''Vantablack'' is a collaborative

extended play An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

by French electronic band

Dirtyphonics Dirtyphonics is a French electronic music band from Paris, consisting of members Charly Barranger and Julien "PitchIn" Corrales. Known for blending Drum and bass, Dubstep, and other bass music genres with heavy metal and cinematic influences, t ...

and

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

–based electronic rock producer

Sullivan King Keaton Prescott, known artistically as Sullivan King (born July 15, 1994), is an American DJ of dubstep music and heavy metal musician. He has drawn attention from the music press for his unusual blending of EDM and electric guitar-centered hea ...

. ''Vantablack'' was released on 3 November 2017, by the independent

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductors * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic c ...

music label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and t ...

Monstercat Monstercat (formerly known as Monstercat Media) is a Canadian electronic music record label based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Founded in 2011 by Mike Darlington and Ari Paunonen, the label released regular compilation albums featuring music ...

. The EP features six songs, all of which were produced by both producers.

Background and composition

On 9 October, Dirtyphonics and King released the single "Vantablack" on Monstercat. Landon Fleury of Your EDM praised the song "Vantablack", stating "Sullivan King's genuinely raw, intense vocals definitely give 'Vantablack' an entire new dimension of depth. Simply said, metalheads aren't gonna be disappointed with this one", describing the song as "the hardest release on Monstercat EVER". On 18 October, when questioned in an interview with Mix 247 EDM about who were his top five collaborations, King stated "I'll just say that recently I've really loved working with Dirtyphonics". In a later question, King revealed that the single "Vantablack" was part of an extended play. Dirtyphonics later officially revealed in a tweet that "Vantablack" would be part of an extended play and would be released in early November. In an interview with Elizabeth Ninivaggi of

Dancing Astronaut Dancing Astronaut is an American media platform founded in 2009 that primarily covers the electronic dance music industry. The website covers concerts and festivals, reports on entertainment news, reviews music, and publishes original content syn ...

, Dirtyphonics commented on the production process of the extended play, stating "We thought and wrote this EP like a metal piece and freed ourselves from what you can or can't do". King further commented on the production process, stating:

We went into the project treating it as an album. We wrote more songs than what made it on the record. We treated ourselves like a band. We decided to do something different from what we would probably do for just a solo project record. We had to mentally prepare ourselves to get it to sound like this. Lots of experimenting, a lot of doing what we weren't used to, and letting everyone have their say. The writing process of a record isn't just as much about all the little details of how you want each track to be, but about how it ALL sounds together from start to finish. The listener being able to experience the emotion behind a project that took 11 months to work on.

Reception and release

On 3 November, the extended play was released alongside a second single titled "Sight of Your Soul". ''

Alternative Press Alternative press may refer to: Individual publications * ''Alternative Press'' (magazine), an American music magazine Alternative journalism * Alternative media ** Alternative media (U.S. political left) ** Alternative media (U.S. political r ...

'' described the single as "the best of rock and electronic in an addictive package that you'll be blasting all day". Iuliana Prichea of EDM Nations gave the extended play a positive review, stating "Balancing their hardcore Metal roots and their renowned places in the dubstep and bass music communities, ''Vantablack'' is the perfect EP for any metalheads and bassheads alike". Landon Fleury of Your EDM praised the extended play, saying it was "a diverse collection of songs that showcases Dirtyphonics & Sullivan King's talents across the board, containing everything from dubstep neck-breakers to more soft and heartfelt pieces".

Track listing

References

{{Authority control 2017 EPs Dirtyphonics albums Dubstep EPs Electronic albums by American artists Monstercat EPs