We are in the midst of a UK garage and dubstep revival. For proof, look at the ascendancy of producers like Introspekt and Main Phase, or the fact that Interplanetary Criminal and Eliza Rose scored a number one hit in England in September 2022. No doubt, mutant strains of UK bass are riding high again—it’s a good time to be a fan of low-end science and syncopated drums. One of the latest bass players to emerge is New York-based producer DivPro. Since he started putting out tunes, he's charted a path from fragile dub techno to absolutely bonkers drum & bass. His latest release, TWIST001, settles into that early-2000s sweet spot when garage, grime, and dubstep were all vying for attention.
TWIST001 is an excellent showcase of DivPro's range. On both "Datt Way" and "Reduvia," he hits on the Arctic temperatures of vintage grime. "Datt Way," in particular, is a banger. On it, South London MC Renz goes to town, stacking rhymes like a teetering Jenga Tower over flute-like synths that could have been lifted from an old Relentless record. The other two tracks move between garage and dubstep. The drums on "Punishment" sound like they aren't being programmed so much as punched. "RMT" runs along similar lines until a cheeky rewind slips the track into half-time mode. Across TWIST001, DivPro doesn't produce a homage to UK music as much as he attempts to reimagine it.