Here’s the playlist for battle #42
we’ve got 14 entries and a great selection of beats.
thanks to everyone that submitted a beat, hope you all enjoy the playlist!!
the usual voting system applies, vote for your top 3
1st: 3 points
2nd: 2 points
3rd: 1 point
Let’s get the votes in by the start of the new year so final day for voting will be Friday 2nd January 2026.
The winner can choose the rules for the first battle in 2026
First listen and first selection made. There are some really good beats 
Dope tracks guys! Had my first playthrough and so far there’s 4 tracks in the running to be my favorite.
I keep on being impressed by the skill, creativity and difference in styles among the people joining these battles.
Will write some comments on each track (and vote) after a couple more listens.
Damn y’all! These are great! I’ve listened a couple times through while driving around for work.
It will be an honor losing to this amazing group of battlers. Such a great playlist.
Thanks also for your hard work, Yabba!
Yeah awesome job with the graphics @Yabba!
Cool to hear a lot of tracks using the same samples
man this is a really tough one to vote on. lots of smooth hitters in here.
Track 1 - love the different sections in here, theres like three great beats mingling together so nicely. great vibes all around, the delay used in the middle is wavy
Track 2 - the bass line is moody, this whole track has attitude. the piano popping in is tight too, the kinda beat that deserves some laid back but hard bars.
Track 3 - the guitar samples in this are sick, feels like i should be in a hip cafe with a live band playing this beat. wanna sip some warm tea on a cold night to this one
Track 4 - this beat sounds like it was made by a windy winter night, nice lowkey spooky vibes with the bass line.
Track 5 - real island beat, the guitar parts remind me of some Ichika Nito guitar riffs. love the percussion groove in here too. total chiller
Track 6 - really digging the vocals in here, i like the hard cuts on the samples too, got a cool orchestral type fill in there. always love a dialogue sample to round it out, nice stuff
Track 7 - i like the crunchy drums in here, they really pop. the guitar adds a bunch of great atmosphere to the track, im nodding along and feeling like i should start studying to this
Track 8 - the drum machine type drums are tickling my ear drums, kinda sounds like the vocals are vocoded? i like the industrial type stabs that are tossed around too
Track 9 - another track thats got me wanting to sip a hot beverage in a dark establishment late on a winters night, this would sound sick with some jazzy female vocalist belting it all out. the sax is smoooooth
Track 10 - i like the undulating flow of this beat, gives it a trippy drunk feeling. like applying a phaser to my brain. digging the dialogue sample too
Track 11 - im a sucker for this kinda snare, the organic sound gets me every time. another beat that deserves some smokey bars. samples make a nice bed for the drums to roll around on
Track 12 - sheesh, way outta left field with this one. digging the tape effects and that wacky sample flow. got some nice different sections in here playing off each other
Track 13 - digging the organic sounding drums and that walking bass line, has a more sinister snowy vibe to it, like im snowed in in Chicago with pressing matters to attend to
Track 14 - slow and driving, this is the track that plays when i have to start trudging through that Chicago snow. determined, on a mission. those hats are feathery. i like the ethereal outro too
1st place: Track 9
2nd place: Track 2
3rd place: Track 7
awesome work yall, this was a really fun one
Too much talent in this playlist. Impossible to narrow it down to 3 choices.
Just had my second listen through and have 5 nominees for the top 3, will decide after a third and final listen.
That said, the overall quality of these beats is inspiring. Love it.
After a third listen, this is my top 3 with some short notes. Hope to be able to give more detailed feedbacks on all tracks later on.
Track 11: delicious snare, somehow creates a cypress hill vibe with some jazz mixed in.
Track 5: spring vibes, love the drums and the overall harmony.
Track 9: great drums, awesome sample selection. Cold but sunny winterday
3rd: Track 2
Madlib style. Very haunting, I really love how the vocals are placed.
2nd: Track 9
Perhaps the most musically polished. Everything is perfectly in place, and there’s a real atmosphere to this track.
1st: Track 4
The beat is that gritty Boom Bap I love. When that jazz cymbal loop kicked in, it was game over. I love it.
Well done everyone, the level is really good!!!
Extra points to Track 6 for the Crow dialogue.
This was hard. I had an initial shortlist of four tracks, and honestly it kept shifting the more I listened. In the end, one other entry completely snuck up on me and stole one of the top three spots. I’m locking this in now before I overthink it any further and have to deal with this all over again.
3 pts #5 → Absolute top-tier rhythm. Super experimental. The contrast between the acoustic instruments and the abstract, sci-fi drums is crazy good and really hits it for me.
2 pts #8 → So sick. Electro-funk meets Vivaldi, with a strong hook and psychedelic rock energy. It somehow reminded me of that A+ track in how flawlessly the classical samples are executed and integrated.
1 pt #2 → Deceptively monotone — like a ninja assassin in disguise. It plays it cool on the surface, but there’s a ton of nuance riding on top. The bass stays locked while all this subtle, detailed movement unfolds above it. Thick sound.
Big up to everyone for really feeling this round - people put their creative hearts into this - so many different interpretations. Here are my choices:
Third choice: Track #2- the composition and layering masterful. Big fat distorted bass foot long sub with piano and vocals inviting a verse just waiting around the corner. Love the anticipation in here. The sounds have a bit of ghosted feel though, which for me lost a bit of the fidelity of the overall sound - otherwise first place contender.
Second choice: Track #7 - Two seasonal songs in one, feels like the beatmaker is playing those instruments live, maestro. Those scratches and switching up basslines brought this up to my second place choice.
First choice: Track #3 - Basslines are just next level - perfectly put together to keep the track fresh and live. Piano, organs and method man. this could be driving through the canyons with a rare flash thunderstorm - while the sun is still shining at the same time. Beauty - thanks. With that little piano riff at the end, I was ready for the track to goto a bridge.
Honourable mention - Track 11. I love how the bass and drums sit in the pocket here - feels like a rainy day track. The way the drums are so perfect, I would have loved some variation on the snares just to keep it changing up a bit.
Big year ahead of us - lets keep making music. See you in 2026!
01 - Respect for the full year tour, from the icy strings and hats to the dank and dubby spring rain (my favorite), the psychedelic shuffling summer to the stately autumnal piano and drunk drums. Love the way the drums kit eq/emphasis also switches up to match each season. Wish this had smoother transitions between the seasons
02 - Hazy and hypnotic summer beat. Clap is crisp, bass is warm and loose, and the ping pong of horns, piano, and vox and lovely
03 - surfacescan is right, what a monster bassline. Keys are funky without getting too in your face, and I really liked the phaser (flanger?) on the drums. Had me bobbing
04 - Crunchy winter with great sfx throughout. Snare is knocked down to an 8-bit punch. The bass glides and bounces through the track, first warm, then a hollow ghost. And you complete the icy vision with wind howls and metallic clanks like icelocked naval ships
05 - Real sweet and sour mix here, icy chirps and glass harmonica paired with warm guitar licks and drum fills. Another nodder. I wish the bass could be reworked, as it feels like it’s fighting the drums
06 - Immediately knocked me over. Love the hard stops, the whistle/guitar-chuck combo, and the grand technicolor feel of the strings. Vocal transition is a bit awkward, but it lands somewhere nice. Kick ass
07 - Very madlib move to drop fire in the first quarter of the beat and then flip to something entirely different. Before the switch: Drums have such swagger, and the crushed bass does so much for the “Fog” recontextualization. After the switch: Drums have that great intimate rattle, and the distant pizz strings and ruminating 5-note guitar run feel like wandering aimlessly through the snow
08 - Everything wants your attention, from the piano dives and chopped strings to the autotuned vocals and guitar horn trills, but the kick and clave give us something something to hold on and groove to. Nutty and fun af
09 - Nearly the opposite of 8, laid back and classic. Kick is perfect, as is the pre-snare guitar chuck, and I wanna bathe in that bassline. Horns and vocals are beautifully shaped for a smooth and melancholy mood. I only wish the snare were a little less harsh
10 - Lots to love about this beat: the bass slide hook, the heavy glass harmonica resculpting, the spooky filter-warped organ and baritone reader, and the trap ratchets in the background. Unfortunately, a lot of these sounds are drowned out, either through LPF or getting overwhelmed by the second bass. (I think I know who this is from the spoken word sample :p)
11 - Drums are classy and thin where they need to be, with tight snare, hats, and bells. The piano, guitar, and vocals of the four-bar loop are all locked in and lovely. Without an MC, the main hook loop did start to wear on me, and I wished for a bit more variation
12 - In a very boom-bap-heavy group, here’s a brash, blown-out, unapologetic case for trap. Almost Night-on-Bald-Mountain strings meet sci-fi trills and shuffle switch ups. The clave in the first half is great. The turn in the last 30 seconds doesn’t work for me, but until then, what a ride. (Another instantly recognizable style)
13 - The rims and layered claps are fantastic, as is the low bass riff at the outro. It thumps. I do wish there was more variation, as those repeated chord hits wore on me
14 - A plugg bolero. The gradual layering is fantastic and keeps the tension high for the whole song. The snare is snappy and subtly unpredictable. A coiled snake about to strike.
1st (3 pts): 7
2nd (2 pts): 6
3rd (1 pt): 8
HM: 9, 12
Great work everyone. The longer I’ve left it the harder it is to choose as listening again now after the Christmas break my favourites are changing. Happy New Year crew!
1st: #12 - The storm has hit. Hype screw your face up music. Enjoyed this a lot.
2nd: #9 - Like a lost Petestrumental. Love the bass on this one.
3rd: #4 - Another dope bass line. It’s giving me Danny Breaks/Harmonic 33 vibes.
HMs
#1 - if this was mixed/mastered it could have clinched it for me as each mini-track is great and I dig the flow.
#7 - Great drums and arrangement.
#11 - Great vibe and sound choices. All fits really well together.
I’m blown away by the quality of y’all’s work here. And honored to be able to participate.
1st: #12 - It’s like it’s blown out and about to fall apart, overloaded with chaos, but keeps it together and takes you for a wild ride.
2nd: #5 - Those lazer hats hook ya and then dirty beat throws you around. That bass line draws you in and the reversed sounding melody just haunts ya.
3rd: #8 - It’s like if Orthrelm made some bouncy beat in the best way.
HM - 3 and 7
Again y’all are brilliant and thank you for letting me try my first beat battle ever.
Bums, I realised today was the last day for voting.
If there is still time I’ll vote tomorrow morning as it’s pretty late here now.
Hope that’s OK!
Great battle guys! Really different styles which made it difficult to judge. My top 3 is more a matter of taste than anything because all of you showed great and very different production skills and styles.
Top 3:
3 points - track 9
2 points - track 4
1 point - track 11
Hm: track 1, track 2
My notes on all tracks:
-Track 1 : very nice! Four seasons? first part was my favorite: dope drums, dope buildup, dope stab. Great switchup between second and third part. Fourth part nice, very wu-tangish. Would work well for ghostface.
-track 2: great, cinematic sound. I like the subtle things going on in the background and I love the choir coming in. A bit too distorted on some sounds for me, otherwise completely up my alley production wise. My top 3 changed a lot and this one just missed out in the end.
-track 3: dope chopping. Very original sounding, very creative. The beat has just the right amount of things being added/changing to stay interesting throughout.
-track 4: Love the drums here, hard hitting but very subtle/finessed at the same time which I respect a lot. Reminds me of madlib beat kondukta stuff (some of my favorite instrumental hiphop) because of the atmospheric sounds.
-track 5: nice distorted sound on the guitar. Cool bassline, cool use of reversed and chopped sounds.
-track 6: nice buildup from the intro. The chopping reminds me of dj premier in the sense that the silent pieces create tension here. I like that it keeps changing but the cadance of the track keeps up.
-track 7: I like the sound of the drums on both pieces. The layering of different melodies in the guitar part is cool.
-track 8: wow talk about an energetic intro. I know the ferrante & teicher song very well, would never have thought of using it this way. I like the westcoast vibes here.
-track 9: this something I would listen to while riding around the countryside on my bicycle. Very nice bounce on the drums. Both the drums, vocal bits and bass groove give me Dilla vibes. Very nice beat.
-track 10: Cool abstract sounds and bounce here. Somehow reminds me of a psychedelic beatles track in some way.
-track 11: instant snap on the snare. Nice use of layering different stabs on the main groove. This sounds like something I would like to have made myself. Great beat.
-track 12: wow very loud and distorted! Reminds me of a beat Run the Jewelz would kill any time. Great use of pitch effects and stutters without killing the bounce of the track.
-track 13: another one on which the drums immediately grabbed me, both the sound and the groove. Nice menacing sounding stabs. Another layer on top of the main loop wouldve pushed this into the top3 for sure.
-track 14: Dope haunting guitar loop! The horns layered on top are soo nice and subtle. I think this track would really take off if the drums were double timed and more boombappy, but thats a matter of taste. Great produced beat.