Dexter’s Beat Laboratory is a weekly collection of songs from DA managing editor Robyn Dexter. With a taste that can only be described as eclectic—to say nothing of a name that lends itself to punnery—DA is happy to present a selection of tracks personally curated by Dexter for your listening pleasure.
Listen in playlist format here.
Last Island seems to have a bottomless treasure trove of dynamic releases. Just a few weeks after the release of his Midnight Kids remix, the artist has shared a new original to brighten up these gloomy times for the music industry. In a tweet, the producer shared: “Something new for you, in uncertain times I thought I wanted to share something I’ve been holding back for a while.”
The world was a different place in mid-February—a mere month ago. Tame Impala’s The Slow Rush had just debuted to wild acclaim, including tunes like “Breathe Deeper.” Amidst the chaos of the world a month later, versatile producer Hoodboi has given the psychedelic “Breathe Deeper” a fun disco spin, sending “love to everyone around the world right now.” Watch the artist perform his rendition of “Breathe Deeper” here.
Matrix & Futurebound‘s “Follow Me” was a clear standout on their 2019 album, Mystery Machine. Tapping the vocal talents of Ayak, the duo created a melodic drum ‘n’ bass masterpiece. Here, nearly a year later, an official remix by Blacklab gets its release on Viper Recordings’ Bassrush 4.0 Sampler 1. This minimalist, breakbeat-filled rendition is so groovy and full of surprises.
DROELOE just debuted a 10-track remix compilation for their 2019 album, A Promise is Made. The Dutch duo filled this pack of tunes with talent, from Madnap to Slippy to Notaker. Notaker takes on “Written Maze” with grace, building a transcendent and otherworldly atmosphere around its melodies. His production is incredibly complementary of Iris Penning’s heavenly vocals, and the end result is dramatic and beautiful.
With the release of an EP in the fairly recent past, fans likely weren’t expecting new KOAN Sound material. But the UK duo surprise-uploaded an uplifting track called “Virtue” to their SoundCloud in the early hours of March 20, bringing some light to these challenging times. “Whilst keeping safe indoors this week,” the duo wrote, “we wrote ‘Virtue’ as an emblem of positivity and strength for uncertain times.”