Rygby celebrates his third Duploc with DUPPLATES Vol. 3. Drilling deep into the UK-trap sound, he’s emulsified lo-fi elements with a sound-pallet of the Wild West, the prohibition era and a lonely Tokyo apartment in the 90’s (alongside all the ambience falling through the ajar window). With no sign of slowing down, Duploc are firing vinyls out like Liu Kang fires fireballs, lighting up their beacon within the world of wax.
On Vol. 3, everything but the 808 basslines and forefront drums are drenched in quirky lo-fi character. Purple hi-pass filters swish early Sub Soldiers-esque squelches across the teeth-glint-clean mix in ‘Ask Questions Later’. This experimentation reaches an introverted, dream-like climax in ‘The Hothouse Age’. Metallic discordances act defiantly. Pterodactyl screeches fizzle into pixelated dirt. A konbini kiosk melody with soft, LED-blue eyes wanders through the city. The only thing rupturing the dream, halting progression and alluding to the dance is the tried-and-tested trap drums and 808 pulses. Is it the dance floor trade-off? Where ambience reigns, nobody moves.
Earlier in the EP however, ‘Schredzzz’ plays with the trap structure, borrowing a double bass from the prohibition era to embody the formless 808 and give it new, raucaus possibilities. ‘Tym 2 Go Bak‘ is a journey like no other, but while the beats aren’t breaking new ground in DUPPLATES Vol. 3, the ambient sound design shows ufo-bright lights on the horizon for Rygby.
