Calcium circles back to his beginnings on his debut appearance with Bassrush Records, a deep and highly corrosive four-track offering taking the form of his new ‘Degrader’ EP.
Over the course of the last five years, Calcium has smashed through barriers with a backbone made of steel—or at least that’s the way it seems when you consider how he’s been courageously carrying bass music into exciting, unforeseen directions.
The young gun from Houston has already rubbed shoulders with every crew worth the time, and there’s no question as to why. He’s harboring one of the most forward-thinking minds occupying the realms of dubstep and riddim, with his sights always looking towards the future. On his first foray with Bassrush, the ever-evolving producer is making a callback to his origins with a new EP that sprinkles some new-school flavor on his classic sound.
The erosion process starts off with the aptly titled “Breach,” an abrasive weapon of wonk that wears down the walls of the mind through an onslaught of chirping synth rolls, whirring frequencies, ominous melodies, and heavy-duty plucks.
It’s a battering ram of a cut that creates a giant opening for the rest of the heavy-hitting tracks to come in and handle their business. Up next, the title cut “Degrader” kicks the decay rate into overdrive. An eerie chopped-and-screwed melodic lean seeps into the frame, as croaking synth phrases, sinister strings, and spine-tingling piano keys work together to gnaw at every existing brain cell.
“Wrap” kicks off the second half of the pack in an unassuming fashion. Spacey tones and creepy ostinato chords drag the energy down a couple of notches, if only for a moment. With no escape in sight, the track leads the listener back to slaughter with a slow-burning swirl of whistling leads, guttural bass churns, and trippy textures tying this deep groover together in all the right places.
Instead of winding down on the closing cut, “Trigger Happy” goes the opposite way and chooses to unload the clip until nothing but smoke is left in the chamber. Clinking percussive hits and ruthless vocal chops bring the ruckus atop oscillating frequencies that serve as a stark reminder that our boy Calcium keeps that thang on him.
“The whole idea of this EP was to kind of go back to my roots with each song” says Calcium. “But at the same time, mashing together new Calcium sounds with vibes that are deeper and darker than I normally go.”
Currently operating out of Texas, Adam Cooley is the skeleton holding up the Calcium project, sometimes referred to by his tongue-in-cheek nickname, Mr. Teeth N’ Bones. Whichever name you choose to call him by, the truth remains that he has quickly become a vital mineral coursing through the veins of the bass community.
In addition to a ballooning list of singles and EPs, he’s also knocked out collabs with an impressive list of heavyweights from the likes of Kayzo, Peekaboo, Dion Timmer and Yakz. The whole world is taking notice, so be sure to throw the name Calcium into your daily regimen.
Calcium’s new “Degarder” EP is available everywhere via Bassrush Records.
