Heard It Here First

When it comes to artists that are providing a refreshing approach to bass music, few are doing it better than Phil Gallo, better known to the underground bass music community as pheel. Originally from the east coast and now currently residing in Denver, CO, pheel. is a producer and DJ that combines influences of hip hop with modern bass music to create a soothing, sonic adventure everywhere he goes. Last week, pheel. surprised fans with the release of his debut album, echo chamber. This nine-track album features some of pheel.’s favorite tunes that he’s made over the years in all of his styles and is now available to stream on Spotify and SoundCloud.

A resident on the increasingly popular record label and music collective, all:Lo, pheel. has joined fellow label artists and best friends Thought Process, parkbreezy, and TF Marz on some spectacular lineups this year. At the recent Submersion Festival in New Jersey, fans were able to catch a set from Groovsauce, the side project that includes pheel., Parkbreezy and Thought Process. This trio of musical excellence also opened up Red Rocks this past May, supporting Opiuo’s jaw-dropping show.

There was an all:Lo takeover at both Secret Dreams in August and Infrasound in May, which featured both a solo set from pheel. and a Morning Coffee set (an additional side project with parkbreezy). As a matter of fact, it was Morning Coffee that captivated hundreds at Tipper n Friends’ “Homecoming” in 2022, when they were all of a sudden playing direct support for a surprise, day-time Tipper downtempo set. Those two hours at the mist-filled amphitheater were a major highlight of that weekend and they’ve been consistently crushing it since.

Outside of these performances, pheel. embarked on a tour earlier this year with Lone Drum (one of the members of K.L.O.), making several stops across the country. Looking ahead to the coming months and New Year, pheel. already has some insane shows lined up. For starters, he’ll be supporting CloZee’s ‘Microworlds’ NYE show at Mission Ballroom in Denver, joining HIHF favorites LYNY and Super Future on December 31st. He also landed his first festival booking for 2024 at Envision Festival in Costa Rica, joining notable names such as Of The Trees, LSDREAM, Daily Bread and Wreckno.

On the music release side of things, pheel. has put out a number of singles on compilations, a slew of flips, as well as self-released EPs across his SoundCloud and Bandcamp accounts. Over the last year and a half, however, pheel. has been putting out a number of mixes that showcase the beats he’s currently sitting on and what’s on the horizon for his project. You can listen to his most recent promo mix here, via The Rust.

Between these mixes, releases, and several musical projects, no one was prepared for the exciting surprise release that pheel. presented last week. He finally revealed his debut album to the masses, titled echo chamber. This nine-track album is not only his biggest release to date, but it is the perfect culmination of his sounds and styles that best represent the up-and-coming bass beat maker.

The album begins with “afterglow.”, a soothing intro that lays us down gently inside of pheel.’s echo chamber. The atmospheric pads combined with pheel.’s signature drum patterns and bass lines set us up for an epic journey through sound. Moving into the second track, “dust bin.”, we are met with an absolute head-bopper of a tune that paints this noir setting in the listener’s mind. The way that pheel. is able to mesh modern production techniques with hip-hop-style drum patterns is super catchy and is on great display in this track.

Jumping into the third track, “suss.”, pheel. takes us down to a new level within his echo chamber. Some of pheel.’s deeper sound design is featured here, supported by fantastic drums that carry us seamlessly into the fourth track, “blip hop.” Staying within the same key, you may find yourself ascending as gentle snaps and plucks are introduced, eventually leading into this beautiful ensemble of healing frequencies, bass, and angelic pads in the background. It’s really impressive how pheel. is able to balance all of his sounds, allowing each one to present itself freely while still meshing to the overall tune.

When we arrive at the fifth track, “i’ve had it all.”, pheel. switches up the mood and slows it down for us. This is a beautiful reflection piece that allows us to take a look back on life and the changes we’ve gone through to get to this moment in time. People come and go, emotions change, yet we still move forward. While I enjoyed every track on this album, this one definitely stood out to me.

Kicking off the latter half of echo chamber. is “dripp.”, an appropriately-titled track that is filled with brain-tingling bass grooves. Crank this one on your nearest sound system, trust me. The next track, “solivagant.”, is a four-minute adventure where pheel. subtly shows off his arsenal of production techniques. The song title is defined as “to wander alone”, which makes sense as this track allows pheel. to separate himself and present something that is uniquely him. The percussive elements that are filtered in and out, combined with a soothing onslaught of basses, create a stimulating sensation that truly massages the brain.

Nearing the end of echo chamber., pheel. gives us one more deep, soul-cleanser in “blue skull cap.” Throughout the album, pheel. does an amazing job at providing this sense of floating in mid-air, and he has done so once again in this track. The final track, “yutia.”, is a fitting conclusion to the sonic departure we’ve embarked on for nearly thirty four minutes. It brings us up from the depths of pheel.’s echo chamber to the next stretch of life’s journey.

This was an excellent voyage through one of bass music’s most creative minds and has us very excited for what’s on the horizon. What did you think of pheel.’s debut album, echo chamber.? Let us know in the comments below or on our social media!

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