Ganja White Night's Album 'Unity' Merges Infectious Music With Captivating Storytelling

Ganja White Night is revolutionizing what it means for an artist to tell a story through their discography. Last week, the Belgian bass duo released their 10th album, appropriately titled Unity. 

The project includes an incredible intro video that gives viewers a glimpse into Ganja White Night’s fictional universe – “Wobble World” – and its ongoing saga between two wobbly foes.

Not to be overshadowed by the intro video, the musical portion of Unity contains enthralling collaborations with vaunted producers like Subtronics, LSDREAM, Peekaboo, Infected Mushroom, and Boogie T, in addition to several awesome solo tracks from GWN. 

Check out iEDM’s review of Ganja White Night’s album Unity below.

Mr. Wobble vs. Dark Wobble: Dubstep’s Yin and Yang

Unity’s 13-minute intro video, “Ganja White Night’s Wobble World,” sheds light upon the backstory of two supernatural adversaries who are entrenched in a never-ending battle of good and evil. These opposing forces are represented by none other than GWN’s cult-famous mascots: Mr. Wobble and Dark Wobble. 

Allusions to Mr. and Dark Wobble’s eternal conflict can first be traced back to the cover art for Ganja White Night’s 2015 album Hybrid Distillery, which depicts Mr. Wobble as a pink fetus developing inside of a tree, and Dark Wobble as a faceless green spirit brewing deep in the jungle. 

Subsequent albums Mr. Wobble (2016) and The Origins (2018) also feature imagery from “Wobble World,” continuing to tell the story of Mr. Wobble – but making no mention of Dark Wobble. Until this point, you would have been forgiven for thinking that Mr. Wobble was simply a fun mascot and not the conduit through which all things good and pure are brought to the world… but everything is not what it seems.

Dark Wobble’s existence only became evident to the human world when the aforementioned green jungle spirit was harnessed by a nefarious scientist named “Dirty Girl” – not so coincidentally the name of song on GWN’s 2019 album The One. The “Dirty Girl” music video showcases the process of this mad scientist inserting Dark Wobble’s spirit into a robotic suit, which is then visualized as an evil green version of Mr. Wobble. 

After GWN’s 2021 album Dark Wobble demonstrated the pervasive terrors of leaving Dark Wobble’s wicked wubs completely unchecked, the new animated  prologue concluded “it is now clear… that the only hope to restore the [universe’s] balance… is unity.”

This album is a celebration of all of Ganja White Night & co’s bass wobbles and musical inspirations – from uplifting to dark and everything in between.

Sonic Collisions Distort Reality

Unity starts off strong with “Infinity,” a collaboration between GWN and genre-fusing female sensation CloZee. The song begins with an epic melodic buildup that drops into a powerful combination of CloZee’s unique twinkly sound design and GWN’s classic wobbly bass. Positive vibes make this song an ideal opening number for the album.

Next up is “Redemption,” created with fellow Belgian producer R.O. An ominous narrator states, “We’ve become very disconnected from the natural world. Many of us… what we’re guilty of is an egocentric worldview.” The vibes are bleak – but as the music begins to rise in energy and mood, the narrator tells us, “that’s when we’re at our best… when we support each other, not when we cancel each other out for past mistakes.” Just as you are feeling like things are taking a turn for the better, a drop oozing with dark, nasty wobbles drags you right back into the abyss. As a listener, you get the sense that this entire album is going to play off of the dichotomy between good and evil noises. 

“Billdozer” with Mr. Bill is the third song on the album, and undoubtedly one of the highlights of the entire project. A harmonica riff sets the scene, evoking the feeling that one is witnessing the build-up to a duel in the wild west. The first drop features a vibrating dubstep bassline and unusual time signatures, which are a characteristic identifier of many Mr. Bill tracks. However, the climax of “Billdozer” is the second drop, which switches genres to a shuffle-inducing bass house tune without a moment’s notice.

Mind-bending dubstep aficionado LSDREAM teamed up with Ganja White Night for fourth track “Badman,” which was released as a single in June of 2022. Filled to the brim with mystifying interstellar sound design and bone-rattling wobbles, this anthem is an absolute heater; words simply cannot do it justice. Go give it a listen and you will quickly understand why.

Additionally, GWN worked in tandem with New Zealand duo Truth to produce “Dark Light”, which opens with an enchanting cacophony of high-pitched voices before a flute riff guides us toward the bass drop. This song delivers one of the most entertaining quotes on the album right before the drop: “What can two men do against a gang with a spaceship?” The answer – rattle the gang’s spaceship with a dark and all-consuming bassline.

Never afraid to switch things up, GWN's “Apocalypse Now” is a change of pace from the rest of the album. It features rapper PAV4N laying down British-style rap lyrics in the buildup to a moody, bass-heavy drop. The song summons feelings of attack from an intergalactic foe.

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An Unexpected Alliance Exerts Maximum Bass

Proceeding “Apocalypse Now”, the innovative duo teamed up with 2023 EDM Awards 'Dubstep Artist of the Year' Subtronics to forge “Womp Portal”. This heavy-hitting collab is one of the songs that received special treatment from GWN's animation team. Nothing short of awe-inspiring, the music video for this track sheds light on a pivotal chapter of the battle between Mr. Wobble and Dark Wobble.

The video kicks off with Dark Wobble's vile spirits occuyping a jagged island floating in the sky, complete with the protection of a green forcefield. Mr. Wobble – ever-conscious of malevolent spirits and the consequences of allowing them to fester – opens up his handy-dandy womp portal to call for backup. 

Out of the portal appears a formidable brigade: Subtronics and his famed “Cyclops Army”. An animated Subtronics, complete with his trademark messy hair bun, emerges with a clear objective in mind: destroying Dark Wobble’s island with the power of – you guessed it – dubstep. When the bass drops, Mr. Wobble joins Subtronics and a horde of cyclopes (yes, that is the plural of cyclops) in firing lightning at Dark Wobble’s stronghold.

Through diligent tactical organization and a strong joint effort, they are able to penetrate Dark Wobble’s forcefield and send his island hurtling into the depths of the ocean. The juices of victory are sweet. However, when Mr. Wobble and Subtronics say their goodbyes and the Cyclops Army disappears back into the womp portal, the video concludes with a vengeful-looking Dark Wobble rising from the carnage. Despite the fun song, one is left wondering what malicious scheme Dark Wobble is plotting next. 

The Bridge Between Auditory Realms 

Following “Womp Portal”, “Kill to Feel” with Israeli psytrance duo Infected Mushroom is equally intense. An endearing aspect of Ganja White Night’s style is that it plays well with other artists, allowing for unimaginably captivating sound design experiments like this track. “Kill to Feel” immediately boasts a rocktronic vibe that is reminiscent of much of Infected Mushroom’s past work.

You can feel the artists' styles weaving in and out of one another. A moody guitar and haunting female vocals, which are ubiquitous throughout the track, lead the listener unknowingly into each drop. However, while the first drop seems like a good mixture of Ganja vs. Infected Mushroom’s influence, the second drop is a true show-stopper: a psytrance beat that bumps so hard, even an EDM skeptic would have a difficult time sitting still to it. 

“Mitosis” with freeform bass producer Peekaboo is a similarly earthquaking track that cannot be ignored. Within seconds of the song beginning, you feel like you are listening to a Peekaboo song. As the song progresses, it only gets darker and deeper. Peekaboo’s hallmark rattling bass is on display for the first drop, while Ganja’s heavier and wubbier bassline takes control in drop number two. The visuals associated with this song include a whole lot of Mr. Wobble dancing, jumping, and flexing his considerate force while surrounded by a gang of Peekaboo-inspired floating skeletons. It is truly a sight to behold.

Balancing The Scales Of Wobble

Across Unity, “Wobble Whispers” is the track that feels most quintessentially “Ganja”. Dominated by an infectious string melody, the song is produced exclusively by GWN, allowing their characteristic bass wobbles to wield their raw, unfiltered power. This is another one that would have even the stiffest-necked soldier bobbing his or her head all night long.

If you are a fan of songs that feel like they could be on the soundtrack for an adventurous video game, then “Night Grinders” is definitely worth checking out. GWN’s wobbly bass comes out on the drop – as per usual – but this track encompasses a notably whimsical attitude, with synths and string instruments playfully making their presence known as well.

Continuing to impress with their commitment to breaking the boundaries of dance music sub-genres, GWN’s “Raskal” checks in as one of my favorite drum & bass bangers in recent memory. The buildup is overflowing with the same types of ominous noises that we have come to love from Ganja White Night, but the drop is a notable departure from their usual dubstep-style bass drops. Like indulging in a sweet slice of pickled ginger between bites of mouth-watering sushi, this gritty DnB tune is a great musical palette cleanser. 

“Clarity” with Boogie T is a funky and triumphant jam that combines the best of the two artists’ influences. Boogie T is a master at incorporating infectious vocals and guitar into his work, and the sound of live instruments weaves a beautiful story when paired with Ganja’s pulsating basslines. “Clarity” is another song that offers a mystifying music video to go along with the track. 

Unity’s next must-listen track, “Rollo”, rivals “Wobble Whispers” as the song on the album that is most representative of GWN’s sound. This one delivers some of the most daunting and wobbly basslines the project has to offer. All I will say is this: the stanky bassface that I produce every time I listen to this song is far from feignable. 

The final song on the album is “Hope”, is a joyous solo venture from Ganja White Night. Aptly named, “Hope” brings an optimistic vibe to the closure of the project. Deep, slow-moving wobbles await the listener on the drop. It’s difficult to explain, but this track does really have the ideal energy for the last song on an album. After trudging (happily) through some dark, harrowing sounds in the earlier segments of Unity, “Hope” leaves us with a smile on our faces – and a wistful longing for more Ganja White Night music as soon as possible.

Unifying The Wobble World And Beyond

Some electronic albums give the feeling that they were created out of commercial obligation. Others are true works of art – you can tell they were meticulously crafted. When I say meticulously crafted, I do not only mean that the production value is high; what makes Unity such an extraordinary album is that you can tell that GWN and their collaborators poured their hearts and souls into every track.

Almost every song is over four minutes long, with some even going beyond five. This is not a duo that is shaping songs from a template. They are trying to build an immersive musical and storytelling ecosystem, changing what it means to experience music along the way. Every song has layers upon layers of production, making it easy to listen to the compilation on repeat and without fatigue.

Based on analysis of Unity’s intro video and the subsequent music videos, it is clear that Ganja White Night & co. are visionary storytellers. They have harnessed the power of electronic music (and gifted animators) to weave a tale that has been developing for almost 8 years – and it has the dubstep community on the edge of their seats to find out what is next.

Photos courtesy of Ganja White Night.

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