Drum and bass, dubstep and all around bass music heavyweight Culprate has been working on an interesting project for almost the last year on his Twitch channel. For those not in the know, Twitch is an interactive platform which allows various experts, mostly in tech fields, to provide help and tutorials on a range of said tech fields to help those who want to learn. Culprate’s channel, it stands to reason, provides tutorials and interactive lessons on music production.
Since starting the project in November of last year, Culprate and his collaborators saw the potential in many of their students and the passion of their fans, and were inspired to see where an even wider platform could take some of these students. Culprate says he was also inspired by the current divisiveness he sees all around in politics and nationalism to use music as a unifying force. Hence, The Unity Project was born. The series will be released in a number of parts and contains a varied roster of tracks from his students and collaborators, all featuring his own twist on each track.
Unity Project Part 1 is as diverse as its name implies, opening with an experimental, orchestral-inspired track called “Unity” with ambient composer Morwic. The six-song EP also covers some heavy, syncopated halftime featuring Russian production duo Lørean & Cloower called “Stay Online”, an even darker riddim track called “Chained” with Culprate’s co-instructor The Widdler and a grimy, grinding dubstep track called “Blossoming” which borders on experimental madness by Culprate and Japanese producer Yokaze. The EP rounds out with a surprising bass house track, “Ghost Machine” made by Culprate and Bristol-based newcomer Zenji and and extremely cool minimalist halftimer called “Start the Fire” with South African collaborator, Chee.
It’s clear by the diverse style of each of the tracks as well as the far-flung geographic locations of his collaborators that Culprate is serious about his ethos that music should be a unifying factor, stressing the things that people, especially music-and-art lovers have in common rather than the differences. He seems passionate about the project, and excited to continue. From Culprate himself: “I’m really excited about this project. Getting to work with some many talented people has been really inspirational for me. It’s been hard work, but well worth it and I can’t wait to release it all.” No doubt the bass music community also can’t wait for the next part to this interesting and diverse series.
Unity Project Part 1 is out now and can be purchased and streamed on Spotify or Bandcamp.
