It's been 18 years since his debut and DJ Trax doesn't seem to be put off by the new millenium angst that's creeping into every genre. More to the point, he delivers a hefty piece of MUSIC. Is it drumandbass? Is it an extremely cinematic and emotional sample of an Eastern European expressionist movie sountrack? Frantically Calm is creeping in at halftempo and then gets 'frantic' in an avalanche of breaks and an ear-mollesting bassline intertwined with acoustic guitar licks that make you wish you knew how to play a damn instrument! The flip has the man behind Misspent, ICR, picking up the main elements of the original and coming up with his own interpretation of Frantically Calm: live breaks, muffled melancholic piano chords and the ubiquitous guitar licks run through the remix sounding like there's a whole band jamming on stage rather than one man and his computer.
words by TRG (myspace.com/trgproductions)

Switching the remixer and the original artist of Misspent 002, now faalb is back with his own composition and label owner ICR has the pleasure to re-consider it this time. Atrbas taking us on a magical journey thru the wonderland of queer, majestic pads, surrounded by rhodes and pianos composed if it was a classical piece of music - all in 3/4 time signature break. No doubt, the fans of Plaid will satisfied! Electronica is on A side, drum & bass takes over B but with a real twist! Expanded the content to almost nine minutes long, but staying in the non-usual 3/4 frame, the remix is a strange, yet successful experiment fusing the complex drumfunk breaks with electronica manners. Beautiful and epic remix, one of ICR's favourite as of yet. No copy, just original, fresh ideas - this is what Misspent is about.

Recruiting the Misspent Music roster on this new release, this time ICR collaborates with fresh talents as a sampler for his soon to be followed collection of 'Versus' free album. Both tracks take us back to the uplifting vibe of love songs. Widestream is an up-and-coming DJ/producer/label owner from the growing scene of Kiev, Ukraine. His bright pads and synths of She Should Be Mine fit well to ICR's more moody character and techy, yet rolling beats. Fellow hungarian techmospheric rookie Filk debuts on the other side with more restless sounds. Soul Is Restless is a deeper track with a story - told with lush pads, calm keys and strings but with tense bass and beats, with a switch at the turning point used by ICR as one of his trademarks. New artists with a promising start – who else would know it better than DJ Flight who featured both on her shows already.

New talents once again on Misspent Music. The concept of the next two releases is to showcase ICR's new proteges from Eastern Europe, with vocal tracks debuting first on his label.
Black Akres is the project of classically trained musician Daniel Mastrofski originating from Prague. ICR came upon their sensual, folk/electronic music on myspace and felt he needed to remix their ballad Such Fiction, featuring singer/songwriter Suchi Rudra Vasquez. One remix more for the dnb dance floor, and one for the home listeners. DJ Lynx (Soul:R) on the "electronic" mix in ATM mag:
"This track sums ICR's style up nicely. Most notably the beat is in 6/8 which is going to leave any DJ that plays it dumbfounded why the beats never loop properly! Nevertheless this is a really great listening track with its delicate pianos, choppy beats and a beautiful Royksopp style female vocal."

The 7th Misspent comes from Latvian newcomer DJ/producer Salmz, whose production is notable not only for his dnb, but also for the several other styles he produces in, not to mention the touch of eastern flavour that first caught ICR's ears. Oriental Theme is a perfect, laid-back, liquid dnb, offering a healing power for your ears and your soul. To complete the fluid, deep pads and guitar flicks, Anete Pukane's gentle vocal just gives you relief. Ventas Rumba is a more chopped up and complex remix--just what you'd expect from ICR. But remember: there's always a twist.

New Hungarian musician Balazs Hagymasi AKA Hagyma (meaning 'onion') debuts with a special live jazz/drum & bass crossover track that expands upon the label's musical repertoire: 'Thunder At Night.' Special music needs special releases, so this time, presented on a 4-track single, we can enjoy this cinematic, moody, key-lead ballad in different interpretations.
UK's funky drummer/studio master Macc returns to the production fold for remix duties and lends his trademark beats on a smoothly tight drumfunk edit. Label boss ICR's deep, yet funk-fuelled mix comes with a 'storytelling' formula he's production is noticeable for. To round out the release, Faalb presents his version's take on the original idea by expanding the elements to form a slower-paced, more gentle electronic remix that we could call 'IDM.'

Alongside label artists DJ Trax and Macc, Misspent Music welcomes another Paradox Music/Outsider artist: Aperture from the United States. The ex-Autumn member released numerous tracks for Holland's Fokuz label before focusing on his solo efforts and refining his sound that caught the ears of Paradox, Outrage, and Flight among others. Most recently, Aperture helped to launch Whisper Audio with Outrage and Kirsty Hawkshaw as an outlet for vocal drum and bass.
'Bija' offers no vocals, but what we find is an epic roller with beautiful stabs and strings reminiscent of the golden age of Drum & Bass! Playful piano and guitar bring more character to this deep yet very strong, Metalheadz-sounding track. The excellent ICR remix on the flip takes things into a drumfunk direction. This is truly cinematic, musical Drum & Bass - Misspent style.

For Drum & Bass enthusiasts, it's always reassuring to know that from time to time, fresh talent appears to invigorate music with a unique and inspiring new sound. These days, this new sound not only comes from London, UK (the birthplace of Drum & Bass) but from all corners of the globe - and in our case: Saint Petersburg, Russia. Russian duo Bop & Dephecta have only released a few tunes to date, yet have already garnered praise and support from A-list DJs Flight, Nu:Tone, and London Elektricity (to name but a few). The milestone tenth release for ICR's Hungarian-based Misspent Music label features the pair's joint offering "Autumn Melancholy." Keeping with the label's tradition of releasing cinematic music for both body and mind, this very special track is an endless journey through long, open stretches of snow-covered land, with melancholic keys and strings strewn about. The story continues on the virtual flip of this digital release with ICR's remix of the duo's "The Space Between Us" (the original version was released on Syncopathic Recordings). The cool but not cold mood of the original remains alongside drums similar to Bop & Dephecta's minimally crisp and solid patterns. Perfectly complementing the A-side of this landmark Misspent release, ICR manages to throw unique twists and imaginative turns into his remix offering. Influenced by a myriad of flavors from ambient, electronica, minimal to techno (these days, more often referred to as "microfunk"), both tracks in this release expertly balance on the edge of new subgenres. Misspent Music continues to push forward as a progressive label discovering new alternatives in Drum & Bass and beyond. Enjoy! ~ words by Mentalien/Stunna