Features

What better way to round off the decade than with a nice, tidy list? Christmas is perfect for those with OCD tendencies, providing a wonderful opportunity for cataloguing things by their prescribed attributes, five gold rings, four calling birds, three French hens, etc, etc.

So in keeping with seasonal tradition Kmag have resisted the urge to go back and make sure the oven's definitely off by channelling our obsessive tendencies into compiling a list of the top 20 drum & bass tunes of the decade.

The criteria for admission to the list are, shall we say, subjective. This is not science, rather, operating within the limits of word count and the fact that there can only be 20 tunes and someone has to draw the line somewhere, we've judged the entrants loosely on the following basis:

Was it released this decade? Duh.
Was the tune massive? As in, if I played it to my friend who's generally into music but not specifically into drum & bass, would they recognise it?
Did it spawn a raft of copycat tunes, or even a mini-movement within drum & bass?
If you played it in a set now, would everyone still go mental?
Do I, as the writer of this feature, like it? This is probably the most important point.

Feel free to submit your own version here. There are no wrong answers, people! OK, everybody clear? Then off we go...

20= Uncut – Midnight
I hate the word 'zeitgeist', it's so wanky, but there's no better way to describe the spirit this song captured. We hadn't gone to war with Iraq yet, and basically there was a real feeling that the decade was up for grabs. Jenna G's carefree ode to living for the weekend reflected that sense of optimism and fun.

20= Kosheen - Hide U
Female vocals again, only this time poetic and more chilled. Kosheen had fantastic and well deserved crossover success for a brief spell in the first half of the decade, with an album of brilliant songs, they pushed the drum & bass envelope right to the edge. The less vocal-y version of Hide U was the first kernel of that success and probably their biggest and last underground hit before they all got makeovers and went on Top of the Pops.

19. Calibre – Drop It Down
One of the only male vocal tracks to make this list, Calibre's effortless, warm, simple approach to production kick started a trend towards more laid back arrangement. This approach gave MC Fats' vocals the space needed to create a track that is irresistibly funky.

18. Shy FX & T Power - Shake Ur Body
A proper party tune. There was a brief period in the early 2000s that saw the release of a cluster of drum & bass tunes with strong female vocals and Shake Ur Body was perhaps the biggest and best of these. Again, note to drum and bass: it's good to be sexy.

17. TeeBee & Calyx – Follow the Leader
Follow the Leader was one of the first tunes these two collaborated on and its success was the shape of things to come for this creative partnership. Not only did it receive widespread critical acclaim from the music press for its heavy, rolling beats and cheeky Rakim sample, but it was also snapped up by Rockstar games to feature as the lead track in the global advertising campaign for the massively popular Midnight Club series.

16. DJ Zinc – Casino Royale
I doubt anyone would have realised it at the time but Casino Royale kind of paved the way for the DJ Marky / Patife / XRS sound that would come through less than a year after this tune's release. With its lazy, Latin influenced rhythm and chilled out melodies, Casino Royale brought a bit of sexiness to proceedings and with it, the ladies, whom as every promoter – and James Bond - knows, are the key to a successful night.

15. John B – Up All Night
Another repeat appearance for this one which made the Essential Metalheadz top ten a couple of weeks ago. Some were sceptical of the 'trance and bass' sound at first but the atmospherics, pitched-up vocals and piano riffs of early nineties rave, with the contemporary dirty Reese bassline means that seven years on Up All Night is still hailed as one of the hugest dance floor tunes from that era. Big and brilliant.

14. Dillinja - Twist 'Em Out
Twist 'Em Out became the sonic backdrop to Sasha Baron Cohen's Ali G character when he was still part of the 11 O' Clock show, and still funny. Forever more this tune will be associated with a racial stereotype in a yellow tracksuit. But when you consider what a phenomenon Ali G became, this tune was probably part of one of the most relevant social commentaries in what was otherwise a pretty culturally barren decade. Booyakasha!

13. Shimon & Andy C - Bodyrock
Never was a drum & bass tune more divisive. Bodyrock scared the purists because it was so totally unlike anything that had ever been heard before, but the rest of the scene embraced it for the innovative, brave, and fun invention that it was. Much imitated since, no one has ever managed to do it quite as well.

12. Ram Trilogy – Titan
There's something about the chemistry between the heads of the Ram stable that gives them something of the Midas touch. It's that chemistry and synchronicity which is captured to perfection in this rolling, deep, dark, epic track, and also one of the reasons why Ram is one of the most prolific and stalwart drum & bass labels in the world.

11. Chase & Status - Hurt You
Chase & Status are one of a few drum & bass acts who broke through into the more mainstream musical channels this decade and Hurt You is one of their flagship tunes. The marriage of that vocal with the breakbeat and the deep, atmospheric bass line was radio-friendly without being cheesy. The pair have attracted criticism from the usual luddite corners of the scene for 'selling out', but Chase & Status's sound has the maturity to realise the potential in making drum & bass more accessible and the duo have capitalised on that opportunity while still managing to make great music.

10. Dom & Roland – Can't Punish Me
All the elements - sexy vocals, deep bass, hard drums – combine here in a tune that is classic and unmistakeable Dom & Roland. The slow build in the intro is one big tease before the grinding bassline comes in full force, driving the vocal samples with an energy, style and focus that cannot be replicated by anyone else.

9. Commix - Be True

Commix are one of those acts who manage to keep on pushing their production forward while at the same time retaining a connection to their older, original sound. In the simple, beautifully crafted Be True, Commix created a beautiful and timeless liquid drum & bass tune, with both a futuristic feel and a nod to the past that meant it would sit comfortably in any decade, even the next.

8. Pendulum – Vault
Pendulum have avoided self-identifiying as a drum & bass band even though this is one of their more drum & bass-y tunes. Vault stays on just the right side of the 'too much alien bleeping' line; one which they arguably crossed later on with madness like Fasten Your Seatbelt. Pendulum have possibly been the biggest drum & bass success story of the decade and most reading this will know how that story unfolded, but it was this track that first made everyone sit up and take notice.

7. Sub Focus – Airplane
Speaking of Ram's Midas touch, this tune was the debut smash of the label's latest protégé, Sub Focus, who has that same rare, innate musicality which is also evident in tunes like Titan. For about a year you couldn't go out without hearing Airplane at least six times in one night - not that anyone minded because it was awesome.

6. High Contrast - Return Of Forever
High Contrast's True Colours album brought a refreshing lighter touch of liquid funk to what had become a bit of an aggressive musical landscape. The epic, beautiful, musical Return of Forever was proper goose bump material.

5. Fresh )EIB( - Planet Dust
This popped up on the Essential BCUK list not very long ago, but I still stand by everything that was said. After The Nine went off the scale, everyone was gearing up for the 'second album' backlash but once the now infamous distorted, gnarly hoover riff and distinctive bassline of Planet Dust dropped with all its awesome low-budget sci-fi sounds, everyone went nuts for )EIB( all over again.

4. Noisia - The Tide
In a decade where suddenly the world and his wife were able to 'write tunes' using one bit of software and a laptop, Noisia came along to remind us all what drum & bass done properly should sound like. The Tide showcases the group's signature fiddly, technical wizardry and remains one of the best examples of Noisia's skill in production.

3. DJ Marky & XRS – LK
What was so great about the whole Brazilian thing that happened at the beginning of the decade was that it made girls like drum & bass. LK cleared the dance floor of all the twitchy techstep geeks staring at their shoes and made way for lots of sexy hip action.

2. dBridge & Vegas - True Romance

After Bad Company split, ex band mates dBridge and Vegas collaborated on this dark, minimal roller. True Romance starts off all mellow and funky and then gets a bit twisted and nasty. Although slower, there are nods to the rave sounds of the previous decade, which gave it that anthemic gravitas.

1. Konflict – Messiah
This tune is disgusting. I don't know whether it's the spooky distorted Gregorian chant-type male scream in the intro, or the heavy, rolling beats and tear-out bassline with the epic Reese, but there is something about this track that, even now, makes everyone who hears it totally lose their shit.

What do you think? Are there any glaring ommissions from our selection? If you agree or disgree then let us know in the comments section below or, even better, post in our forum.

Check our Top 20 Essential Dubstep tracks of the oo's

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