Datsik - Sensei EP

Datsik
Sensei EP
2016
Spotify

Dubstep oh dubstep, it seems to be a genre that baffles and amazes usually within the same breath. It is a hard genre to understand let alone appreciate but for many the throbbing bass and breathy electronics make for quite the experience. This EP from Datsik however is a bit different. The obvious dubstep elements are all there, but on "Sensei" He shows that there is more to his music than just bass. Datski uses dubstep as his jumping off point, and his central focus but also adds different elements to keep the songs unique and fresh. Sensei rolls out like a show, massive and aggressive pushing as much music in your ears as quickly and as loudly as possible. If you can handle it and want to push your boundaries this is the record, but if you are even the slightest bit not into dubstep you are going to have a very hard time with this. All the beeps, and thumps have so quickly and so loudly that it becomes hard to even keep up. The songs that feature a rapper are a welcome break, but still never find enough to really shine. "Wreckless" has a beat that conjures up memories of early Wu-Tang but AD is no where near their level of skill and barely manages to eek out a hook and a verse. the problem is really one of repetition, there simply is not enough between these tracks to really separate them.

"Fly Low" which repeats the lyric "Lost in a moment, looking for some Serotonin" is such a obvious drug reference it is almost totally square in it's delivery. Oh you know about MDMA? Cool tell us about that. It is just uninspired and a completely forced narrative. We could go on and on, but Datsik never really gives us all that much in terms of variety which in a dance music album is essential to make it stand out. Going to a show and experiencing this in your face is one thing, but trying to translate that experience to an album proves rather difficult. "Gravity" the record's closer has a few bright spots, but it comes far to late to make up for the rest of the album. If your head is not pounding by the time the last track fades out congrats you've managed to beat the odds. For Bassheads this very well may work and work extremely well, but for the casual listener it is hard to convince them that dubstep is the way for them. Sensei EP is just a bit to much of damn near everything.

5.4 out of 10