Stepping Stones: STEP ONE

Stepping Stones: STEP ONE is part one of the larger 'Stepping Stones' project, which is the fifteenth studio album by Dubs 'N' Chubs. The name of the project was said to originate from the Giant's Causeway, because Dubs 'N' Chubs have become so big that they are literally giants, and use the Causeway as stepping stones. It also is a deeper metaphor for how far the duo have come since the inception of their first project, Duality Of Mens. 'Step One' is really clever because it's the first part and also it's step one like in an instructional recipe or something like that. Isn't that clever?!

As always, REMY and Sally Da G return for the production, achieving some of the most sonically captivating and complex musical compositions ever to be put into Mixcraft Pro St- I mean Ablet - I mean big expensive studio software. This album marks another turning point or 'story arc' for Dubs and Chubs as they are approaching multiverse-level musical talent, and are currently outgrowing their timeline in terms of talent.

## Stepping Stones: STEP ONE

Album cover art, taken from footage recorded by Francis Ford Coppola.

## Tracks

Racks - 2:02

Money On My Mind - 2:56

Rock All Night - 2:19

Fine Like A Diamond - 2:57

Interlude - 2:50

Drive-Through - 3:47

Playlist - 3:09

Feel Again - 3:15

Smiling - 3:56

## Production

Stepping Stones: STEP ONE is part one of a larger project, and as such Dubs 'N' Chubs have devoted to most amount of time they can in order to ensure the quality of the music. Production began swiftly after the release of Banksy Is My Dad. One of the earliest completed songs was '*Rock All Night*', which is Dubs 'N' Chubs first serious move into the hyperpop genre. They had previously released '*One Gecko*' a song intended to be a direct diss track to popular hyperpop duo '*100 gecs*', who Dubs claims had stolen their hit song '*money machine'* from The Stu in an elaborate raid like in that movie Mission Impossible. In this album, both '*Rock All Night'* and '*Racks'* both utilise the bubbly, glitchy and video-game sounding production to create lively, energetic tracks.

The album progressively slows, reaching '*Fine Like A Diamond'*, a song involving a sweet brass solo in the background, as well as a bittersweet chorus which depicts someone heavily intoxicated on wine, but is still content with their current circumstance. For those eagle-eared fans, the voice of Mr. Sad can be heard in this chorus.

'*Interlude'* marks the mid-point of the album, however is only stated to be a part one to a wider song, much like the album itself. The song features a live loop by REMY and Sally Da G on a blues-style synth, as Dubs and Chubs brainstorm ideas on how to tackle the song. This is the first real look into their process of making music, and scientists immediately began decoding and researching this process in order to replicate it - however no progress has been made. We also hear Chubs' silk voice powers in full force, as his voice sounds autotuned, even when they are recording live. The second part has been confirmed to be on Stepping Stones: The Final Step.

The latter half of the album contains three melancholic and sad songs, each tackling different issues surrounding heartbreak, depression and depersonalisation. '*Playlist'* offers some reprieve from this, giving a lighthearted song about trying to appeal to a romantic interest through the medium of music, something which the duo are well-known for doing. The chorus of '*Smiling'* features harmonising vocals from frequent collaborator Loudface, leading to a hard-hitting final chorus which, despite the sadder tone of the song, lifts one's spirits and provides an angelic crescendo to the album.

## Reception

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