It was a shame to see bassline drop off the map of many a club night’s musical remit after about 2010.

There was little that could touch the combination of raw speed garage energy and genuinely superb sound design that came with the trademark bass synths. These elements in themselves could potentially have given it the same longevity as acid house, but perhaps context is everything: culture, historic and geographical placement, flyers that make you want to claw your own eyes out…

Still, while a grip of dedicated folk keeps the genre pumped, with the occasional, undeniable banger cutting through, it is an exciting surprise to hear somebody else take a trait of bassline in a different direction. Unknown To The Unknown Records continue their refreshingly scattershot approach to all things club-related with Palace’s ‘Mandy’ / ‘Armageddon’ single, a pair of slow-swung 2-step joints, making use of those instantly recognisable squeezed square wave chirps among the shuffling woodblocks, snares and cabasas. ‘Mandy’ is the stronger of the two and very likely to seal a reputation as a classic. It won’t be long before you hear it in a rave near you, so get to know.

Steve Shaw

Palace – ‘Mandy’ / ‘Armageddon’