Detroit's drum 'n bass duo Ryan Lolas and Greg Axelrad had their first two releases on Cymbalism Liquified and Vibez Recordings under the alias Submorphics.

They have been slowly and soulfully building up their profile over the last year representing the musical side of dnb. Since then, they have received widespread support from the global scene.

“We started producing together in 2002. Prior to this, we had participated in various other projects as solo artists throughout our teen years to include house, downtempo, hip-hop, experimental and indie rock,” Greg says on the beginnings of the group.

“A musically diverse past has led us to making melodic and musical drum ’n bass, incorporating a lot of old samples from soul, funk, rare groove, film soundtracks, rhythm and blues and disco. We approach each track from a songwriter’s perspective, which can be credited to our past in live music.”

Submorphics’ debut “Stereo 72,” was released on Cymbalism Liquified, backed by Duo Infernale’s “Hold U” this past February. As if that wasn’t soon enough, their recent release “Make It Happen” dropped on Vibez Recordings with Young Ax’s “In the Groove” on the flipside.

Greg adds more: “We’ve got more releases coming in autumn on UK labels Horizons Music, Spearhead Records and Intrinsic Recordings, as well as another release on Vibez Recordings later in the year.”

And with this sound coming out of America, we’ll most likely be seeing more trans-Atlantic collaborations between UK/European and American artists.

“The UK continues to run things in drum ‘n bass, and I don’t see that changing, but with more talent coming out of North America and around the globe, it only makes for a more diverse scene. Different styles and influences are brought to the table, which is a good thing,” Greg reiterates.

“The American sound is really starting to come through right now. There’s a lot of darker, harder drum ’n bass being represented from these shores, but there’s a new breed of producers (Chino, Random Movement, Stunna, Bachelors of Science, etc.) that have been influenced by the soulful side of drum ’n bass. We’re finally beginning to get noticed, as we are coming up with some fresh tunes and are becoming quite mature in our music making.”

“U.S. producers are also bringing out a lot of influences that the U.K. guys might not have – American indie rock, old hardcore, hip-hop, etc.,” Ryan adds.

Submorphics look to be a bright part of the future of drum ’n bass, but the group believes that for drum ’n bass to become ultimately successful, it needs to gain more public exposure.
“I’d like to see drum ’n bass supported more by people outside of the scene, not just DJs,” Ryan states.

“And for drum ‘n bass [to] become less of a niche scene and become more widely accepted,” Greg echoes. “This doesn’t mean that I want to see a bunch of cheesy, poppy drum ’n bass blowing up in the charts. I would like to see it branch out more and gather more of an audience because it has the potential to become a lot bigger than it is.”

Keep an eye out for the duo’s forthcoming releases in September, “As the World Turns”/” “What She Wants” on Horizons Music, “Miles Ahead”/Bcee and Lomax — “Dust Til Dawn” (Danny Byrd Remix) on Spearhead Records and Chino and Submorphics “Infused”/Redeyes — “The Main Chance” on Intrinsic Recordings.