ve even featured one of their other collaborations “We Won’t Be Alone.” If you liked that song, you’re undoubtedly going to like this one too. It has the same drum & bass excellence we’ve come to expect from the veteran, Feint. Additionally, Laura’s vocals come through silky smooth as before.

How to describe the mood of this song? I would say that it has a grand feel to it that ushers in feelings of entering an arena to do battle. However, a lot of drum & bass has that same effect. One thing that I am curious about is the vocal harmonization that comes in around the 45 second mark. Two possibilities are that Feint decided to pop in and show the world his singing skills or he did some clever manipulation by copying Laura’s track, giving it a masculine feel by tweaking the pitch, then offsetting it ever so slightly.

The production artists are a bit more mysterious. At first glance, it isn’t clear if “Stst, Squill” is one artist or two due to the syntax. The work is actually a partnership between the two artists, Stst and Squill. As with most early-career collaborations, this one was sparked by close proximity and familiarity, with both artists hailing from Los Angeles. Both artists produce music separately, but they do have a previous collaboration entitled “Only Now.”

Squill and Stst are still experimenting and finding their sound, but nothing they’ve made so far sounds quite like “Galaxies.” I’d resolutely classify it as drum & bass because of the percussion backing and floating mid-bass. And they’ve done a terrific job with the song. Everything about it screams experience and professionalism. There aren’t any major hiccups that I can note, which is why it’s so shocking that it has come from two relatively undiscovered producers. They clearly have an arsenal of talent and this track, which has been featured on Wonderlust, should help gain them some exposure.

I hate to publicly dissect songs because I don’t want to detract from your listening experience. So if you don’t want the song tainted by my perspective then look away. Perhaps it would be best to stop here, take a listen to the song, and then return for my analysis.

The first is a negative which is really a positive. The ambient tones in the build (starting around 0:58) provide a lot of… well, ambiance. But it has been destroying my car. As those tones start to build in power I can feel the drivers in the rear of my car start to vibrate everything around them to the point of creating obnoxious rattles. This is the sign of a good song when you want to blast it, but my car is taking a beating as a result.

The second drop was odd until I had the opportunity to really analyze it and listen to the song on different headphones/speakers with different audio profiles. With my colorful car and desktop speakers the vocals sound like, “With you far away, cross galaxies–” because the built in equalizers emphasized the first bass sweep and drowned out the vocals, cutting off “with me.” On cheaper earphones or reference headphones, the “with me” comes through clearly, but I wish they would have increased the loudness of that decisive pair of lyrics or had it offset from that first beat so that it shined through a bit more.

Let’s make this a compliment sandwich and end on another positive: this song kills. It sounds like drum & bass to me, but you can call it whatever you like. Regardless, there’s no denying that it builds an incredible atmosphere of smooth bass matched with silky vocals and sharp percussion. These three elements maintain a respectful distance from each other and let them all shine with the brightness of a galaxy.

What was I talking about? I think I had a drum & bass track to show you guys. This one is from Feint, an absolute legend in the d&b game (I wasn’t sure if I wanted to shorten “drum & bass,” but damn, “d&b” looks pretty sick visually). Feint hails from Manchester, England, the mecca of d&b, though he’s actually a bit of a latecomer to the game. His first tracks released in 2011, about 20 years after d&b started tearing through the United Kingdom. Nevertheless, he puts a modern spin on the genre that would make the grand masters proud.

This track, “We Won’t Be Alone,” features Laura Brehm (pictured) who has a perfect voice for d&b in my opinion. I have to further analyze the key features of her vocals in order to pinpoint those traits which I find so well suited to the genre, but for now, I’d say that it’s a certain “angelic” quality that allows her voice to conjure images of grandeur, such as a massive Lord of the Rings style battle.

Obviously Laura’s vocals are the centerpiece, but I really like how the song builds. Note the “beeps” coming in at 0:23 which transition from a supporting instrument to the lead treble element throughout the chorus then back down again for the second verse. The ebb and flow of that note progression can be very satisfying if you identify it. This song would be great for any electronic party or even a workout. Show that Stairmaster who’s boss!

For more of Laura’s voice, we actually have an acoustic version of this song showcasing her piano skeelz. However, the combination of her voice and the piano just don’t seem to play well together. It may be the simple fact that this is a piano adaptation of an electronic song, but weirdly enough, I feel that the piano adds a harshness to her voice that isn’t present in Feint’s version and other songs she features in. Yes… I know that there is a truckload of post on vocals in electronic music. Yes… her voice here is otherworldly and I couldn’t ever hope to do 1/100th as good, but I still think she pairs much better with d&b than acoustic instruments.