[AlbumOTD] Rusko - KAPOW

Artist: Rusko
Genre: Glitch-Hop/Dubstep/Electronica
Location: Los Angeles, California, US
Website: http://www.ruskoonfire.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/ruskoofficial
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ruskoofficial

Today’s record is the newly released ‘KAPOW’ EP from Leeds-born dubstep producer, Rusko. The industrial glitch-hop EP features four tracks, ‘Yeah’, ‘Booyakasha’, ‘Bring It Back’ and ‘Like This’. The release is not the first thing to come out of camp Rusko this calendar year with March seeing the release of ‘Songs’, Rusko’s second solo full-length album, followed by the EP collaboration with hip-hop heavyweights Cypress Hill in June, titled ‘Cypress X Rusko’. The former was released on US-based label Mad Decent, however he has decided to release ‘KAPOW’ independently in order to produce it just the way he wants it to be produced. The emphasis for the EP is not on profit, but rather on promotion. 

The first track ‘Yeah’ is a real positive-sounding number suited more to a summer climate. It possesses an innate ability to bring a whole rave to a state of ecstasy. The intensity of the beat reaches peaks and troughs making it an ideal club banger.  

This is followed by ‘Booyakasha’ which again is an upbeat hard-style track around the 140bpm mark. It’s filled with energy and features certain wobbles synonymous with the sound of Rusko, transforming the hard-style opening into an eclectic pounding fusion of dubstep and drum & bass.  

The penultimate track, ‘Bring It Back’ threatens to go deep whilst continuing to hover just above the surface with its break-beat style. Undoubtedly the most club-style anthem on the EP, it blends twisted dubstep basslines with a dose of soul.

The final track ‘Like This’ may not be something new to Rusko die-hards with the full track dropped on Youtube on October 16^th.  Dissimilar in fashion to the other three tracks it clocks in at just 110bpm offering groovy, bass-filled drops with a move away from Rusko’s signature wobbles. This is certainly more ‘hands-in-the-air’ than your ‘down n dirty’ dustep classics, it’s a tune that is sure to get a crowd united and jumping as one. The track also samples the word “Wow” from an ’08 Crookers remix of ‘The Salmon Dance’.

The EP is officially released today free of charge on Rusko’s website here, and below you can check out the final track on the EP, ‘Like This’:

Matthew Evans