PW.016: Tunic - Forbidden Sun EP Review

Sound Boy Ent.
Oct 13, 2020
2 min read

Our neighbors have a new favorite EP, whether they like it or not. The 16th release from Push Waves dropped on Saturday and, even with everything we’ve come to expect from the Salt Lake City-based label, this one goes above and beyond what we hoped. Big ups to those of you who tuned in to our launch stream, and for those of you who didn’t: SBE champion Tunic is at the faders on this one, and you’re in for a treat.

All good things take time, care, and dedication. This release is no exception, but now that it’s finally here we want to acknowledge how inevitable it feels. Anyone who has heard Tunic’s music or seen him perform knows he’s a talented selector with the kind of distinct style that only comes from tireless hard work. Meanwhile, Push Waves has carved out a forward-thinking, stripped-back aesthetic (thanks to the vision of label boss, Prophet) by finding and promoting rising stars in the 140 community. The label’s website challenges you to “find your passion—that’s your frequency.” Well, Tunic and Push Waves are on the same wavelength and it’s clear all the way through the EP. Each song was purposefully-written for the label, but they’re also a continuation of the sound Tunic’s been honing in on since he first heard dubstep back in 2010.

Like many of us at that time, a more aggressive sound caught his ear at first. He picked up DJing and in 2013, downloaded Ableton and started learning sound-design. In 2014, an event in Denver (shoutout Cervantes) turned him on to a more minimal style of dubstep and he’s been devoted to that sound ever since. “Less is more,” says Tunic. “It’s about vibe and space. It doesn’t have to be in-your-face, but you have to feel it.” He has pursued that style, working hard in the bass scene for years, from tireless musical experimentation inside and outside his DAW, to acquiring his own soundsystem, to mashing up dances in Tristate warehouses. And he shows no sign of letting up any time soon.

The EP opens with an airy melody that sounds like a distant warning. Blazin’ Up comes in guns blazing, with swooping sub lines and a clear intention: put systems through their paces. Vester Dub follows it up with dubbed-out vibes and a classy trumpet melody drifting through the murk. A clean reverb gives the track the atmosphere of a smokey cave. Sparse percussive elements talk to each other around the grimy bass pulse at its center. Run It serves up cold, tooth-chattering, bone-rattling bass weaponry. Throughout the EP, Tunic uses a hardware dub siren that might be familiar to those of you’ve heard him live. The last song, Forbidden Sun, starts with dark, mountaintop ambiances, and leads into mean sub pressure and that Tunic swagger we look for. It closes out the EP with the feeling that there’s more on the way. Keep it locked, Tunic’s just getting started!