Frequency Dreams — Meditate LP

REVIEW:

The suitably titled, Meditate LP, begins with the track Awaken. Featuring garage-esque vocal cuts, a cheerful melody and clean drums, shadowed by the subtle sub bass. A light, mellow, but quality, introduction.

Rainy Day feels like it’s straight out of the Chord Marauders camp, with its progressive, jazzy melodies, hypnotising drums and ambience. Subtle changes to the rhythm and placement of sub bass help steer the track forward and maintain the theme of meditation, as Frequency Dreams turns up the heat on just the 2nd of 9 tracks.

Seasons is a more percussive and energetic tune, starting with smooth pads and a reverb soaked snare cutting through the introductory hi hat patterns, before it blooms into a weighty roller, yet preserves a light, and airy aura via the use of ambient, low cut-off chords and the clever automation and processing of reverb and delay.

Sway is the first sign of a darker side to Frequency Dreams production, a slow and mysterious introduction leads you into the drop as it unfolds into a journey of pulsating bass and hard-hitting snares, surrounded by spooky hits and a melody that rotates like clockwork, upholding the sense of mystification.

The title track, Meditate, is by far my favourite of the LP so far. Everything about this track feels perfectly composed, arranged and produced and following the initial drop, doesn’t seem to leave a continuous climax. Meditate features various tribal hits, rim shots and patterns that combine with a boisterous bass line to form a track, reminding me of producers like Gantz, and Distance. Frequency Dreams adds yet more elements, the first of which sounds like a xylophone, playing its part as an important piece of the puzzle, and some eerie, almost vocal, background sounds, the final touch to an impressive track.

Space Station retains the darkness and a faint sense of the same tribal feel from the vigorous Meditate, substituting the multiple rhythms for a consistent, bouncy bassline, surrounded by metronome-like drums, with the occasional off-hit or delay. The sub is what seems to be the focus point on Space Station, an obvious and now recognisable ingredient found within Frequency Dreams sonic arsenal.

Squid is up next. Despite yet another playful and seriously weighty bassline, the drums are constructed in a sort of half-time, sluggish style and they really set the tone for this one. A range of different snares alternate, as the beat rolls from bar to bar, before another eastern, a woodwind instrument appears and gradually elevates the track even further. Frequency Dreams has an obvious passion for creating interesting rhythms, melodies and sounds and Squid is a fitting example of that. A serious stepper!

Crystallize begins with a more industrial vibe which is only enhanced by the addition of a gritty mid bass later in the track. Enveloping and distant synthesised sounds, mixed with some foley audio (of what sounds like a drill) kick things off. As things progress, Frequency Dreams automates the filters and manipulates the mid bass as he introduces the crisp and energetic drums. Distant chanting style sounds are sprinkled throughout and occasionally joined by distorted, harmony-like sound FX. Crystallize is sure to keep you on your feet.

The final track, Paradox, mixes a bit of his dark style with the vibe from the opening two, more ambient tracks, living up to the name as it escorts you through an unpredictable, but pleasant, journey through sound. The finale to what is just over 40 minutes of inspiring, progressive, electronic music.

Frequency Dreams, like Subquake Audio, has confidently forced his way on to my list of producers, to watch (and label’s to watch, respectively). I’m optimistic that many of you will agree with me that, despite the extreme saturation of Dubstep music in recent years, that period seems to be coming to an end, with an enormous supply of independent producers from around the world generating huge interest with their unique twists on the underground sound we all know and love.

INTERVIEW

[Photo credit: Freddy D’Angelo]

How’s it going, Isaac?

Going well man, can’t complain!

Good to hear. How long have you been making music?

I’ve been playing guitar since I was 11 years old or so, which was roughly 12 years ago. As far as dubstep goes, I’ve been producing for around 6 years.

Nice. So where did the name, Frequency Dreams, originate from?

The name Frequency Dreams originated from me having the idea that I didn’t want there to be too much ego in my music. I wanted the name to be representative of the music itself and not the person behind it. It also gave me freedom to experiment with any style I want. Dreams can obviously be happy, sad, strange, neutral, etc. I liked the idea of having the freedom to express myself in any way possible so it works perfectly for me.

What’s the scene like where you are based?

The scene here is nice man! Naturally in the US the heavier side of dubstep is more predominant, but there are plenty of deep shows here and they bring a more intimate vibe, which I really enjoy.

It’s good to hear the deeper stuff is slowly picking up traction over there. Could you give us any inside information on your production set up or any go to plug ins you use?

My set-up is very basic and cheap at the moment. As far as hardware goes, I use Alesis M1 active 520 monitors, a 2011 macbook pro, and a tascam field recorder for foley stuff. As for software, I use ableton and serum is probably my favorite synth at the moment. as for effect vst’s I love using Valhalla’s “freq echo” for trippy/dubbed out sounds.

Recording foley is always fun! So, what kind of producers or musicians inspire you the most?

Some of my biggest inspirations lately have been people like The Widdler and Culprate. Not solely for their music (which is obviously great) but the way they use music as a medium to express themselves. Also really feeling the deep/wonky sounds coming from people like Bukez Finezt and Krimma, as well as the chill vibes from the Chord Marauders crew.

What can we expect from Frequency Dreams in the future?

Nothing lined up in the immediate future, just taking some time off of shows to focus on my productions!

Thanks for taking some time out to answer our questions!

No problem man, I enjoyed it!