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 large expertise from the broader EDM world, so he’s new to us. Producing since effectively earlier than the present era of EDM followers have been even born, his work is much less about any type of throwback type than a constant evolution that’s moved in time with that of dance music at massive. This implies he can, and infrequently 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 referred to as “Breathe It In” definitely show that time.
Blissful to be within the underground for a few years, splicing collectively classic electro and trendy bass home for the enjoyable of it appeared 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 started working 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 Darkish Metropolis Music.
The size of music Ant’s been capable of launch in slightly below three years is spectacular, certain, however it’s the standard of the work that pushes him into gobstopping territory. Every monitor is a wealthy, full composition drawing from each type and style conceivable and harnessing to the artist’s personal distinctive and emotive type, every album takes the listener on a journey by way of emotion greater than music. This isn’t your ordinary membership home, although it’s typically recent and really danceable.
It’s not possible to undergo Ant’s large 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 stunning seashore music that comes with all the very best components of home, ambient, progressive and trance, look no additional than his Spotify web page. Now, to spotlight a number of key factors from Resonate: this album opens with a beatless intro monitor that basically units the tone for the remainder of the album. Ant’s not one to relaxation on his laurels with any specific style, and “100 Years Asleep” is definitely a nod to that. With a haunting piano melody grounding this monitor quite 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 wonderfully pitched sine wave synth is pushed by way of the start of the monitor, together with different sound samples that type of make the monitor 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 come back.
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 at all times a mixture of old style and trendy, and Ant employs the classic parts in a variety of other 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 wonderfully constructed DJ set paying homage to all of the eras of rave, however it’s all written and produced by one artist.
Whereas they’re definitely pretty much 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 embrace them. They each have a very totally different vibe to the album. With a particular celestial and 90s Enya-inspired instrumental monitor, 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 filled with electro and massive room sounds whereas additionally being rooted in Ant’s signature classic synth type. “Breathe It In” is definitely probably the most ravey, dancefloor monitor of the 2023 releases, and it’ll probably play effectively at festivals because the summer time season attracts to a detailed.
That’s probably Antman Ant’s final aim: reviving the dancefloor in his personal distinctive approach, bringing the historical past of rave thus far in its close to 40-year historical past in a approach that trendy crowds cannot solely recognize 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.
Take a look at “Breathe It In,” “Weightless” and the remainder of Antman Ant’s mindblowing discography on Spotify and rave on.
