Last year Herobust released I’m Aloud, a genre-defying and boundary pushing project that I described as “one of the most forward thinking and innovative projects the trap and bass genres have seen in years.” To kick off 2017, Herobust returns with yet another groundbreaking EP in Vertebreaker. The project builds upon the sound he created on I’m Aloud while somehow pushing it so much further. When he first put out the title track, I was impressed but concerned that the EP may not show much growth. It’s an absolute banger but it felt like it could’ve been created alongside his previous EP. When ‘Dirt Heater Tea’ dropped he proved his progression as an artist. From it featuring his vocals more prominently than ever before, to it embodying a near perfect blend of trap, rap, and dubstep. The project’s first two cuts are no joke, but they’re only the beginning. ‘Heavy Meddle’ sees Herobust getting “on his rockstar shit” with electric guitars clashing against abusive sound design for an absolute destroyer of a record. ‘Move Mint’ is an auditory earthquake that’ll leave still in your tracks as your brain tries to comprehend the insanity it’s experiencing.
What may be the project’s greatest standout is ‘Status Busted’. Leveraging a myriad of computer samples, Herobust takes you inside a digital world. It feels like the first experiment of connecting a computer directly into the human brain. After some intense back and forth, calibration and exchange of data an error is encountered. The “status busted” indicates this issue in the connection that drives the test subject’s mind into a downward spiral that is enthralling, terrifying and down right mind-blowing. As if to give your brain a break from all the insanity you’ve been introduced to, the closing track ‘Just Dawn Hue’ mellows things out. It’s an emotional love-inspired future bass medley with just enough punch. All this adds up to a release that proves Herobust truly is at the forefront of bass music.
TL;DR: Herobust’s latest will blow your brain in the best way possible and proves that he continues to expand his talent and creative output with each release. Listen to this right now and grab it via Mad Decent.
