“I wanted traverse to be a mysterious but beautiful abyss. To me, it feels like a journey through something cosmic and ethereal. Twisting, turning, and bouncing through this place that you can feel more than you can see. Less about one central hook and more about a fluid trip through what’s going on in my head when I make these tunes. I started the track with the drums, I liked the idea of it fooling you into thinking it’s going to be 4 on the floor with the first 3 kicks right on the beat, and then it breaks up into something else. It’s based around the same series of looping melodic ideas, but everything keeps evolving and growing until it hits the crescendo and all the elements are in full bloom, dancing together. The swing on the hats and the movement on them is changing all the time and the filters on the 2 main synths are opening and closing in a sort of counter modulation with each other, dovetailing to create a sense of something morphing back and forth in form – and that’s what this track is about. Perhaps one for the purists, but I feel more proud of this production than anything else I’ve made”.
Blackadder
THE RELEASE
Blackadder kicks off 2026 with real force, unveiling his bold new single “Traverse”, his most colourful and synth-driven release to date.
The UK-based producer’s 2025 run saw him emerge as a rising star in the electronic scene – a run that was driven by his soulful downtempo sound and a string of steady releases. The year brought over 12M TikTok views, continued BBC Radio 1 and 6 support, and editorial features across Deezer and YouTube Music, alongside backing from curators like Electro Posé, Enhanced Music, and Songspire.
On his latest track, “Traverse”, he fuses his warm brand of downtempo with lush electronic influences reminiscent of George Fitzgerald, resulting in an uplifting track bursting with vibrancy. Blackadder has a knack for euphoric progressions that crescendo into into soaring, feel-good climaxes, and that’s exactly what we’re welcome to on this listening experience.
THE ARTIST
Blackadder
Hailing from Nottingham, UK, Blackadder is an artist whose journey into music was anything but conventional. His work exists in a space between electronica, downtempo, and ambient music, but remains genre-fluid, focusing on blending the organic with the electronic. His inspirations include artists like Bonobo, Maribou State, Burial, and Kiasmos, who also weave together intricate sonic landscapes.
- Airplay on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 6
- Regular airplay on Capital Chill
- Featured on Deezer's Lounge and Chill House editorial
- Featured numerous times on YouTube Music's New Dance 2025 editorial
- 11.5M views on TikTok
