Antman Ant is, by his personal admission, nothing if not an OG raver so it’s not likely honest to name him a “new artist.” He has, nonetheless, been type of hiding his enormous expertise from the broader EDM world, so he’s new to us. Producing since effectively earlier than the present technology of EDM followers had been even born, his work is much less about any type of throwback model than a constant evolution that’s moved in time with that of dance music at massive. This means he can, and usually does, draw on almost 30 years of dance, sound design and groove to make his music. His newest releases, April’s heady, ambient-laced deep home album Resonate and the just-released singles, the ethereal and ambient “Weightless” and the deep disco bop known as “Breathe It In” actually show that time.
Happy to be within the underground for a few years, splicing collectively classic electro and fashionable bass home for the enjoyable of it gave the impression to be Antman Ant’s bag till the pandemic hit. As with many creatives, the Sussex, UK native discovered himself with extra time he ever dared dream and the necessity to create each for himself and for the entertainment-starved public. He set to work releasing and has amassed an enormous discography since 2020: seven full albums and a string of interstitial and teaser tracks in between. It seems Antman had been sitting on a veritable treasure trove of tunes the like of which the home and ambient worlds have by no means seen in such a brief interval. He rapidly grew to become a deep home playlist favourite on Spotify and is gaining traction on Beatport, with a few of his singles being picked up by Dark City Music.
The scale of music Ant’s been in a position to launch in slightly below three years is spectacular, certain, nevertheless it’s the standard of the work that pushes him into gobstopping territory. Each observe is a wealthy, full composition drawing from each model and style possible and harnessing to the artist’s personal distinctive and emotive model, every album takes the listener on a journey by way of emotion greater than music. This isn’t your typical membership home, although it’s usually recent and very danceable.
It’s unattainable to undergo Ant’s huge catalog within the area of a brief article so we’ll be specializing in the latest releases, however suffice it to say if you would like lovely seashore music that comes with all the perfect elements of home, ambient, progressive and trance, look no additional than his Spotify web page. Now, to focus on a number of key factors from Resonate: this album opens with a beatless intro observe that basically units the tone for the remainder of the album. Ant’s not one to relaxation on his laurels with any explicit style, and “100 Years Asleep” is actually a nod to that. With a haunting piano melody grounding this observe reasonably than a discernable drum or bassline, Ant additionally showcases his experimental facet within the ambient sound design. What a facet it’s, as effectively, as a superbly pitched sine wave synth is pushed by way of the start of the observe, together with different sound samples that type of make the observe really feel like we’re listening to the soundtrack of the world turning. It’s each stress-free and a promise of the work to return.
From beatless to “Progressive Beats,” Resonate proceeds to take listeners on a temporal journey by way of ambient rave with all the things from the afore-mentioned progressive beats to deep bass rumbles to celestial, Goa-style melodies. There’s all the time a mixture of old style and fashionable, and Ant employs the classic components in a lot of alternative ways: generally it’s a pattern, others it’s the tools he makes use of. It’s so diversified but well-constructed, “Resonate” it’s nearly like a superbly constructed DJ set paying homage to all of the eras of rave, nevertheless it’s all written and produced by one artist.
While they’re actually nearly as good because the album, upon listening to Ant’s current tracks post-Resonate, “Weightless” and “Breathe It In,” it’s immediately clear why he didn’t embody them. They each have a very totally different vibe to the album. With a particular celestial and 90s Enya-inspired instrumental observe, there’s a levity to “Weightless” (therefore the identify) that’s faraway from the deep vibes of the Resonate tracks. “Breathe It In,” simply launched in late July, nonetheless, is stuffed with electro and massive room sounds whereas additionally being rooted in Ant’s signature classic synth model. “Breathe It In” is definitely essentially the most ravey, dancefloor observe of the 2023 releases, and it can possible play effectively at festivals because the summer season season attracts to an in depth.
That’s possible Antman Ant’s final aim: reviving the dancefloor in his personal distinctive method, bringing the historical past of rave up to now in its close to 40-year historical past in a method that fashionable crowds can’t solely admire it however love the place we’ve come from and the place we’re going. Now with actual momentum and an unmistakable expertise, right here’s hoping Antman Ant’s work continues to Resonate with ravers for one more 40 years and past.
Check out “Breathe It In,” “Weightless” and the remainder of Antman Ant’s mindblowing discography on Spotify and rave on.
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