Analias had been on my radar for roughly a year ever since I found their work on Bandcamp in the Spring/Summer of 2022. I’ve specifically been searching for dance music that’s received physical release via cassette tape and during my digging I found a number of different tape releases from a mysterious minimalist drum and bass artist. After settling on my choice of ordering the album “Democratica”, I wishlisted the remaining tapes, listened and waited patiently aiming to save up and purchase the other remaining back-catalogue. (As of the date of writing this article, those tapes and releases are mostly no longer on Bandcamp and they don’t appear in my collection.) If you didn’t know Analias is a prolific producer with loads of self released tracks to their name. If you want a backgrounder make sure to check out their Discogs page for more info.

Flash-forward to February 2023: Gremlinz, Jesta and Lush have announced the founding of their personal label “The Lee Garden Historical Preservation Society” (hereinafter “Lee Garden”) so named after a (now closed) gem of a Toronto Chinatown restaurant which was haunted by the label owners after raves of the past. Imagine my surprise to see that the second release on Lee Garden was from none-other than Analias, the very same that I knew from Democratica. I knew that I needed to have a physical piece of this label’s history and when the label did a double launch deal of Lee Garden 002 as well as Tim Reaper & NVious’ Lee Garden 001, I hit the order button with intent.

Lee Garden 002 is a four track release. Analias’ style of DNB sits in an interesting niche somewhere around Autonomic and Microfunk Crew. The tracks on selection here give a good survey of that skillset and the EP also contains a bonus UKG / Broken Beat (Bruk maybe?) track which is also excellent. The DNB tracks on offer here are minimal, meditative and mournful in their general tone. There are no massive basslines; instead everything is understated.

The first track on the EP is ‘Falling Falling Falling’, a progressive and low-key opener. The sample in this tune will be familiar to anyone who has listened to Democratica as it also appears in a different form in the second track off that album “Extradite”. The vocal sample runs over a drum break of simple clicks and pad work before dropping into a traditional but full force amen break as all the elements of the tracks lull you into a hypnotic groove. Overall this track doesn’t have a whole lot going on in it and in my humble opinion sits firmly in the “listening DNB” category of the genre. It’s still good but honestly, for me it’s the least compelling track of the release. You’re unlikely to hear this one in live sets unless they’re maybe the first or last sets of the evening or someone is doing a chillout mix.

“Cardio” starts with a simple stepping amen and follows a similar progression to “Falling Falling Falling”. There aren’t any “drops” in this tune. Instead, the elements are introduced progressively and faded in and out. The anxious melody that runs throughout the track is eventually removed and replaced with subtle pads over an bumping 808-style bassline which undergirds the balance of the tune, starting out relatively simply and then gradually warping as the track moves on through the breakdown of the track. Clocking in at 7 minutes and 58 seconds, the tune takes it’s time in finding its pace but ultimately delivers a progressive stepper that fits the overall aesthetic of the release while adding a bit more urgency to the songs on offer here. I’m a fan of this one and I can see myself using it in my radio sets or maybe some late night hours at a stage that isn’t too packed.

The third track “Pass Me By” is my favourite track of the release. Notably upbeat in tone, the track starts with a minimal variation of the amen break before a quick slide in with some subtle keys and interspersed bass hits. The focus in this track is placed on the simple bassline with some sprinkling keys laid atop. The break feels punchy and the hi-hats add urgency to it while the entire production remains spaced out. Once again, this isn’t peak time DNB, but for the listener that is just chilling, this tune is like honey to our ears.

“Again n Again” is the pleasant surprise of the release. Although none of the tracks that have been featured on the release are peak-time DNB, “Again n Again” is the type of tune that will likely see bigtime play in side rooms, garage and breaks sets. The increasing popularity of this style of breakbeats/broken beat/bruk/jazz breaks/UKG is self evident with the rise of producers like Murder He Wrote (who I had the chance to see at Department of Civilian Dance in 2022) or DNB legend Zero T’s own foray into the genre under his alternate moniker ‘Bruk Rogers’. “Again n Again” is a swingy 4:4 tune which features a climbing 303 line and piano progression together as the main hook. The beat is punchy and the bassline bouncy. The result is a dark and progressive groover with plenty of ominous vibes and cracking drum beats which scratch an itch that most 4:4 tunes at this speed can’t really reach. Overall I was pleasantly surprised to find this track on the release because I’m interested in getting into spinning this style of broken beat in 2023 and this is a track I’m sure to use.

Overall this release is one for the ‘headz and likely one for the headphones. Aside from “Again n Again” and maybe “Cardio”, a lot of these tracks are cerebral, meditative and progressive: things that fit well within a studio/radio DJ mix or a chill-out area, but maybe not the main room of the arena. As stated before, the release has a consistent aesthetic and style that fits an Analias work, but to my personal tastes I would be interested to see the artist experiment with more upbeat tones like the ones on display in “Pass Me By” in the future. That said, this is a great second release for Lee Garden and one that I’m proud to have in my collection. Gremlinz, Jesta and Lush have shown that they’re willing to push the envelope with their new label and I’m looking forward to see what else 2023 has in store for Drum and Bass, Toronto, and the rest of the scene more broadly.

You can purchase “The Lee Garden Historical Preservation Society 002” by Analias on Bandcamp at the link below:

https://theleegardenhistoricalpreservationsociety.bandcamp.com/album/tlghps001-tlghps002