What Is That? / The Brink

Akuma returns to VTO Records for a first solo release on the label, following an earlier appearance in its Cells Interlinked series. What Is That? / The Brink gives the Weymouth producer two distinct ways to build around a dark bass foundation: one gradually expands its synths, while the other works through rising percussion and an increasingly processed vocal.

What Is That? begins with bass hits, sub, and string-like synths. The kick slowly takes shape like a strengthening heartbeat, establishing the pulse before higher-pitched drum snaps arrive against a broad saw-bass rhythm.

Phased synths give the track much of its width. They flesh out the arrangement without lifting its darker mood, making the progression feel like an expansion of those opening sounds. The bass remains central, but the detail spreading around it gives the track more shape as it develops.

The Brink starts with a hi-hat groove and synths with a 1990s feel, followed by large, orchestral-sounding hits. The kick itself helps build the rise, before snappy drums and a repeated vocal come into focus.

That vocal climbs in pitch and becomes progressively more robotic and echoing. Saw-like bass moves over the sub beneath it, giving the track a rougher character while the changing vocal keeps drawing the ear upwards.

The release is available on Beatport and Spotify from 23 October, with the wider release following on 6 November.