The latest single from Street Ritual finds two mystics of underground bass, Saltus & Pathwey, joining forces to cast a powerful sonic spell called “Mirage”. Saltus hails from Boston, MA and co-founded the production powerhouse Rezinate. Pathwey is from Asheville, NC and was recently signed to Street Ritual’s booking agency. Both put their best foot forward here and the result is one of the strongest tracks in either’s catalog.

As its name might imply, “Mirage” has a disorienting effect on the listener. Clocking in at more than five minutes, the song maneuvers through multiple forms before leveling the listener with its third drop, a sharp slice of neuro bass that comes from way out in left field. The sub bass is extreme, and sets the foundation for a brilliant use of stereo space. Sonic elements abound in the track - hi-fidelity glitches, foley, ambient pads, vague vocal samples - but the producers maintain a sense of dimension by carefully rounding the edges of their sounds manipulating the reverb delicately. They create a spatial hierarchy for their sounds so that glitches seep into your ear, percussive elements pop with force, and the sub bass, like water, both flows and crashes at different moments.

Both Saltus and Pathwey primarily focus on 140 & 85 bpm music. Their music emphasizes atmosphere and soundscape more than most 140 fare, but without compromising the style’s thumping, drum-driven essence. This summer, Saltus intends to drop a project long in the making - the “Nightsky” mix - an all original and unreleased (save for “Mirage”) dive into the deepest, truest part of the producer’s universe. Pathwey recently released an absolutely epic and earthy mix through the Shanti Planti series on RadiOzora, one your correspondent’s personal favorites of 2019 so far. (This renaissance man also put together the lunar lattice artwork for the single). Choon in to those frequencies but also be careful, because “Mirage” could come soon to wreck a dance floor near you.

FOLLOW Saltus:  Soundcloud  /  Bandcamp  /  Spotify / Facebook

FOLLOW Pathwey: Soundcloud / Spotify / Facebook