We caught one-half of LA based songwriting/production duo Massif a little while back opening for LCD Soundsystem, and we gotta say they’re hard to pin down categorically, drawing influence from such disparate sources as Tool, The Mars Volta, Aphex Twin, Animal Collective, Battles and just about everything in between. So we kept an eye out for them and were stoked to see they just released their first mixtape not one hour ago. Massif’s hour-plus long Los Angeles Bass Society mixtape gathers a group of artists who Massif thinks you should know about, plus some tracks by heavyhitters such as Instra:mental’s “Pyramid”, SBTRKT’s “Wildfire” (with Little Dragon on vocals) and Magnetic Man‘s “Ping Pong”. Most of the mix hovers in the beat range of ‘future bass’ (aka future garage), a recent offshoot of dubstep and UK garage. While these artists may embody those labels at the moment, the genre is loosely defined and evolving in tandem with the artists who’re creating it. Los Angeles has proven to be a driving force and a haven for this lesser-known, but thriving, worldwide electronic music movement. With the age of information, the movement is a united global effort. Massif likes to think of themselves as one of its messengers. Stream the Los Angeles Bass Society mixtape below, and download it at will if you like what you hear…
