Bass music is, in its purest form, a powerfully aggressive blanket-genre that thrives off of the manipulation of visceral, razor-sharp tones that thwack right in the chest and pulse deep in the eardrums. As Halloween rolls around each year, the spirit of the occasion has a tendency to creep its way into even the finest threads of low-end brutalism, and this time, the result is nothing short of skull-splitting: FEED THE CONTAGIOUS, a brand new compilation of specifically-produced tunes, hits the airwaves today via Wonk#Ay Records.

Hailing from Brighton, UK, Wonk#Ay records began in 2004 as an initiative to immerse the Brighton club scene in free events hosting experimental music. By 2008, the official record label was born, and the operation was spearheaded by the release of their first compilation, GnomeOrWar, which featured a host of international artists showcasing an eclectic collection of lightning-paced psybient tracks. Within a few years the label began to shift their focus towards mid-tempo, glitch, dubstep, drum-&-bass, neuro, and techno, and would go on to greatly expand their talent pool; Kursa, Seppa, Dystopik, Hurtdeerand their label mates represent the face of Wonk#Ay Records, and together create the war-brand responsible for their label's most potent release to date.

FEED THE CONTAGIOUS is a nuclear powerhouse of bone-smashing breakdowns, combining the talent of a multi-faceted team of top-flight producers and bass enthusiasts. It is a neural labyrinth of sine-wave compression synthesis, saturation, blistering percussion, and of course, pulverizing bass lines. Bringing each of their trademark styles to the table, this compilation is as much a cooperation amongst these sub-frequency dons as it is a competition for the most brutal, rhythmic cacophony.

Kursa and Seppa concoct a potion of the highest magnitude, as expected and always delivered. Friendly Fade takes halftime d-n-b and flips it right on its head, panning back and forth between crunchy shuffles and meticulous blast-beats, bringing in aggressive timbres akin to British metal and punk music. Brief flashes of melodious pads are quickly washed away by a torrent of low-end obliteration wrapped in a percussive hailstorm.

Zimbu brings down the hammer with an industrial-era soundscape; Planets In Orbit vibrates to a metal-on-metal frequency, with a blistering bass tone complimented by a steel pipe snare on the most favorable downbeats, leaving just enough room for a bevy of atmospheric glitches to tighten the mix and randomize the direction.

Dystopik cranks up the bpm for his contribution, coming up to bat with a wild halftime d-n-b onslaught called Pulled to Pieces. Granular textures float amidst a sea of white noise and hard-wired kicks and snares battling for dominance. The mean-mugged FM bass synthesizers fire off like a malfunctioning machine gun, spraying the auditory field with a maelstrom of sub-bass and squared-off frequencies.

Wonk#Ay spares absolutely no expense or effort in their collaborative efforts with an ecosystem of top-flight producers. The FEED THE CONTAGIOUS compilation is a Trojan warhorse in an over-saturated sea of similar tones and musical stylings. The necessity to stand out, when much of modern bass music seems a simulacrum of itself, is met with outstanding sound design, mix downs, mastering, and deliberately "throwing the kitchen sink at the wall". All listeners should take the proper time to submerge themselves into each track in this collection, and when the end of the road is reached, Wonk#Ay Records has a wildly impressive back-catalog spanning back to 2008, all 100% FREE (with the option of donation), with quality being the absolute first defining marker of every release. This compilation has just been released into the hands of the masses, and we already can't wait for what Wonk#Ay has next up their sleeves.

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