The third issue of the Downloads and Reloads magazine couldn’t have come at a more tumultuous time for drum & bass. With the pandemic shuttering clubs and the George Floyd protests ushering in a new push for racial justice, they wanted it to reflect our current moment’s defining characteristic: flux.
Because of its all-encompassing nature, the pandemic is surprisingly difficult to evaluate; its complexity creates problems of perspective. Their cover story looks at that complexity across the whole scene, through conversations with big names like Ant TC1 and John B, down to lesser known figures like Bristol’s Hollie-May and The Goat Shed’s Adam Slevin, and they explore the impact on mental health, venues, personal creativity, live streaming and more.
Race is the other focus and it’s one which is long overdue. Starting with a feature interview with Chris Inperspective, they hear from Black voices in our scene about their personal experiences, and where labels like Hospital have gone wrong in ensuring adequate representation from all races and genders. Given this focus, they felt it was only right that £1 from every sale go to the Stephen Lawrence Foundation.
In addition, there are music reviews and columns from the likes of El Hornet, Mitekiss, Ellie Jones and Ben Cyan.
