A long history

The two of you grew up together. How did you catch a vibe for reggae music?
Vinnie : I’m the youngest brother. Alex has always been the pioneer, he passed a lot of his knowledge on to me. As a youth I was mainly into hiphop and techno, but my love for reggae started when he gave me a Bob Marley album on CD.
Alex: We grew up with Capeverdian music as these tapes always played at our home, full of exotic music like salsa and reggae. These roots riddims came to our ears at young age. During my high school years I grew to love this music, and got more and more into it. At home we only heard black music, apart from a lot of eighties soul and pop music. Neither Vinnie or I had any idea about typical Flemisch music, or the rock hits that were popular at that time.

How did you make your first steps as a reggae DJ?
Alex : I started as a dj when I was in fifth grade, around the age of sixteen. I played in a bar called Vice Versa. These were the early days: it was hard to find anyone in town who knew about reggae music. At the end of the eighties I got to know Pancho, owner of a bar and of a huge collection of seventies roots, who made me discover a lot of music. In ’93 I became part of a local musical collective called the Riot Squad. It was initiated by Jeroen Joly and brought music lovers like Wontime, Killah Tactics and myself together. Each one of us had his own show at Radio Scorpio. It was a small student radio with very limited broadcast capacity, but this period meant a lot for my musical growth. It’s exactly there where I met Boombastic Sound, probably the only Belgian sound I knew these days. Russ Disciples from England was another important connection. Through these people I got in touch with Jamaican roots and dancehall: both the vintage seventies style as the nineties “new roots”. Starting from ’96 I played at regular reggae nights in a local dancehall called Rumba. These nights turned out to be an amazing succes: every time the place was fully stacked with people.
In the beginning I only bought LP’s. I didn’t even know about the existence of maxis or singles, or about more specialised stores like Harlequin. It was at radio Scorpio I saw 7 inches for the first time: I had absolutely no idea where you could find these. Most of what I had, came from Stef and Arne from JJ Records. Stef passed me some Jah Free and Vibronics promo’s one time: it was the first time I ever heard UK dub, and I grew quickly attached to this new style. Keep in mind these were still our pre-soundsystem days.

"Around that time arose the name Dread Pressure, and I compiled the first of two tapes called “Roots and Culture”, one year later I mixed “Truths and Rights”."

Vinnie: Apparently these tapes had quite an unexpected impact. Ten years later, some people still ask me about them.

Apart from your selection, listeners were fascinated by the sound of your siren: it often happened people just imitated this sound as a synonim for your name.
Alex: We had a pre-amp and a siren quite early : we have been playing with this gear for ten years now. I can’t remember a lot of parties without that amp. We bought our siren through the Disciples, from an official JTS soundsystem equipment dealer.
Vinnie: Keep in mind these were the pre-internet days. It was way harder to find out where to get this kind of equipment. Applications like chatting were in the making, but no used by a larger audience. ?

A CIRCUS TENT FULL OF JUMPING RASTAS

Could you name an experience that bound you to soundsystems?
Vinnie: I remember buying records in the early days, apart from what Alex was doing: I was into hiphop, jungle, house and techno. Alex came home one day with a Jah Shaka session on tape. We didn’t have a clue of soundsystems yet, as we started at the very base, with Bob Marley LP’s, Johnny Clarke, Barry Brown, King Tubby...But what we heard on these Shaka tapes was quite new to us: it was the first time we realised reggae was played in this style. In the end these tapes made us to go London to watch Shaka for ourselves. That’s how we ended up in Brighton in ’97, at the Essential Festival. This day was an absolute revelation to us. I remember very lively how I heard Shaka playing “Who are you” (by Seventh Sense, Jah Works) and spontaneously thought: this is techno! This is exactly the same energetic vibe!
Alex: We barely understood what was happening to us. Standing there like two newcomers from smalltown Belgium, in the middle of an enormous circus tent with eight towers of scoops. We saw rastas skanking all over the place; we had never seen anything like it.
Vinnie: It hadn’t been easy to reach the festival either: there was no Eurostar yet, we had been travelling for a whole day. It’s definetely still the best festival I’ve ever been to. There were 8 tents and big names on the line-up like Johnny Clarke, Twinkle Brothers, Zion Train, Aisha...

"Can you imagine I haven’t heard a single bad song for the whole festival? From that day on, I finished with house and threw myself on reggae music."

Alex: Soon there came more experiences like these: we visited the Rocket, Powerhouse, Seven Sisters, Dub Club...But this day in Brighton, is the very day I decided I wanted to build my own soundsystem.  

Wasn’t it hard to find this type of music in Belgium these days?
Vinnie: Certainly. We had to search through listings and catalogs from Japan or the English distributor Dubvendor. It were long lists of records...
Alex: ...you couldn’t listen to. The numbers went quickly into thousands.
Vinnie : You couldn’t prelisten anything like nowadays on the internet. Most of the time we chose titles that seemed appealing, and even more often, we just took a blind pick. I still have a few boxes with bad records from these days at home now. You had to make mistakes like that, to find out in which direction you should search.
Alex: Records were cheaper than now, but it was harder to find them: it was much more involved with personal contacts. You had to have the right connections to find certain records. We diverted everything from Shaka tapes : sometimes we were walking around for weeks with a snippet, to find out the track was an unreleased dubplate (laughs). But I have a good sense of hearing: after a while I could judge by feeling whose track it was.

NOT JUST REGGAE, NOT JUST SOUND

How did you develop from selectors to soundmen? What’s the difference between Dread Pressure and Soul Remedy?
Vinnie: Actually we have always been doing the same thing. There hasn’t changed much, except for the fact we own our own equipment now, and aren’t dependent on the sound from the venue anymore. We are in control of how we sound to the people.
We learned quite a lot about the technical aspect of audio. We were gathering info for two years, before we started building our system. In Belgium, nobody really understood what we tried to achieve. Fortunately Russ Disciples was a very patient support to us. It wasn’t evident to build the sound, it took a lot of time. Our mids, tops and scoops were built in Belgium. We chose 18 inch scoops because they have a larger frequency range. Every time we played it, we learned more how to control it. You can’t learn to use it well without doing any harm: you can be sure you’ll break some gear during the process.

"A  soundsystem is like an instrument: you need to learn how to play it. "

Has the attention for soundsystems in Belgium grown ever since, or does this remain status quo?
Vinnie : It remains an underground phenomenon. I’ve got high hopes, because there have been many new sounds arising the last few years. You see a very motivated hardcore crowd, but I don’t think the roots audience has grown very much.  

Are you dissapointed the large succes stayed out?
Alex : That wasn’t ever my goal anyway. I know perfectly what I’m doing: I always worked from passion and faith in music. I want to show people there’s music with a different message, that can touch your soul, and you’ll never hear on the radio.  

The message

What keeps you going? From an economic point of view, a soundsystem is a big investment without a lot of return.  
Alex: I’ll give you an example: I heard Shaka play a song in London, that blew me away. It was only when I came home I found out I had it on record myself : the difference with normal speakers is that big.
The impact of the songs and the message behind them, becomes much larger when played on a system. You can mix your track live and manipulate it: you choose when the bass is large, you filter channels so others come more to the front...that’s how you guide the massive to the message. You can make the lyrics perfectly comprehensive to everyone. Every soundman has a personal relation to the songs he plays, that’s what makes the difference. Everyone can buy and play records, but not everyone can handle a soundsystem. You already need the will to build one of your own and learn how to control it : this takes a lot of time. It’s not about making people go wild on a heavy bass and damage their ears: your selection and the way you present it is most important. Your buildup needs to be fluent, you can only follow your feeling in this. Lyrics take a role in that, but also keys, chords, the kind of instruments...I never make a set playlist before I go playing, I just take double the amount of records for the time I can play. Not even that long ago, I always brought my entire collection: I want to have complete freedom of choice when I’m selecting.
Vinnie: A DJ needs to know his records. What happens in between the recordplayer and the sound from the scoops, is completely dependent on the soundman’s relation to the music.  

You want to do more than just blow the speakers ?
Alex: The balance is very important, every aspect of the music needs to be lighted out. People need to hear what you’re playing, not just hear loud noise.

Dubplate business

What I personally appreciate in your selection, is the balance bethween obscure and recognisable tracks. Dubplates and specials become more important these days, but without recognition there ain’t no vibe either.
Vinnie: I agree. It’s much easier to find dubplates nowadays than it used to be. Playing dubplates all night long might be impressive, but it’s not much of my interest.
Alex: Dubplates don’t really exist anymore as the exclusives they used to be. Only a few sounds got special versions from tunes that were pressed on acetate. These days they’re easier to acces as a CD or just as MP3.  

Still, musically there hasn’t changed so much. In the end, new productions remain due to the heritage of roots music.
Vinnie: Not really. Digitalisation opened a lot of new doors: producers like King Alpha or King Earthquake make fantastic, heavyweight dub in an exciting new style. Plus, thanks to the internet and media like Myspace, this music can spread much quicker, and can stay independent.

You have a music studio yourself?
Alex: Since a while I have been making stepper tracks with D Minor 7. It’s more of a side-project: we play these tunes on our sound, but I don’t know if I would publish them.  

Not just a selection

A lot of young sounds look for rare records they heard on a session. On eBay, these records sell for high prices. How do you feel about that ?  
Vinnie: It’s a fact that a lot of people are hunting for the same records nowadays: a bit of a pity in my opinion, and a big difference with the early days. I’ve seen absurd prices for vinyl on eBay, sometimes even 300 dollars for a rare roots 12”. If people can afford it, I don’t have a problem with it, but the consequence is a certain selection becomes totally overpriced. You used to find these tunes by lucky coincidence, now they all find their way to eBay because of their higher value.
Alex : I oppose the idea you would chase a record because it’s rare. Some people just find these tunes on the net, burn them on CD and play them in session: I can’t really respect that.
Vinnie : But what if these records are impossible to afford ?
Alex : In that case you shouldn’t play them. I’m quite basic in this : after all we’re talking about reggae music. You can’t play dubplates you found without permission of the artist either. Roots music is about respect and experience: you’ve got to respect yourself and the artists.

"It doesn’t work like hiphop, where everything is just being remixed an sampled for commercial purposes. You keep each other’s work in honour. "

What about rasta then

So you can’t just play anything?
Alex: Exactly. You’ve got to back the selection you play.  

In that case, how do you feel about white Belgians flirting with the image of Haile Sellasie? After all, this man has not a lot to do with our Belgian history.  
Alex: I don’t have a problem with people who convert to rastafari, but I dissociate from the abuses of this image.  

Vinnie, how important are your dreadlocks to you ?
Vinnie : I could talk to you until tomorrow morning about that. See, you don’t need to believe in Jah to play a song about rastafari, neither do you have to be rasta to wear dreads. I do believe in the values and standards of rastafari: treat others like you’d treat yourself and find your own way, for example. But I understand your question: a lot of people use the image, without really living up to it.
Alex : It’s not always an advantage we don’t use this image, because people have it harder to place us. You need to think for yourself and play what suits you as a person. You can’t wave a Lion of Judah flag around while you’re listening to guntalk and slackness.
I know what I’m talking about when it comes to rastafari religion. Amongst other scriptures, I’ve read the bible. The book of the Old Testament is a document from another time, and not historically accurate, so we don’t interpret these scriptures literally.
Vinnie: But we integrated these values, and carry them out in our lives. Any man could find himself in the Ten Commandments, without the belief God carved them in those stones himself.
Alex: I follow a conscious lifestyle, which reflects in what I do and don’t eat. Consequence is important : you need to know yourself and live disciplined. That counts for relations as well : I treat everybody with respect. Why would you blame somebody from slamming doors, if you do it yourself ? There is less and less tolerance in these times. It might be hard living up to these principles, but I ‘d rather stay true to myself.

words and pictures by andreas

High'r Ites was found by the reggae dj's Oneness and Mr. Jones, also known for causing doors trembling at bar Giraf with their dub-nights. With a big bunch of enthusiasm they threw themselves on UK-dub, which caused a lot of animo and positive vibrations in Leuven and surroundings. The selectors grew up as soundmen with their own soundsystem, in which they could count on some steady supporters. 

It'll be a happy conversation at the home of Oneness with a lot of common memories, but it's only when Wannes and Jonas start to play their favorite tracks that I can feel what the real motivation of High'r Ites means: beautiful records full of consciousness and upliftment, with a full heavy bass. Selector Oneness admits: "I broke a lot of systems while playing. Look at this beautiful amplifier, it belongs to my father. A beautiful powerful machine, but unfortunately I already had to get it fixed two times, just because of pushing it too hard.”

HISTORY

What is your history as selectors? How did you get in touch with reggae music?
Oneness: I started listening to reggae in high school, artists like Lee Perry, or the old tapes of Dread Pressure. I started playing out cd's, but got interested quickly in knowing more than those famous reggaetunes. In those years I formed the Cave Crew with two other dj's,  we also played hiphop and drum and bass. It was all modest and on a very small scale, we mostly played in the youth house of Oud-Heverlee. "Het Kot", a smal non-profit organisation established by friends, organized parties on a farm, where I played a couple of times for a bigger crowd. That's already years ago. I wasn't even playing records. I started to look on the internet for reggae and came in contact with other styles, because of Vinnie of Soul Remedy and my English connection with Rich Brown. A local hero from Leuven, DJ Wikke, got me in touch with the Rootstock-festival, and that’s how things kept on growing for me. Later on, I started to do monthly sessions in café Giraf at the Old Market of Leuven, but I can’t remember if I ever played there without Jonas.

Jonas: I also started with buying regular reggae-cd's, things like Black Uhuru or Junior Kelly. I got to know Wannes trough a common school buddy. We were both in our last year of high school. I was about 18 or 19 years old. One day Wannes started to talk about a song I accidently knew, which surprised him. We started to play together in café Giraf, and those nights had a lot of success. A good time for us, because we didn't need to take decibel limits into account yet.
O: After a while of playing together, I stepped out of the Cave Crew, which doesn't exist anymore now.

How did you come to such an English oriented dub selection? At that time, these styles weren’t quite known here.
O: Mainly because of the people we got to know. I for example, never had a lot of contact with dancehall-dj's: I was listening to new roots like Sizzla, but I never really liked hard ragga. After a while it seemed that Vinnie of Soul Remedy and me got along well. The first soundsystem expercience was together with Vinnie and Killah Tactics at a session of King Shiloh in Amsterdam: that is where I experienced reggae for the first time on a real sound system. The connection with Soul Remedy yielded a lot for us: actually we started out as carriers of their soundboxes. In all those years I never missed a single one of their sessions.
Rich Brown invited me later to go see Jah Shaka in the London venue The Rocket. I was about 17 years old, and it was the first time I crossed the Channel, I took a lot of records home with me. From then on my interest in soundsystems kept on growing, Jah Shaka made the scene really big. I returned a couple of times when Shaka played and later for University of Dub, an enormous soundclash in Brixton.

Who never experienced a session like that must have a total different idea of reggae; there I experienced how much impact this music can have.

Did playing together affect your selection?
J: We are actually complementing each other. With two people you have the advantage that you can discover more music: we went to search together for music that we heard on sessions.
O: We are the internet generation: for us it was quite easy to get to know new stuff and find connections. The first tapes that were important for me were, of course, the tapes of Dread Pressure. I was able to find all of the tunes on those tapes. We were listening to recordings and sound sessions and we used our connections to find the records we wanted. That always took a while, but it was so much fun to look for records.

Your collection grew a lot in a short period of time, and after one year of playing together you were quickly improving.
O: In the beginning we only bought what was available. We only knew the regular record shops like Vinyl and Bambam in Antwerp, Bilbo in Ghent, Harlequin in Brussels, or the record shop JJ Records in Leuven. I regularly crossed the Channel to go look for records in London. After a while I started to look on the internet: I was buying on Ebay because there was no other good alternative, but rare, obscure records were already costing a lot for a young guy like me that didn't make money yet. It wasn't untill after I started working that I could afford records like that. My collection grew a lot because I always wanted to change my selection: I easily got tired of playing the same stuff. I was looking towards new things, and that is how you get to know a whole different spectrum of reggae. We still were really lucky with our connections like David, the biggest distributor of reggae in the UK. Through Rich Brown we got to know Neal Wood from Southend London, he sold us a lot of old killers.
J: Our motive was the hunger and the persisting interest in new tunes, that's how we learned to know those classic cuts.

SOUND BUSINESS

How did you decide to build a soundsytem together?
J: That went quite easy, because of a range of lucky coincidences. Once we played in 'het Kot' together with Ionyouth Soundsystem: their system was totally new, the first time they used it. A friend of us had a colleague that was working with PA, and that night he could rent us a couple of scoops. Those same scoops we took later for a small price, because the rent man didn't use them anymore.
O: First we only had a couple of scoops and tops. We only used our horns and woofers as mids. But before we knew we had the right amount of sound boxes to build a soundsystem.

We started to build more sound boxes and learned how the equipment was working. From then on it went really fast: we found out about amplifiers, pre-amps, sirens....

O: We are finally renewing our scoops: you have to keep up, a new generation of sounds is coming and they are way bigger. In the beginning we saw those scoops as a temporary agreement, but they never let us down: we had a lot of fun with them.

A sound system like that is a big investment for a selector, apart from buying records. How were you able to afford this as young guys?
O: It must have been about four years ago that we bought that sound, I was already working for a while. Once we did a trip to Germany, because of their lower prices, with the intention to buy a whole list of equipment. We paid all of that with our own money. We putted everything that we gained with playing, in the sound system jar. Later on we started to organize a bunch of parties at the local squad that had a lot of success. That profit we used for our sound.
Were there other people involved in building High'r Ites, except you?
J: Jarromatics and Sticksman, friends of 'het Kot', are two important members of High'r Ites. Hannes helped us a lot with the building of our sound system, and the technical side of it. Once he tried to build a sound, as a dissertation at the Waldorf school. Wannes could arrange a small truck for us, otherwise we would never have been able to go out and play with it. Those two were always a part of it, they always helped with the unloading of the sound... Apart from them we could always count on a big crew of friends that helped us when we needed it, and formed a loyal crowd base.

From the beginning on you always played really loud, and Oneness, for example, broke already a lot of amplifiers and speakers.
J: Myeah, he always wants to break everything...
O: Lets say I get a bit too excited sometimes (laughs). It's not that I want to break those speakers.

But dub is made to play loud: the melody is in the bassline. If you can’t hear or feel the bass, the music looses its effect.

We stopped playing at Giraf because there was a limit on decibels as well. It’s a matter of principles.
What is the added value of playing reggae on a sound system?
O: It is about the sound, every soundsystem sounds different.
J: Every selector knows very well how to threat his sound. There are so many different bass speakers, and they all sound different. Scoops also have a very specific bass sound you hear nowhere else, truely made for reggae. If you hear a tune on the scoops, then you know that it’s supposed to sound like that. It’s totally different from a normal PA. You can tweak your bass with the pre-amp, use delay....there are so many possibilities to manipulate a record and to change the sound. You need to use your amplifiers different every time, to make your record sound perfect. Wannes and me are trying to do it a bit different every time, but it's also important to know your records.
O: We most often let us lead by the reaction of the crowd. Of course there are always tunes that always score, and those who are first in line in your record bag. There’s always a balance between the tunes we want to play, and the songs our crowd wants to hear. We are playing first of all for the crowd: we've always been into entertainment rather than spreading the 'message'.
J: We want to generate vibes, we never play a full night for our own pleasure. The hardcore crowd that wants to hear dubplates only is small anyway.
O: Sometimes we let ourselves go and play some hard dubs for a while, but you can feel very quickly that you need to build it down and put on a recognizable song. Rootstock for example has a difficult crowd, you can find a lot of diehard fans on the festival, but also next to them a big crowd that prefer to listen hits.

ONE HUGE PARTY

What do you remember to be your best experience with your own soundsystem?
J: Though question. It works on different levels of course, and that makes it hard to pick one best moment. In the barn ' het Kot' we had some good nights, in a very spontaneous atmosphere. In terms of sound, the parties at AC Noodzaak (Ghent) were the best ones, while the vibes in the Leuven Squad are the best, even though we weren't there with our own soundsystem. Soul Remedy delivered the power over there.
O: We also have good memories about the Rootstock Festival. It's hard to take one that stands out of the rest, but If I had to pick one, it would definitely be the first Reggae Link Up. We were there together with Ionyouth, and our soundsystem had a very good day: it sounded perfect. Mc's Makke (Beatstreet) and Saim-I (Unlisted Fanatic, Giraffe...) were participating as well, and it was just one huge party. Everything sounded like it should, we just came back from the UK and we scored a series of dubplates....A perfect night, except that Jonas was sitting in a wheelchair (laughs).

How steady is the growth of the soundsystem scene? Even though different sounds seem to pop up, the crowd remains status quo.
O: Sure. It went really fast in Leuven. In my neighborhood a lot of things happened: in a short time a lot of young people got to know a lot of new dub. Public Steppas originated quickly. Later that crew evolved into Kinsgstep Soundsystem. We already had a decent and steady crowd, and because of Kingstep the crew got a lot of bigger too. It speaks to a lot of young people: take for example Dub Fi Youth, whom are working hard. Or look at Haile I Dub in Brussels: when there are bigger names, the shack is packed with people from all over Belgium. Of course you always see the same faces, and it still remains a small scene.
J: Sometimes it’s hard: there can be no one at the best parties, and a much bigger crowd on a lesser one. A city crowd has a lot more interest in reggae, but doesn't want to take a car for 50km. Take Minus One in Ghent for example, there you can see 700 people who party on dub, while on a similar night in Brussels with a bigger name, the crowd is a lot smaller. Leuven and Ghent seem to be the best cities to organize sessions like that, because next to the hardcore massive, there will also be a crowd that comes spontaneous.
O: It's very important to promote in a good way. If your entry fee is too high because you are asking bigger names, than no one will show up. The parties we were organizing in the squad were priced really low, but because of that we could attract a bigger crowd.

The paradox seems to be that there are more and more soundsystems, but that it gets harder and harder to find a club where you can play loud. How do you see this evolving? Big clubs don't easily promote reggae, but go and try to find a cheap place where you can play full power.
O: I'm afraid that that's going to get worse and worse. At Minus One they also want a limiter, even at Au Relais TIR they don't even want own soundsystems anymore, even though you can make as much noise there as you want.
J: This policy of decibel limits will be everywhere. You can only hope for a club with a good owner. And apart from that, looking and looking more, and if that doesn't work, go further to another venue.
O: The owners have more and more problems because of sound trouble, it seems logic that they say no to us. King Shilo is playing now in Amsterdam in a really small bunker, where the sand practically falls in your neck from the vibrations. They used to play in Paradisio, but that club was too expensive and they couldn't get enough people, that's why they had to look for a smaller solution. But even in a big city like Amsterdam looking for a home club seems to be difficult. We could have tried to talk to the Brabanthal, but  you'll never get if full of people. What you need is smaller and cheaper clubs, that are easy reachable and where you can play loud...The best option seems to be a squad.
J: In Leuven we tried every single club, except for the more expensive locations that we'll never get filled up.
Too bad that since the nineties the whole reggae scene seems to be fragmented: dancehall and roots turned in to two different scenes with a whole different crowd.
J: It's all reggae, but dancehall and dub are two very different genres.
O: Above all that the real dub scene just started to grow: it's a very young concept. Soul Remedy are the longest in the business and all together they are only playing for seven years on their sound. A lot of reggae fans don't even have a clue of what the dub scene is, and a couple of years ago the sounds used to play more of a crossover style.

The scene grew quickly because of Forward Fever, Ionyouth and Soul Remedy. Especially Forward Fever did a lot concerning parties, and they never gave up.

J: Since 2000 everything seems to be in its own corner, it is getting harder to get a big crowd. I would not think it's a problem to make DJ's play other styles on our sound, if that could make more people listen to dub.

On a long term, do you have any ambition to get international?
O: If we would have the possibility, but at the moment it’s no main ambition. We don't need that straight, and we are not specifically looking for it.

MEN ON A MISSION

In Belgium reggae always stayed a bit of a side happening, while in other countries it seems to attract a bigger crowd.
J: I would not underestimate our own festivals: on a European level Reggae Geel is a special festival. Irie Vibes in Kortemark grew a lot on short notice.
O: You can hear more and more reggae on the radio, even on Studio Brussels. Of course Belgium stays a small country. Soul Remedy never really broke through: they never found a club to organize monthly events. In Amsterdam, London, Leeds and Paris there are a couple of monthly dub clubs with big names and bigger sound systems. In Belgium we just don't have the opportunity to organize this, except for Haile I Dub in Brussels. Those nights helped a lot, and the concept shouldn't stop neither. Soul Remedy, Ionyouth and Forward Fever did the best they could to push things forward, but they never had the right venues and that is why their parties didn't grow.

You are talking about entertainment versus message. It seems double that a sound system can create a big vibe, but that the lyrics of those songs are religiously inspired. How do you place that religious element in your own life, in other words, how serious are you involved in rastafari?
J: Because of reggae I got to know the whole concept of Ras Tafari and the message of Haile Selassie. I would not call myself a rasta, but I was always attracted by the positive message behind the music. For me, that "positive message" formed the basis: bring upliftment to the the people! You don't need to be a rasta to play reggae, but the message about black oppression can speak to a lot of people. There are not a lot of black genres that accuse the oppression so radically and explicitly: in contrary to for example soul singers, rastas had more freedom to sing about what they wanted. I myself started to understand what those religious texts mean: psalms of the Old Testament, Marcus Garvey who is considered a black prophet. That's how I discovered step by step the knowledge on black culture in general and rasta more specifically. All those texts contain a whole library of clues to religious symbols that are not only important in rastafarism.

Is there anything in rasta that you take in account in your own life?
O: Not really the religious element.
J: But we do share the positivism and the peaceful message behind it.
O: It’s hard to explain: I myself am not a rasta of course, but for me it is all about the music. I can find myself in the message, but I'm not living according to those principles.
J: Reggae was never a strong message or a good riddim only: one supports the other.

I'm especially thinking about all those people that I got to know in this small world: each and every one of them are marvelous personalities with whom I can feel good. They are always people with good intentions who left a good impression on me.

O: That consensus in the scene is fantastic: it is difficult to make this given any bigger, but everybody is working hard together. When parties are being organized in Brugge, which isn't close to home, then we'll do everything to support this initiative. Look to the pioneers in England: we met some producers who arranged their studio in a room of two by two. They don't own a lot, and sometimes they have to struggle to keep their head above the water. But that’s what they do for the scene. Plus the fact that I don’t know a lot of scenes where so many old veterans stubbornly persist in doing their thing: look at Shaka, Keety Roots, Ras Muffet, Gussie P, Mad Professor…they have all remained active in making music ever since they were youths in the seventies, the golden age of roots.
J: The appreciation you receive for the efforts you are putting in is really big. And here in Belgium a lot more people start to make a lot of good music on their own initiative: think about Crucial Alphonso, Unlisted Fanatic, or liveband Pura Vida, MC Saimn-I...there is a lot of things to look forward to.
O: Kingstep are building a studio, Soul Remedy is making some strong songs....I'm expecting a lot from that, hopefully they'll come to a point to release their own music. Vintage was a tight ass live band, and they are back busy rehearsing. Actually I'm expecting a lot of the Belgian scene: there are a lot of people like Kingstep, Crucial A, Unlisted...that got the potential to become big. Apart from that, there are always going to be people that produce music that might never be released, but that will push the scene forward though.
Thanks for the conversation!
O: Aha, then we can finally play some music....
J: Fat!

The following hour I got a small private session with piece by piece some great songs...Oneness started with "What a Day" by Carlton and the Shoes.

Andreas

More about High'r Ites Soundsystem : http://www.myspace.com/highr_ites

Futerebound, the owner of the Viper label, first noticed the quality of Furlonge’s production and tried to work as fast as possible with him. The result is that he's well represented on the Acts of Madmen LP, a sample of what Viper has to offer; Sigma, Ed Rush & Optical, Matrix. 'High Commission' is one of the songs on the Jungle Fever Vol 1 mix cd of Murdock and the 27th of November he's coming to celebrate the release at the Rondpunt26 in Genk for a dj set on Breakdown.

The first time I heard about you was a collaboration with Brookes Brothers for Breakbeat Kaos.
F: The first thing I released was 'Drifter', a cooperation with the Brookes Brothers, it was released as a b-side of 'Tear You Down' on Breakbeat Kaos, the label of Adam F and DJ Fresh. After that there was an LP on Viper, the label of Futurebound, with 'High Commission' and 'It's Cruel, and now there are two of my songs on the Acts of Madmen LP. At this moment I'm working on my next LP for Viper.

Are you signed exclusively for Viper, or are you planning to work for other labels as well?
F: At this moment we are both not really interested in signing a long term contract. Unofficially I'm part of the Viper label, in the sense that Futurebound hears first what's coming out of my studio.

You are a classing schooled pianist. How did you exactly end up in drum and bass? Is it because of your relationship with Brookes Brothers and Culture Shock?
F: I'm indeed already friends for a long time with those guys and because we all experienced a similar evolution, it is certainly part of it. It’s only since 2000 that I discovered drum and bass. First I landed on a Ram party (ed. Ram, the label of Andy C, he's organizing one of the biggest drum and bass parties in the UK, and on regular basis) and after that I discovered Swerve and Hospitality; the first big liquid nights. Liquid, the soulful, funky variant of drum and bass, that came around at that time and it was that kind of vibe that appealed to me the most.

I saw on your myspace that, unlike the big hardcore- or hip hop directed influences of your colleague drum and bass artists, you often get your inspiration out of jazz- and rock artists like U2, Smashing Pumpkins, but also surprisingly David Bowie and Massive Attack.
F: I used to listen mainly to rock music, but I would say that my biggest source of inspiration would be jazz fusion. Because of my piano training I was exposed on regular basis to jazz, but it’s still fusion, the jazz that’s making bridges with other music, that is appealing to me the most. I'm thinking that it is exactly that what the new drum and bass artists, like Brookes, Sub Focus and myself, are trying to do in drum and bass. We bring influences out of drum and bass, like techno, electro, funk or jazz. By doing that we open it all up. I'm under the impression that it’s exactly this kind of drum and bass that gets appreciated the most. Here, in England, a lot of people think we loose the original concept and they tend to look down on our music, but in the rest of Europe we seem to create a new interest in drum and bass and a lot of people from outside the scene get attracted to the parties. People here in England prefer a couple of jump up dj's who repeatedly make new versions of the same songs, but I really cannot occupy myself with that. I want my music to keep growing.

When you go out, on what kind of parties do you tend to end up?
F: My close friends especially like techno, and the kind of minimal house that has the  euphoric build up of trance, but without the cheesy melodies and keyboards (laughs). Last year, for example, I went with some of my friends to Berlin and we visited a couple of legendary techno clubs.
When I started with drum and bass it was this kind of music all my friends listened to. In the mean time we are 10 years older and I'm noticing that the ones who are not busy with drum and bass everyday, because they are not producing or dj-ing, are getting more and more other musical interests. In England a lot of raves attract a lot of wrong people and kids that are more into booze, drugs and fighting, instead of the music, and the older you get, the less you are in the mood for those kind of scenes. I'm happy to notice that this isn't the case in Europe. The vibe there is way more pleasant and people are really interested in the songs we play. They also seem to know way more about it.

I'm hearing from Brookes Brothers, Sub Focus, Logistics and Chase and Status, that they enjoy making other music than drum and bass. They not only want to introduce new influences in drum and bass, they also want to learn new genres. Does that count for you too?
F: I'm not planning to make drum and bass until I die. I think I would become crazy. I like different kinds of music and I will certainly try other genres than drum and bass. At this moment drum and bass is still my favorite music genre, and I can see myself doing this for a couple of more years. We'll see what the future brings.

On your myspace you mark that one of your most import influences are shoveling dog shit, fear of flying and automated telephone services. Are you a lover of the small annoyances of life?
F: (laughs) O well, you know that... You make a myspace and you are in a good mood...then you dare to write a bit of bullshit. It would be terrible if I had a fear of flying, because to earn my living I have to travel a lot with planes. No, I'm a good airplane passenger. It is a minor discomfort that I'm happy to take with me to play my favorite records on a festival or in a club.

Download tracks:

Furlonge: Jenga
http://download.breakbeat.co.uk/lpsepsartists/furlonge/jenga.aspx
Moby: One Time We Lived (Matrix & Futurebound rmx)
http://www.moby.com/remix-matrix-futurebound

Info: http://www.myspace.com/furlonge

'High Commission'  on Murdock presents Jungle Fever Vol. 1 (Radar Records), and 'Track Masters on Acts of Madmen (Viper Recordings). Furlonge plays on the 27th of Novembre on Breakdown at Rondpunt26 in Genk, together with Viper artists Futurebound and Camo&Krooked.

IYB: What’s your musical background and how did you get into production? Which software/setup did you use in the beginning? How long did it take you to reach the ‘proper’ sound?

N: I think I started making music when I was 12, messing around with Fruity Loops and making dodgy electro tunes. I started working on music a bit more actively when I was 16. I bought my first copy of Ableton Live and started hunting down Google to find decent samples. I know it took me a while to get used to Ableton Live’s interface, but in the end it was really rewarding.

IYB: Where do you get inspiration for your tunes? Influences?

N: My whole life really, I can’t define my source of inspiration. I think when I’m making music I’m just being influenced by what’s on my mind.

IYB: Which one do you like most and why?

N: I think I’ll have to say Prisma. It just brings back really good memories. And it was one of my first tracks that bigger dj’s got interested in.

IYB: How did you get your first tune signed?

N: I kept sending my stuff to every AIM account I could find on the internet . After a while I got in contact with Crystal Clear, he said he really liked Prisma and passed it on to dj Hype. The moment Hype told me he wanted to have Prisma on his label was one of the best moments in my life.

IYB: You did a remix for Miike Snow… How important is for you to have a remix released by Sony?

N: I’m really happy about that remix, glad I got the opportunity. I think the good thing was that I got exposure on more general radio stations with this remix. So I got some good feedback from people who aren’t die-hard dnb fans. Plus, this way, I'm on the same release as Tiga and Caspa, who have done a remix as well. Again, it's a way to get exposure outside of the drum&bass world.

IYB: Your gig agenda is already getting busy with forthcoming gigs in Heerlen (NL), Moscow, UK and at home. How do you feel about this? Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

N: Yeah I’m glad I’m getting some good bookings lately. I love deejaying and travelling so I feel really happy about it. I have already played in Latvia, and I have forthcoming gigs in the UK, in Austria, Russia and Czech Republic as well. I’m going to keep fighting to get better and better but I can’t say where I’ll be in 5 years.

IYB: What’s your ideal dj setup? How can you describe a set by Netsky?

N: I’m playing with Serato. I chose Serato because I don’t wanna loose the feeling of vinyl but I wanna keep my sets fresh with lots of new tunes. When the newest dubs by the likes of Sub Focus, Crystal Clear, Nero, DJ Hazard, Brookes Brothers and Chase & Status keep flooding my mailbox, I just want to be able to play them without burning a new cd every time. I try to keep my sets dancefloor friendly but always with a bit of funk and deepness.

IYB: Tell us about your future releases…

N: I’m going to work with Jenna G for my next SGN:Ltd release. The tune we’re gonna work on is called ‘Night Lovers’, and the B side is called ‘Stay with me’. I got a track coming out on Hospital records called ‘Memory Lane’. ‘Everyday’ and ‘Come back home’ are coming on hype’s Liq-weed Ganja. And I’m also having a release on Allsorts and Spearhead. Besides that, four tunes of mine are featured on Murdock's 'Jungle Fever' mix cd and three collabs we did are on there as well. I'm contributing to the launch of a new Belgian drum&bass label, headed by Murdock, which is called Radar Records, and the first release will be my track 'Your Way'.

IYB: What do you think about the Belgian drumandbass scene?

N: It’s great, we got some really cool nights over here, like Rampage, Star Warz, Stealth Bombers and Radar; good venues, big names and always a nice crowd.  Every international dj we invite will tell you they love coming over.

IYB: Some people say drumandbass is dead… What do you think about this?

N: It’s more alive than ever. I think d&b is getting more interesting every month.

http://www.myspace.com/netskymusic

Brookes Brothers surprised enemy and friend with 'Tear You Down', a song that seemed to do equally well with the hardcore drum and bass fans, as with the rest of the world. It seemed to be the forerunner of an album the Brookes would release on Breakbeat Kaos, label of Adam F and DJ Fresh, which previously already delivered Pendulum. And just like their illustrious predecessors, Brookes Brothers seem to announce a turning point in the drum&bass scene.
Dan Brookes, one of the two brothers, played in february an amazing set on the first edition of Radar and will soon return for Rampage, in Trix (Hof Ter Lo) Antwerp, to test the songs of their new album. In the run towards the release of the album, I spoke to Dan about what we can expect.
BROOKES: "I've been working all day on the vocals of Robert Owens, the ones he sang for one of the songs on the album. We've been writing the lyrics together and Robert sang a couple of layers, so we have a lot to work with."

Robert Owens is a true legend, another veteran from the late 80's, that worked in Fingers Inc together with Larry Heard and later with Frankie Nuckles. London Electricity and Photek also worked together with him. How was that?
BROOKES: "Oh man, Robert Owens is great. He's a real professional and a super positive person. When you realise that he comes from the slums and that almost everybody with whom he grew up with, is now dead or in prison, it gets only more incredible."

Are you using a lot of singers on the album? I seem to remember that you told me that the sampled vocals of 'Tear You Down' were causing a lot of worries.
BROOKES: "Most of the songs on the album use vocals. Partly because we wanted to prevent all the publishing problems, but especially because we wanted to do our own thing, so we approached a couple of male and female singers. We recorded for example a couple songs with Kashia Baxter, a girl from South-Africa, and we've worked together with a singer from India."

A couple of drum and bass producers scored heavily by taking up related genres like dubstep, breaks or minimal in their albums. Is that something you plan to do as well?
BROOKES: "We've been experimenting a lot for this album, but it stays all drum and bass. Some songs are a bit slower and a couple of tracks are more real songs in stead of dance floor material. We want people to be able to listen the songs from the beginning till the end, and make sure that our music isn't only suited for dance floors. We are not really influenced by trends, we still do what we want. A thing we've always wanted to do was a more downtempo song, like a kind of hiphop. For that song we are still talking to a couple of mc's to see who's up for it and who we want to work."

Adam F and Fresh got a lot of respect for the way they worked with you. Some even thought they was planning to turn you into the new Pendulum, but that didn't seem to be the case.
BROOKES: "No, not at all. Breakbeat Kaos is obviously growing bigger and they aren't looking any longer for the heaviest dance floor material. There are indeed a couple of label owners who push their artists in a certain way, but we don't have that feeling at all. They have a lot of confidence and they encourage us to look for the right path for us to turn."

First your album was announced for October this year, but the release is now postponed to Spring 2010. What happened?
BROOKES: "We had the feeling we needed more time to make everything perfect. It's of no use to release an album, when we are only 75% happy about it. We are not planning to postpone it for ages, but we like to deliver something with what we can be happy about for the rest of our life. We are sorry for the fact that we cannot have a single this year, but we prefer to release everything at the same time. On the other hand, by the end of the year a remix by us will be released. Right now we have two offers and one of them will get a remix. They are both true classics and I'm looking forward to work on them."

One track on the album already leaked. Tony Colman played your cooperation with Danny Bird on the immensely popular Hospital podcast.
BROOKES:" Yes, I think we had a bad communication on that. Tony played those tracks and after that Danny Bird played it in a show of Grooverider. It's not so bad, but we still have a lot of strong material ready."

8 months nonstop in studio must have its effects!
BROOKES: "I'm very happy that soon we can deliver the best we got, but I guarantee that as soon as everything is ready we are ready to leave on holiday and we'll not return immediately back in the studio. But first we'll come to drop some bombs at Trix!

Brookes Brothers are playing on October 30 at Trix (Hof Ter Lo) Antwerp - Rampage, together with Xample, Dj Die and Murdock.

The collective started its activity in 2001 and got an official stamp in 2003. Since then they’re an active player and supporter of the Belgian electronic music scene (and not only) through various projects which brings together musicians, graphic artists, visual artists and everything in between. The recognition for their contribution to culture and their volunteer work came through the “Gouden Ketje” prize, awarded to them earlier this year.

What made InYourBass curious is actually the forthcoming release of Jemenfish001, their first vinyl, scheduled for the 1st of October. The disc showcases 4 tracks produced by Belgian artists, newcomers and already established names. Grab it while you can, it has a limited run and the rumours say it’s on high demand! If this wasn’t convincing, you should know that it has already received support from the likes of Mary Anne Hobbs (BBC Radio 1) and Bunzer0, to name only a few. The featured artists will be playing at a number of large-scale events, where you will be able to get a copy for free if you come early enough.

In Brussels: 02/10 La Raffinerie (20 years VK* concerts), 09/10 Drumderground at Fuse, and 31/10 Biouel Boat. You can also catch Je M’en Fish on tour this autumn in various venues across Belgium, the Netherlands and Denmark.

IYB spoke with Bart , the founder of the organization to find out more details about this release, the collective and its future projects.

IYB : What’s your interpretation for “Je m’en fish”?

Bart: Literally speaking ‘Je m’en fiche’ would mean ‘I don’t care’, but in the larger scope of things the name has been a wordplay for years and is mostly meant to state that we do initiatives or events where people usually said ‘bad idea’. We’ve previously done several events pushing collaborations between artists such as live painting on the tones of an electronic producer. It also counts for something that we have seen evolve in the fact that a lot of events are doing contests to ‘give young DJ’s a chance’ and giving them slots that are not interesting or material that is faulty, we want to give young producers a chance and if they play at a peak moment, so much the better.
 
IYB: What is the hardest thing to surpass when running a volunteer based collective?
 
BD: It’s really a double-edged sword: A permanent stream of volunteers is often hard to find. Usually they’re the same people that are also producing. When their producing stops, they fade out of the picture. On the other hand, we have not tried to receive a financial input by the government to be able to contractually make people work for us on a paid basis, because we just prefer not to have it work like that. I don’t want any volunteer to feel burdened by it or feel as if it’s a second job, which it can be, if you don’t pay attention. Generally speaking, I think a lot of organizations working with volunteers have to pay very close attention to them, because they are free to leave whenever they want, leaving more work for the ones left. Having a good communication and mutual respect is probably indispensable. There are a lot of even larger organizations where the heart of the events lies in the hands of the volunteers and not the ones under contract. Allow them to have some input and feedback. If the work they do was made by people contracted through interim or similar, the costs would go up by 300 percent in some cases. I’d also say, keep the fun in it. If the fun goes out of it and some people say ‘oh yey, another event’, there’s something seriously wrong, obviously.
 
IYB: In which direction is heading “Je m’en fish”? Plans for the next year?
 
BD: Several things are planned: Infosessions will continue on a by-demand basis and for free, where anyone can request these; workshops in Ableton Live will be started in co-production with Recyclart and Culte ASBL. We will be looking at the option of bringing out more vinyl releases and of course we co-produce a number of events, in Brussels but also throughout Belgium and Europe. Although, truth be told we want to keep the events entirely run by ourselves now to a strict minimum and we prefer co-productions and partnerships with others. In the larger scope of things, we have been informing ourselves about preferably buying, and otherwise hiring, locations for our own.
 
IYB: How did the vinyl project started? Are you planning more releases like this?
 
BD: So far we have released 3 compilation cd’s (the 2 first home-grown) and a DVD (Technically 2) in a span of 4 years, and we noticed a surge in interest in an audio carrier such as vinyl. We were aiming to bring one out for a while now, but we were not sure about the investment, we preferred not to launch one at the regular price of a vinyl but to look for a more promotional item to launch it. Luckily enough by winning the prize of the ‘Gouden Ketje’ the problem got solved easily. All of our releases have always been mainly to promote the featured artists and internationally, the Belgian scene. Currently the next one is in a development stage. Larger international artists have expressed interest to remix a Belgian artist and there are plenty of quality artists to choose from in our country. But it’s useless now to launch another promotional item, so we’re looking into the possibilities of distribution too.
 
IYB: How could you describe the sounds on it?
 
BD : They’re pretty diverse. Personally I hate to pigeon-hole myself or artists in any style. It’s the same story for our next vinyl. We have been promoting a number of dubstep gigs and now on some websites the label platform is written as a ‘dubstep’ only thing, but when people have a listen they always say ‘hey this isn’t really dubstep man’. To be honest I can’t even be bothered trying to put genres on all the tracks. Tracks are what they are, no reason to label them. Myrkur’s track, for instance, incorporated a live guitar in the remix and multiple people can’t really place it. Fine for me. Some magazines have criticized the lack of focus on genres before, especially with the compilation cd, but so be it. I wouldn’t want anyone internationally getting our releases into their hands unfamiliar with Belgian artists think most producers are making the same subgenre.
 
IYB: What kind of feedback did you get so far? 
 

 
IYB : Where people can get the vinyl from?
 
BD : As a venue, radio, magazine and more, it’s best to just get in contact directly and we drop by or put it in the post. As for the regular audience, there’s not a lot available, sales weren’t what we were aiming for, but they can find it on Discogs. In Brussels they can get in at Lost in Music and in Antwerp at Wally’s Groove World. Additionally, we will make a small number of copies available, for free, to the first people present at the events we run in the beginning of October.

more info > http://jemenfish.be

Xample first rose up through the ranks of drum&bass with sparse releases for HardLeaders, L Plates and Mix & Blen, until he sent some tunes to the Ram office and got picked up by co-a&r Red One. Andy C started playing them and soon he signed a few tracks to Frequency, Ram’s sublabel. Now, Xample is working with Lomax at a full artist album for mothership Ram and tunes like ‘Lowdown’, ‘Keep Their Heads Ringing’ and the ‘Against All Odds’ remix for Chase&Status show there is much to look forward to.

XAMPLE: I grew up in Bristol and obviously was influenced by some of the local crews, especially since it’s the stomping grounds for the entire Full Cycle crew and a lot of triphop outfits. I moved to Liverpool to study at university and the tracks I made at that time move away from that Bristol sound. I moved back after graduating and got in touch with the likes of TC and Distorted Minds and that brought me to shift to a more dancefloor orientated sound.

Is there any other music, besides drum&bass, that influences your sound?

XAMPLE: I listen to a lot of house music and hiphop and I tend to just put my iPod to shuffle and soak up what comes at me. Some close friends of mine add music to my library and this results in some nice surpises from time to time. I would never have gotten to appreciate Kings of Leon if it wasn’t for my mates adding their music to my iPod.

House music is a very broad term these days. What kind of stuff strikes your fancy particularly?

XAMPLE: It’s mainly the minimal, progressive and technoish house that gets me going. I used to go out to a lot of house and techno nights in Liverpool and it’s guys like Luke Slater and Dave Clarke that really got me into it.

Can we expect any of that stuff to pop up on your album?

XAMPLE: I’d love to add some different flavours to the album, but it’s hard to find the time to write anything else besides drum&bass. I might try to do some minimal or some house music, but I wouldn’t put it out, unless it’s really up to par with what’s banging in the clubs right now. I’ve just done my first dubstep tune and I might try some more of that. At the moment I’m not entirely happy with the way it sounds, but it’s a start. Obviously, crossing boundaries has worked wonders for Chase&Status and Sub Focus is doing some leftfield stuff for his album as well, although I haven’t heard any of it yet.

You’re working closely with Lomax these days. You don’t mind the odd collaboration, do you?

XAMPLE: I’ve worked with Crystal Clear quite a bit and the album I’m doing for Ram is going to a be a full collab with Lomax. It’s nice to hear that the tunes I make with other people are more than just the combining of two sounds. Usually, it ends up being a completely different vibe of what either me or the other guy would come up with on our own. That’s what collaborations are all about to me…

So tell us more about the album.

XAMPLE: We’ve got a few vocal projects, we’ve got some housey stuff, some liquid, some darker beats and a lot of dancefloor material. We’re covering all bases, really. It’s important to me that the album will have a very diverse sound and we’ll be able to atract some listeners who wouldn’t normally consider themselves as drum&bass lovers. Also, getting main time radioplay is a big issue and the best way to get some extra exposure and raise our profile. It’s a must that we have some tunes that are catchy and have enough vocals to keep it interesting on the radio.
The first track off the album will be out in October and is called ‘Remember’. The full album should drop sometime early next year. I’ll have plenty of new stuff in the bag when I come over.

Looking forward, mate.

http://www.myspace.com/xamplebeats

Xample is playing at Breakdown Summer Camp on August 6th, at Muziekodroom, Hasselt.

IYB: Let's start by you, One87, isn't that the code for murder? Did u already killl someone or you just liked the movie?
187: Honestly, I picked that name in 1989, so that was way before the movie!

IYB: Some words about your carreer?
187: I've been loving  Jungle & Drum’n’bass since 1992, so I'm dj-ings since then, strictly for fun … I've always tried to push the DnB music scene in Belgium, Star Warz is one of my main accomplishments on that level.
I'm known as a DJ (One87, Millennium Kru,..), as a producer (Signed a tune on Critical Recordings recently), as a promoter (Star Warz) and a recordshop-owner back in the 90's.

187: My first release will be out soon! I just started producing 6 months ago

IYB: Any words on the hardware/software you are using?
187: Mac G5 + Logic8 & Reason4

IYB: Millennium Kru is still one of the main names in Belgian drum and bass but is it true that the original team changed?
187: The Millennium Kru stopped in the beginning of 2008. Now I’m going solo

 
IYB: About Star Warz, It's one of the main foundations for drum and bass in belgium. When did it started? Any words on the evolution?

187: It all started since March 2001 and the evolution is nothing but positive , it just keep getting bigger and bigger.
 
IYB: So can we expect an even bigger edition in 2011 for a 10 years massive XL?

187: Sure thing! Just wait and see.
 
IYB: The concept behind Star Warz?

187: It’s not about being the biggest, but about being the best! (As in ‘best quality’ off course &hellip

The concept is really simple; make a good party and watch all details carefully while doing it!

 
IYB: Who's behind Star Warz?
187: Mathias from Kozzmozz (Organiser) & myself off course (Artistic manager)

IYB: Any connection with the drum and bass sculpture parties (in Vooruit) back in the days?
187: No, absolutely not.
 
IYB: Lately you are opening your parties to dubstep, did you invite other genres in the past as well?

187: Not really… the dubstep thing just happened…
 
IYB: Why this style? Is it a good working combo?
187: Obviously D’n’b & Dubstep have a lot in common. Not only musicwise, but also the people involved; A lot of them were in to d’n’b before.
And yeah, it works out real nice together!
 
IYB: Do you have any other projects besides Star Warz (forthcoming?)
 
187: Yes; “Daily Dubstep”, a new Dubstep concept @ the Vooruit in Ghent!
First one on 30/10/09 with Benga & Skream!!
 
IYB: In our mind Star Warz is affiliated with Vooruit. Did you ever thought about doing it in another venue or do a programation for a festival?
187: Well, we host  a stage on Tomorrowland for years now… and did stages on City Parade, so yeah…we did thought about that

IYB: What can we excpect for this massive XL edition?
187: Real cool dj sets, good soundsystem, chilled drinks & hot vibes … for only 20€.

Peace!

http://vooruit.be/nl/event/1883

http://www.kozzmozz.com/

IYB: Want to check out the Star Warz XL edition yourself?
Just answer this simple question, mail us the answer, and receive a free ticket in return!

GIVE US THE NAMES OF THE BELGIAN DJ's WHO PLAY THURSDAYNIGHT AT STAR WARZ.

> mail your answer to info@inyourbass.com  Good Luck!

More information on One87

www.187-dnb.com
www.myspace.com/one87starwarz

Murdock : Your track ‘All Blue’ is the most downloaded tune on Drum&Bass Arena, the biggest outlet for drum&bass music on line!

SIGMA: Yeah, I don’t know how many it sold exactly, but it’s still up there. In the meantime, there have been artists like Chase&Status, who have had albums with massive tunes on there. It’s a really good thing for us. We’re really happy with that. In terms of vinyl sales, it didn’t sell like thousands and thousands of copies, but in the digital format it’s been doing great. There are lots of people that bought it, so big up everyone.

Murdock :  It’s three years old now, and when I play out, there are still people who come up to me and ask for that particular tune. Usually they only do that with the newest, latest hit.

SIGMA: When we wrote the tune, we never knew at the time that it was going to be  the sort of tune that people would be playing for years and years. I feel that when you play it in the club at the right time, it really catches a good vibe.

Murdock : You’ve got a couple of tunes on quite a few big labels. There’s that track on Hospital now.

SIGMA: That’s ‘Paint It Black’, the first sampler of the the new ‘Sick Music’ compilation by Hospital Records. It should be in stores right about now… It’s been getting a lot of support on the radio and everything. We’re really happy with the way that’s sounding. We have the next release on our own label lined-up and that’s called ‘Front To Back’. We’ve been talking to Adam F and Fresh about releasing some stuff on Breakbeat Kaos and we’ve actually just finished two tracks with Fresh, that we’re roadtesting now. We’re trying to get a lot more vocals done ofr our tracks at the moment. That’s just a long process of trying to find the right vocalists to work with and thus getting the track to sound even better. We’ve got a lot of new material that’s doing really well when we play it, so yeah, … Fingers crossed.

The two members of Sigma are involved in side projects as well. Cam has his Kamuki alias, while Wooz has his Beat Assassins project. Kamuki stands for deep, electro-tinted minimal house, and is a collaboration between Cam and Diesel-U-Music winner Luke Ashworth. Together they have graced stages from Cape Town to Russia and from Fabric to Ministry of Sound. They gained massive support from the likes of Layo & Bushwacka, Pendulum and Radioslave.
Beat Assassins is a nu-skool breaks outfit, consisting of Wooz, one half of Sigma, and Jimmy Mofo, the owner of Mofo Records, who put out most of the Assassins releases.

Murdock : It always struck me that there aren’t too many Sigma releases out there. Each track you guys do is really succesful and they always get a put out on a serious label, but there is usually a lot of time in between releases.

SIGMA: Our first tracks were released by Mampi Swift, on his Charge label, and at that time we had a lot of new material, but we decided to sit on it for a while, to try to make our sound even better. We want to be able to look back at what we do and be genuinely proud of it. We felt we needed to perfect some things before letting it go out there. The Sigma brand should stand for really high quality music.

You recently launched a new brand, Life Recordings…

SIGMA: Yeah, that’s our own label. It’s not a big thing, just an outlet for some of our own music. The first two tracks, ‘Something Special’ and ‘El Presidente VIP’ have done really well, making it to number 2 in the drum&bass chart and now we are looking forward to releasing the next one, which is called ‘Front To Back’ and has been getting a lot of play on dubplate. No doubt, we’ll be showcasing a lot of new, forthcoming material at Silo and Trix at the end of June.

Sigma plays at Rampage (Trix Club Antwerpen) on June 26th, together with Crystal Clear (uk), Switch (nl), Netsky and Murdock.
They play at Radar (Silo Leuven) on June 27th, with Crystal Clear (uk), Murdock, Bobmo (fr), Ed&Kim and Rave Our Souls.

Listen or download the MURDOCK - RAMPAGE 2 /// RADAR 3 free mixtape!

BLAME: Nowadays drum and bass appears again on radio in the UK and that’s amazing. Drum and bass exists already fur such a long time but never really got a chance on radio. Now, that seems to have changed. It’s a nice opportunity to show the world dat drum and bass is still strong and by this way we are building a whole new fan base.

Are you know also being asked to play dj sets on events where not only drum and bass gets played?
BLAME: Mainly I’m getting booked on drum and bass events, but once and a while a gig turns up where a house of a hip hop dj gets booked. I’m noticing that a lot of people that don’t listen to drum and bass seem to like my music.

I get regularly bookings on parties where otherwise they would never play drum and bass, and each time the promotor seems to be surprised on how well the crowd reacts.
BLAME: Drum and bass dj’s mostly have a lot of experience and are hard workers. We are used to playing at raves where you have to show your a-game to get the people to dance and to show of to the dj before or after you.
Drum and bass dj’s are also specialized in moving a dance floor. That works in our advantage.

The last two years you have been receiving good comments on songs like ‘Stay Forever’ and ‘Because of You’ where it’s all about minimal breakbeats, striking synths and strong vocals.  A new trademark of yours?
BLAME: I’m making music since 1990 and people tell me that the songs I’m making right now remind them of stuff from my early period. Maybe I’ve gone trough a long journey to end up again with my first love. For a long time now I’ve been wanting to experiment with different sounds and structures but I just prefer to make good, catchy music that people want to keep listening to.

A strong melody always helps of course to get played on radio.
BLAME: Both on radio and in clubs it’s important to give your songs a catchy hook, it is often the case that the sound isn’t what it should be and if you cannot hear all the details the song doesn’t come trough the way it should. A powerful melody that gets stuck into your brain helps to please your crowd. You know, on radio there is no difference between the different sub genres of drum and bass. United we are strong.

Since you are releasing your own songs on the 720 Degrees label you are your own boss. Are you enjoying that?
BLAME: The music business is completely changed. You don’t need to be signed anymore by a big label to send your music into the world. You don’t even need a desk anymore. If you have your computer and a couple of good people at the right places, you are already far. Now that I’m my own boss, I’m sure the royalties come to me, something that has been different in the past.

What are your plans for the nearby future?
BLAME: I’m working on a new album, but first there will be a successor for ‘Because of You’. Apart from that I have some really cool remix projects. I just reworked ‘Show me Love’ of Robin S, a true club classic and one of my favorite songs at the time I just discovered dance music. The next artists will be Alisha Dixon and David Guetta.

Blame will be playing on RADAR the 8th of May at Silo (Leuven).

http://www.radar-dnb.be

http://www.myspace.com/blame720

MURDOCK - Radar 2 - Mixtape

download

Your debut album took a long time to get released. But you are notorious as well for the amount of layers you put in to one song?
Yes, i put an average amount of 90 to 100 layers in each track I make. I love to intensify a certain sound by hiding 4 or 5 different sounds in it. You actually don’t really hear them, but it gives a certain strenght to the sound I started with. Like that, I’m every time getting a complicated puzzle. It’s actually a bad habit (laughing), because in that way I’m using a huge amount of time to finish a song. But I cannot stop it, so I just accepted it. In the mean time I know that it’ll take me three weeks to make a new song. That resignation is a lot less stressing. (laughing)

It certainly works, because songs like ‘Shock Out’ and ‘Weird Science’ are hardly comparable to other people’s work.
Funny that you name those two. They both turned out as huge hits to me, but ‘Shock Out’ was actually finished pretty soon, and that’s really an exception for me. Sometimes the more simple ideas seem to be the best ones. With ‘Weird Science’ it seems to be the other way around again. It took me at least six months to make that tune, until I was really sick of it. In the end I just didn’t knew it anymore en I obligated myself to put it away for a while. At the time the album came out, I was feeling the song again, for the better, because it’s probably one of the more popular tracks on ‘Supersized’.

Do you still play ‘Weird Science’?
For about two months I stopped playing it; I was tired of hearing the track. If I get booked somewhere, then I know that fans expect me to play my own songs in between new stuff, so that’s why I regulary make a renewed version of my most famous tracks. So they keep being interesting for me to play out. Nowadays I’m playing a newer version of ‘Gold Rush’,  a track I made with the Brookes Brothers.

In the meantime you often proved that you are a great dj: doubledrops, classics and dubs, superfast mixing...you seem to do it all. Last year we could witness that at Breakdown.
Fast and furious (laughing). As a dj I like to be in a mix the whole time. I’m looking for the right amount of music and I’m trying to mix those as fast as possible, so there can be no moment of boredom. I love to take the tonalities, of the records, in consideration, but once and a while they can clash a bit. If I feel the crowd wants to hear a certain record, then I will not be ashamed to try and mix it with the rest, even though the tonalities seem to be mismatched.

Already with your first release it was obvious that you like to absorb influences from other musical genres. I remember that, about 8 years ago, you released ‘R&B vs D&B’. That was ‘Volume 1’, but a second one never came out.
That is the curse of being both lazy and a perfectionist, I’m afraid. I listen to a lot of other music; funk, house, hiphop, electro...

‘Weird Science’ for example, is the result of the success of Justice, and that made everyone look back to Daft Punk. I like to transform the sound of other genres to a drum&bass format. I’m often in the mood to make other music, but drum&bass is a full time job and I’m actually really happy of where I’m at right now.

Since the release of your album you’ve made a lot of remixes. Are those ones a direct result of the success of ‘Supersized’?
Yes, that’s how it works. With a strong album you immediately put yourself in the spotlight and other record labels and artists will notice that. I reworked some songs of Timmy Vegas, Rudenko and Sugar Rush Beat Company, and some other ones will be released as well. Slowly I’m starting to work on some own songs and soon, I’ll get into the studio with the Brookes Brothers for a cooperation on their album.

The new mix album of your home base, Hospital Records, is also made by your hand.
Yes, it was fun that they asked me to do that, and I’ve really tried my best. It’s really different then a normal dj set, because I could only use tracks of the Hospital back catalogue, but being limited can be enjoyable as well. I’m really proud of the result.

Hospital Mix Seven and Supersized are released on Hospital Records.

Danny Byrd plays the 25th of april on Rampage at Trix/Hof Ter Lo, Antwerp.

http://www.hospitalrecords.com/artists/dannybyrd/

http://www.rampage-dnb.be/

My girl woke up this morning telling me we definitely should go hit the park so I deicded to take her to the Shinjuku park (went to Disk Union right before); one of the nicest parks in the city. The park is divided in a Japanese style, a French style and an English style, all that in the heart of the Shinjuku area, reminds me a bit of Central Park in New York City.  It's also very nice to see how clean it is, before sitting in the grass I looked around to see if there was no dog sh*t, of course not, and there's not even garbage cans in these parks (nor in the city). 

We hung around for two hours enjoying the sun and the rain of cherry flowers, a beautiful view and a typical manga thing.  My plan was actually to move to Akihabara, the electronic part of the city.  A huge avenue and sidestreets full of electronic shops, pachinkos and videogames, a lotta noise and lots of fun for gadget freaks like me!

It's the kind of place where you will find everything you've been missing in Europe; mostly we're talking about detached pieces but not only that.  In Akihabara you can find older stuff too, older models of headphones you prefered, older mixers, I actually found that old Technics battle mixer we had in gold in Europe in a shop but in the Japanese version which is different, in silver and not shiny, nice.  We jumped in one of those crazy photo booths and did a couple pictures in Tokyo style,  a certified gold souvenir if you visit that neighbourhood.

From there we went straight to Ikebukuro, on the other side of town.  A very nice part with a lot of youngsters hangin' around, that means crazy haircuts, incredible clothes, nice shoes and cellphones.  Talking about cellphones, what would a Japanese do without his phone on the train?  Sleep? Haha, anyway, back to Ikebukuro. 

There's a shopping center called Sunshine City, a building so high you might see the Fuji from up there, a city in the city as they say.  Sunshine City has everything inside, and on the top of the building there's a restaurant and a sightseeing deck.  I think Ikebukuro is booming right now, lots of new chainstores at unbeatable prices open there, Big Camera for example is probably the best shop in Japan, the cheapest to buy your stuff.  Cheaper than Akihabara, the real electronic part of town so that says enough.  Make sure to pass by Ikebukuro when you're in Tokyo, it's easy to get there with the JR Yamanote, it's the circle line around the city.


Sayonara
ps: Day 6 is all about radio & party.

It involves an explosive live performance by Schlachthofbronx from Munich, Germany. Incorporating elements of dancehall, dubstep, kuduro, electro, house and folk music alike, their bass-heavy tunes make the perfect soundtrack for another sweaty ghetto rave affair like only Low Up can provide. Bring on the confetti gun, the Bavarians are coming!

1/ Listen the minimix and move ur feet!

download

2/ Watch the trailer and start to dream

3/ DJ, download this free tune and pimp ur mixes with some german booming music

/ Listen the minimix and move ur feet!

download

4/ Read this excellent interview made by dj 319 from low up

Here's a little q&a with Jakob and Bene from Schlachthofbronx...

The first question is this picture of Munich nightlife that i found on the internet. Do you perhaps recognize any hardcore Bronx fans?

Ha ha, not really. But... hey, on the left, in the back, ain't that your mother?

How did this collaboration come about and what sort of stuff have you done before?

We are three people doing Schlachthofbronx. One is a drummer in various bands, the other two are dj's. The focal point of our music is that the people have to motherfucking dance and scream! We are not ashamed of using whatever style it takes to get them to this point, be it dancehall, polka, bavarian or hungarian folk music, dubstep, uk funky, hiphop, electro, booty bass, ghettotek or whatever. One could say the Schlachthofbronx sound is like a massive rhinoceros driving around in an autoscooter, heavily drunk.

Does the name Schlachthofbronx refer to a particular part of Munich? Is that where you live?

Yes, 'schlachthof' refers to the big meat fabric in our neighboorhood and 'bronx' represents our aim to create something like a block party kind of atmosphere where the dancers interact with the dj's to get the party cooking. Other parts of Munich are nicknamed Schwarlem, Fürstenfeldbrooklyn, South Sendling and Giesing Heights.

Could you illustrate with an anecdote how ghetto your neighbourhood actually is?

One of us lives above a christian sect. Their plastic altar is wall to wall to the dancefloor of what we call a tabledance bar. The owner wears old FC Bayern trainers. On the other side of the street there's a former public bath where leftwing anarchist youths organize punk concerts every other day. Not really ghetto, but we love it.

What got you into bass music? Any favourite artists or records?
Too many to mention. Right now it would be Kingwendu from Tanzania.

We choose cd's. We don't wait for a vinyl release if we want to play out a track. And soundwise: we dare you to prove your records sound better than our cd's!

What does the title 'Landergschwister Isatalerghettoschuten' mean? Is it even German?

That's a remix we made for G.Rag und die Landlergschwister, a really good folk group from Bavaria. It is called the 'isartaler ghettoschützen remix'  to be precise and yes, that is German. Difficult to translate but basically it's s a parody of the typical names of all these fake make-money-with-cheap-wannabe-traditional-songs kind of bands here in Germany. Isartal is a part of Bavaria and schützen is like shooter... Actually, this track is one of the four tracks on our 'We Run This' ep that will come out soon on UK label On The Brink.

How should the Belgian people prepare themselves for your live show?

Lots of sleep, healthy food, thoughts about nice things... and then come and waste all that in one night, bumping and grinding! Useful items to bring to the party include rave whistles, rave horns (the ones with gas or compressed air are the best), small towels to wave, anything that makes noise really (surprise us)... And if somebody has a confetti gun, that would be great! Ours just broke down the other day and we might not get a new one in time.

SUB FOCUS: I’m assuming that in the meantime a lot of people know about that story but to me it still stays a fairy tale for the rave generation. A friend of mine gave Andy C a CD with a couple of my songs. Andy called me a couple of days later. At that time I didn’t know that he received my music, so I was completely surprised. A couple of months later he released the two tracks and from than I completely focused on producing.

Now, a small 5 years later, your first album can be found on the shelves of many music shops. But for a couple of years already there were some rumors about a long-player.

SUB FOCUS: in 2005 I noticed that here and there on the internet the message turned up that I would release an album, while there was nothing said about that at all. I wasn’t even the asking party for that. I’m happy that I got the time to grow slowly as a producer and to broaden my horizon. The album doesn’t only consist out of pumping dance floor drum&bass tracks, which I'm famous for, but there are also some more experimental tracks on the CD, with a lower bpm.

What do we have to imagine with that?

SUB FOCUS: I’m listening to different kinds of music. I got a lot of inspiration out of the music of Daft Punk and Justice, and especially the latest times, I like to listen to artists like Stephan Bodzin and Oliver Huntemann. I’m also a fan of Boards of Canada and Burial, and the minimal drum&bass guys like Commix, D-Bridge and Instra Mental. You will notice it when you listen to the album. There is no giant leap away from the stuff I released since now, there’s still a lot of riffy, banging dance floor material on the CD.

Trips to other genres like your fellow label friends Chase&Status were a big success, with their dubstep and hiphop they effectively reached a way bigger audience than they’ve could have reached with their drum&bass.

SUB FOCUS: it’s clear that people are not at all so stuck to genres like they used to be, and that gives you the opportunity to be more free in your productions. Chase & Status got from every direction a great reaction to their dubstep trips and in the meantime they didn’t get alienated of their drum&bass fans. There are other artists that inspired me in that direction, like Noisia. With a lot of success they have their breakbeat/house stuff, while they  still have their reputation in drum&bass. Their slow songs are obviously made out of their hand: like in their drum&bass they sound equally Noisia in their breaks stuff.

Do these things put you on a path to leave drum&bass?

SUB FOCUS: No, on the contrary. In my eyes the genre looks stronger than ever. You notice that a lot of musical genres have their moment, and disappear after a while. Drum&Bass is still there after more than ten years, thanks to the artists. Most of them are devoted to their favorite genre, and apart from that, there are a lot of capable producers in drum&bass.

In general I think that the artists in drum&bass are way ahead of their time, technically as sonically.

But sometimes it is fun to break out of that frame and try something totally different, like for instance the electro tracks on my album.

By using vocals, some of your companions also reached a wider audience. That is something you don’t seem to do, for now...

SUB FOCUS: On ‘Soundguy’ I used some sampled vocals, but I prefer to work with instrumental, electronic music. At the moment I’m working with a couple of singers on some songs, but I don’t know if something will come out of that. I’m just really picky when it comes to lyrics, and to finish it in a proper way takes a lot of time.

You used to play in a rock band, when you were 13 years old. How did you go from a rock background to computer based music?

SUB FOCUS: I was never a really good guitarist and I found it really difficult to write music with a guitar. I directed myself to the computer, because that seemed a more pleasant way to work on ideas. You can easily build up a melody or a song, and to me it seemed harder with a guitar. In that period I was in contact with Ninja Tune, Chemical Brothers and the first jungle artists like Goldie. They were doing something that was completely new and that converted me completely to electronic music.

 On the album of TC there were some noticeable cooperations between you two. The wobbly jump up of him combined with your electro-shaded vibe seemed a scoring hit. Is there going to be a sequel to that?

SUB FOCUS: Yes. In the meantime, for my album, I made a track with TC. There were a couple of people with whom I worked in the studio, like Fresh (previously Bad Company, directors note), he used to be my big example. This guy has an incredible feel for detail and it was really interesting to work with him on music. Everybody has a different way of working, you know, but we clearly had a lot of similar ideas. I’m also working with Jim Davies, a guitarist that used to play with The Prodigy. I really like this way of working.

Will 2009 be the year of Sub Focus?

SUB FOCUS: I hope so. The album will be in shops by the end of april and as a teaser there is the ‘Follow The Light’ which is making a big buzz.

Lets hope Hof Ter Lo survives it.

Sub Focus’s album ‘Timewarp’ appears on Ram Records. He’ll be playing the 25th of April in Hof ter Lo on Rampage, together with Danny Byrd, Murdock and Original Sin

http://www.myspace.com/subfocus
www.rampage-dnb.be

Murdock made a promo mix for the first Rampage party, listen to it!

Murdock - Rampage#1 Mixtape

download

1/ Baobinga Riddim Selection Mix

As a starter listen to this filthy mix! It'll make you jump out of your chest for sure!

This was recorded for Mad Decent in December. It's still hot like two thousands of biatches!

download

2/ Drop the Lime - I Love NY (Baobinga's Fuck Up Like Woah Remix)

And as special presents, for you lucky InYourBass readers,  Baobinga was nice enough to give us an exclusive song from his side!

download

3/ Interview by Red Ant

Now time to discover more about this badman producer and dj:

Can you fill me in a bit on your background?
OK, I grew up playing classical piano from when I was 6 yrs old, played drums most of my teenage years... Was heavily into metal and indie until I heared techno and jungle and realised there was a world of mad sounds and riddims out there... Fast forward a few years and I started putting out heavy breakbeat records with a strong garage feel, check out The Bashment Track and The Feeling...
After a while, the heavy breaks scene lost any sense of garage swing and fun and turned into cheesy trance and pendulum-lite so I moved towards a more techno-oriented sound, but still with the cut up beats of breakbeat... and then recently I've been experimenting more with ragga beats and just all round interesting riddims.
Good examples of that would be my remix of The Ragga Twins 'Ready 4 This' on Passenger and my collaboration with Tayo and Spyda 'Style & Trend' on Soul Jazz. Been listening to a lot of B-More too, and that has been incorporated into my sound too - check out Jump Up Get Hype with Virus Syndicate, or Hood Thang on Pure Filth.
DJ wise I've always mixed it up though, so I wouldn't say that my sets fit into any one particular genre.
 
Talking about playing different genres...what do you think about the fact that nowadays most of the parties are only one genre related?
Well it was like that for a long time and I always hated it, cos I always thought the point of dance music was to expose people to interesting and unusual sounds they may not have heard before... but then you'd have people complaining that you played a Slam record next to a breakbeat tune, or you mixed speed garage into dubstep and so on. And its those kind of mixes that interest me the most, rather than 2 full hrs of only one sound. However, I think its relaxing a bit now - there seems to be a lot more openness to mashing it up. - but the danger with that is that everyone just plays the biggest record in each scene, which is also kinda boring!
 
Purists are everywhere…
Yep, and also it’s everyone’s natural instinct to go for the safe choice - but music is always the most exciting when it’s NOT safe!
 
People like Tayo, Unbalanced Jack, yourself and others try to break boundaries between styles…What do you think about the crossover between styles?
There's a lot of people out there mixing it up now, just not people who are known for coming from the breaks scene... people like Jackmaster from Numbers in Glasgow, or obviously Diplo.
 
And some sounds from south parts of the world are coming to refresh the party…
Yeah, Baile funk, Kwaito... Although I've not heard a huge amount of Kwaito that I am really into to be honest. And with Kuduru I really need to look beyond Buraka som Sistema - they're great, but there's more to it than that, and I don't really know much apart from them.
I found a blog dedicated to kuduru that looked like it was pretty close to the source (but can't find it now), and there's blogs like Mudd Up which work on making these links.
 
You're better known for your breaks tunes but you and your partner ID also produce dubstep and other styles...what do u think about the dubstep scene evolution?
Ha! The main thing I think about it is - why the f*ck did I not jump on it when I first started hearing it in 2004??? Me and Ed (I.D.) used to listen to J Da Flex's show on 1 Xtra religiously and absolutely loved it - interesting beats, plenty of sub bass, no cheese - it was perfect! But for some reason we thought we couldn't jump on the bandwagon, it would be morally wrong or something - IDIOTS!!!
But yeah, dubstep is great, I love the way the 2 step sound is coming back, love the techno influenced sound, and love the occasional big banger. Its a bit of a shame that now there is 'the dubstep bass sound' but that always happens.
I also like the fact that its a scene that values skill in DJs - mixing quickly and using vinyl.
 
Dubstep world evolution compared to breaks evolution has grown up a way faster and bigger......how can you explain that?
Dubstep stayed focussed on innovative music rather than bootlegs and always taking the obvious choice. Hence, it has retained some degree of mystique and excitement.
 
Do you think quality of production in dubstep is more interesting and creative?
When it started out definitely... I used to play the tunes that I was loving to friends who were into breaks and they'd ask how you were supposed to dance to it! In a way though, a lot of the early dubstep productions weren't technically amazing, but they had a vibe that was so interesting, and they were focussed on bass, and the space in the tracks.
At the time, a lot of breaks stuff was maybe louder and crisper, but that's not always that important.
 
Have you heard interesting beats coming out from this side recently? (in breaks)
Reso's stuff crosses over into the heavier side of breaks... But not heard a huge amount that's inspired me from 'the scene' per se. But there's loads of tunes that have interesting drums that aren't seen as breaks - like that Jan Driver tune on Made To Play, Rat Alert. And I like what MAN Recordings does in getting people like Seiji or Stereotyp to link with Brazilian vocalists – always interesting results.
And I should really mention Ed I.D and his solo stuff like To The Line on Passenger, and his Cool and Deadly release- both sick!)
 
Breakspoll 2009 is coming...any favorites?
Mostly looking forward to seeing Reso & I.D. back to back
 
What’s your plans/future releases for the next few months?
At the moment I am waiting for vocals back from Virus Syndicate, Spyda and a manchester singjay Killa Benz - so need to get these all finished up and signed... Have another speed garage thing kinda finished which I'm nor sure what to do with yet, and I also want to get a solo Skinnz release sorted – DJ Pinch’s Earwax have taken a couple of tunes that me and Ed have done together. And as always, vague plans to start a label!
 
You will be in Brussels at LowUp on March (7th March)
According to the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy…On Earth, Belgium refers to a small country. Throughout the rest of the galaxy, Belgium is the most unspeakably rude word there is. What is Belgium for you?
Belgium = great chocolate and great beer! Really looking forward to coming over, I've been to Bruges on holiday but never to Brussels, so can't wait to check it out!
 
 
Thanks Sam…see ya @ LowUp this WE!!!

More about Baobinga > http://www.myspace.com/baobinga

4/ Low Up this WE

U know what to do aight?!?!?

Baobinga ft DJ Nasty - State of Ghetto Jacking

http://www.inyourbass.com/parties/168

Who's behind the kaboooom bang bang parties?

Me Klodia; I handle the bookings, the promo and the overall organization of the events.
In addition, u have the resident dj's Dave Luxe et Kesmo aka dirty K, both really good dj's with different kind of influences  (house, rock, hip-hop, electro, ghetto tech, baltimore, booty bass pop, new wave, grime, etc… )
And then a group of happy party people on the lookout for good parties. They are the key of the mood of the kaboom parties. And most often it's BANG BANG ,p

What is the concept of the kaboooom parties?
It's really simple: right now, I'm booking forthcoming artists (no big names). But after a while I think I'll start to book some big headliners, but I'll always keep the idea that it's important to make people discover new artists.
Artists that are still in a phase when they appreciate the music they play. They got the party mood in them. And more important, they are dj's  who look at the party people to check if the alchemy is present. I'm using the promo text as a cooking receipt :

"Mix a blast of electronic beats with explosive visuals and a crowd of party monsters ready to celebrate 'til dawn.Add a pinch of glam and a hint of rock'n'roll attitude. Spice it up with some krazy, raging, relentless, sensational magic.Those are all the ingredients it takes to get an explosive night. Shake it all fast and you'll get "KaBoOm"!!!

I have the feeling the big dj's often loose their passion once they reach success.
A dj is booked to play his style, but most importantly to make the crowd have fun, it's important to keep that in mind!


How do you define the music played on the parties?
"ça crash un max!!! "
From house, club, rock, hip-hop, electro to ghettotech, baltimore, booty bass and grime.

Who are the people that attend the kaboom parties?
The new generation, young people who are discovering clubbing.And the old skool generation, always ready to have fun.
Straight, gays, cool people ,) Belgian heads you can say ,)

Why in Brussels?
Because it's my hometown and I love my city! Some years ago, Brussels was the place to be for clubbing, it was on the same level as Paris or London. The real clubbers came to our country. Our capital isn't the place to be anymore, with the help of some Brussels promotors we are trying to make this clubbing vibe relive again.
Parisian people often come over to party in Brussels. London is another story, the parties there are really too high level to make London people come over here.

Kaboom resident's and guest's that blessed your parties?

Dave luxe (kaboom/regulators)
Kesmo aka dirty k (kaboom /bootycall)
Mavy da pimp (bootycall)
Kaptain cadillac (bootycall )
Lazy flow (clekclekboom )
Raziek (top billin /databass)

And the guest for the 21st are :

Digikid 84 (folistar/playerz/fr)

From the hip hop movement, he quickly discovered the art of beatmaking and took influences  out of that  to make an electric sound.

The BPM of DG84 goes faster and the sound is changing into a sweet mix of pop, hiphop, new wave.

He's always been a fan of the 80s and everything connected to to it
( A-HA, Boy Georges, Michael Jackson, TOTO, Eurythmics, ..) even the old cartoon's "generic" music where the old generation is still attached to.

Digikid84 gives us an anthology of all the music he likes and he mixes it with heavy and powerful drums to give a maximum of effect.

French Fries (clekclekboom/street tease/fr)
AT the age of 14 MR FRENCH FRIES aka "Valentino Canzani" listened to hiphop made beats for some rappers and touched for the first time a pair of turntables, mixing hip hop , funk and FAVELA CHIC.

At 15 he's a resident DJ and started producing BAILE FUNK, BALTIMORE CLUB MUSIC, and concentrate himself on ELECTRONIC and B-MORE CLUB.

He participated in the making of the music for the movie "Cherche Fiancé Tous Frais Payés". At 16 he was invited to be part of an online music store (www.clekclekboom.com) with artists like DJ SANDRINHO, KAZEY & BULLDOG, DJ GERO, TOMB CREW...

In 2008, he got signed by STREET TEASE  for his compilation. At that time he started to play in several music clubs like  PARIS PARIS, RESPECT ETE D'AMOUR, LE REGINE, REX CLUB, FAVELA CHIC...
 

Why should we come to a kaboom party?

To have fun, listen to bumpy sounds, to forget the week before.

What's your plan for the future?

At the end of march, beginning of april there will be a Kaboom 6.
In may I'm planning a big kaboom in collaboration with a crazy promotor, but I can't say more right now.
I'm developing a new party concept, and maybe a residency of kaboom in a cool bar.
All is still to be confirmed, but i ll stay in touch with u

Place to be on the 21st 

Barrio

Place de la Chapelle 6

1000 Brussels

Info

http://www.myspace.com/kaboombangbang

www.myspace.com/vanlooklodia

http://www.myspace.com/daveluxe

http://www.myspace.com/dirtyk1

Who is Loxy?
i started djing in 90/91 it was the influence of a rave i had been to previously which put me on my path.

How did you get involved in D&B?
Well it was house and acid when i started, but it evolved into dnb so it maybe a cliche but i been in it since it evolved.

What do you think of the evolution of D&B and where it's going?
Well i class jungle and dnb the same, it's just that people tend to think of jungle as the stuff with ragga vocals but its all drum and bass and jungle. As for the evolution... things always change, but everything is always feeding from the past. Vibes seem to come back round in cycles.
As for pinpointing what the future hold exactly, i havent yet manifested that ability. But im sure the people will keep the fires burning.

What do you think of the scene in England?
Being the home i think its pretty solid. It has its ups and downs. I would say lately its definitely getting better and more open minded to the deeper sounds, thats always been there i might add, but it is getting the exposure it needs.
When i started djing u had everything on in one night from doc scott to bukem from bukem to hype thats what it needs to be again.

Who are your favorite D&B artise & Dj’s?
New artist that push the boundaries inspire me in general.
Really feeling what JUNE MILLER are doing their production is fresh.

With what software do you work?
I used to use a lot of hardware back in the day but i got things more minimal these days. I'm running logic 8 with the plug ins that are needed. I dont have loads, i like to keep good solid plug ins that i use regulary, little 8 track alesis desk and behringer truth monitors.

Who are your influences?
Photek
Source Direct
Doc Scott
Goldie
Digital&Spirit
4 Hero
Ltj Bukem
Lonnie liston smith
Curtis Mayfield
Stan Lee
Jack Kirby
Alan moore
Jah Shaka
Nas,Mos def
Mobb Deep
etc..

What advice would you give to peeps who are startin' out?
Try And keep it fresh, keep it minimal and persevere and try and be original in some form.
Take time out on your mixdowns, quality is very important.

What is commin' up?
Last drum and bass event @ the end on 23rd jan
Check out www.repriseagency.com for updates on where i will be appearing.

Watch out for all CYLON and X-TINCTION AGENDA releases
Loxy & Resound - Burning Shadows LP (CYLON RECORDINGS)
Loxy - X-Perminetal E.P. (HORIZONS MUSIC)
Loxy 12" (DIGITAL SOUNDBOY)
Loxy & Perpetuum - The LEAGUE (SUDDEN DEF)
AS well as a rmx for sudden def also

What are your plans for the future?
Keep putting out constructive music that i feel needs to be heard.
And to never focus on sales, but on quality. That's what i want to represent.

Do you have site or links to myspace?
www.repriseagency.com
www.myspace.com/loxydj

Any shouts?
All the soldiers keeping me in good beats and the promoters putting on good parties
lets keep it going

Who is Morphy?
I'm a producer from Scotland, I've been making d'n'b, dub and electronic music for ten years now with previous releases on Function, Nerve, Direct and Urban Takeover.

How did you get involved in D&B?
I was pretty interested in jungle/drum and bass and I bought Goldie's "Timeless"  in 1995 -  but then I was mainly into electronic stuff Aphex Twin etc....   It wasn't until a few years later I went to see Kemistry & Storm and experienced the physicality of dnb on a big sound system... It was one of those nights where the music just gets into your soul - I was completely blown away  - bitten by the jungle bug for life!!!

What do you think of the evolution of D&B and where it’s going?
The music has evolved a lot since the jungle days - technology has gotten better and production has tightened up hand-in-hand with that progression,  I don't think the actual quality of the music has got better with time but there is always exciting music around if you dig deep enough. The concept of evolution requires change, so I would say that the producers who have fresh ideas and who are keeping the music original and interesting are the ones helping the scene to evolve the most.

What do think of the scene in Scotland?
It's good, Scotland isn't a big place but there are several successful club nights such as Xplicit keeping the ravers happy.  There are also some great DJs such as ENO, Paul Reset and Yellow Benzene and up-and-coming producers such as Linden.   

Who are your favorite D&B artists & Dj’s and who inspires you?
I like artists such as Digital, Amit, Klute, Breakage - people who have got their own original style that they do so well and who continue to make quality music.
DJ wise I would probably have to say people like  Loxy and Bailey - people who play a variety of styles across the board and mix it to perfection!

Do you dj?
I'm a producer first and foremost so I wouldn't call myself a DJ - but yes I do DJ sometimes.

With what programmes or hardware do you work?
I use Logic for sequencing my tracks.  I also use some outboard gear to get the sound i'm looking for.   One of my favourie toys is my Korg SE-500 tape echo which I often use in my dub effects!

Who are your influances? (productionwise, d&b or other)
My influences come from a combination of electronic music and dub.  I loved electronic music during the early 90's, artists such as Aphex Twin, FSOL, Biosphere and in particular The Orb.  They (The Orb) brought the heavy dub influences into their music and in turn got me in fascinated about the dub sound. I find a lot of early dub recordings are just bursting with invention and expression and that really inspires me.  I love the sound that artists such as Scientist would get on their records, using and abusing every piece of gear in the studio to its absolute fullest.  I like that sound because it has an edge to it - I hate music that sounds over-produced or clinical - I like it straight from the heart.

What advice would you give to peeps who are starting out?
Find your own sound, something that makes your music unique.  I would also suggest taking your time with your music. 1 great track is better than 10 average ones.

What is coming up? (bookings, nights, or realeses)
I've been trying to develop a live set which I hope to unleash sometime in 2009 but that's still in the making.  Release wise i'm doing an EP for Nerve Recordings and also have material coming on Cylon.  I've also done a remix of Ges-E and Osmani Sounz' "The Calling" - which will be landing on Nasha Recordings next year.

What are your plans for the future? (where would u like to take it)
Just making music, enjoying it, and seeing what pans out.....

Do you have a website or links to myspace?
I have a myspace page which is http://myspace.com/morphydubbed

Do you have any shouts?
I would like to give a shout out to my good friend and Nerve label boss Paul Reset, Continuity-B, ENO, Kiat, Loxy, Gremlinz, Dub1, Nolige ...... and the dubzilla himself Digital!

MORPHY and KIAT - Function Dub

"I think u will always win and loose people when u vary in style, but I take the risk"

I read that you prefer to make your live sets on MPC than with a laptop, a choice that fits the stage, if I've been following well. Can you explain us how you envision those two steps? live/stage. You also play live drums?
Yeah, I prefer to play with MPC's to activate something more visual for the public. At my place I produce on a PC, then I reconstruct phases and transfer on my MPC, this allows me to improvise during live performances.
(euh live drums?) euh...yeah, I play live on the pads, the beats, the synths, the sounds, the bass all at the same time, sometimes even the growling of my cat!

You are a producer that likes to do a lot of collaborations. What are the next ones? Or any remixes? What do you think are your most remarkable collaborations? Some dreams on that level?
Architeq will bring out a maxi with remixes of his track Birds of Prey, on Tirk Records. There is one remix of me, one of Debruit (my friend from Music Large) and one of James Pants. I will also do a maxi on the label One Handed (London) with artists like Bullion and Paul White. And Wireblock, the label of Jackmaster (with records of Hudson Mo, Rustie...) also would like to do a release!
Collaborations aren't really my priority at the moment, I did one with 215 the freshest kids and Tita Lima or D3CCPT, but that is more for the album. A project I would like to do is to do a duo with Dorian Concept, who did a remix of Chico on Low Club EP. He's a genius, and I think we have a similar taste in sounds and breaks. He's even on a level that I can't reach. My dream...mmmm.. a collaboration with Q Tip, the best MC in the world, man!
For me at least!
 
Is there already a "number 3" at Music Large (Fulgeance immediately got signed for 3 Ep's and an album...)? What do you have in store for the near future, and the not so near future?
Yes, it will arrive really soon, but the album is still in preparation. It's my first album and I prefer to take my time. For Music Large there will be another Débruit, a mini album of Onra, I think, and we would also like to do a maxi with Take, who fits well with the label, in our opinion.
 
Can you tell us more about your label?
Music Large was created as an impulsive decision following the Tribute to Masakela, on the Chico EP (it was for a contest for Wax Poetics). My friend Pierre aka Rekick created the label with Pantone, and from that time everything started out serious.
Pantone isn't part of this anymore, so right now I'm more involved in Music Large and taking a bigger role in the label. Everything is going better and better and through the artists the label is growing a lot bigger.

Any tour coming up? When are you arranging a date in Brussels with 1000 names?
Ahahaha! I'm not the booker, its up to you to spread the information and to interest people in booking me! Spread the word!!
For now I'm happy about the tour, Vilnius with his collective Mondayjazz invited me again, Nancy with l'Autre Canal is supporting the project, I'm leaving for the first time to the USA, to Columbus (Ohio) and Ann Arbor (Michigan). fEUx, an austrian beatmaker invited me with three dates together with Dorian Concept, so everything goes really well, and I have a hard time believing it for once....heheheh....!!!
 
Some suggestions for the InYourBass readers?
The last Matthew Herbert Big Band or the maxi of Dorian Concept (Maximized) on Affine Records.

Who is Rupture? (the crew)
Rupture is run by Double O & Mantra and our resident dj's include Equinox, Panka, Bekah, Hades & Theory. Blackeye, Fozz, Joker D and Bassline host the night.

How did it come about?
We started Rupture 2 years ago when there was only really one party every month or so that we would go to and feel like the music was on point. We deceided to try and do our own thing. Our first party was at Dingwalls a 400 capacity club on a Sunday night...we half  filled it  and we learned a lot from that night , dont start off with too high expectations!

Who are the main headz?
Mantra : I started dj'ing when I was 16, got myself on internet radio and eventually started playing out around 2002. I've played at various venues around London, including Turnmills, Ministry of Sound & Herbal. I've also played abroad in Poland, Italy and New York. I tend to play the darker more experimental sounds but also love up my deepness. D-Bridge kills it on that front for me.  I've been getting into production more over the last couple of years and really want to focus on that as much as possible.

Double O : I  got into the scene around the time of electro and breakdancing. Started dj'ing around '89 and making beats soon followed that. Labels I have had releases on include Formation (1994), DZR, and Lab Logic.

What is your role in d&b?
We dj, produce beats and run Rupture.

What do you think of D&B these dayz?
We think that a lot of the more underground producers don't get the recognition they deserve. It's really hard to get your music signed as there is a lot lesser music being put out. Having said that, there are so many wicked producers comIng with a really fresh exciting sound. People like Nolige, Resound, Dub One, Blocks, Reactive, Data, Escher, Nebula, Ben E, Threshold, Social Engineer.

You guyz make beats?
Yeah- Double O more than Mantra though!

With what do you work?
Double O : I use PC and Cubase  
Mantras : I recently upgraded to a Mac that's running Logic

Who are your influences? Mantra : Dj wise, Randall, Equinox, Loxy, Kemisty & Storm. I was too young to go ravin to people like Dillinja, Photek, Dj Crystal, Wax Doctor, Source Direct back in the day but those sounds still have a huge influence on me. There's a few producers coming with a proper heavy sound,  real moody darkness which I'm proper feeling. Cylon beats and producers such as Escher, Data & The Untouchables are abolutely heavyweight!

Double O :  My brothers' reggae sound system which I grew up with, Detroit Techno, Hip Hop, & Soul. Back in the day the dj's i rated were Grooverider, Randall, Frankie Valentine, Winston Hazel

What advice would u give to peeps who are startin' out?
If you are going to run a night you have to be totally committed and dedicated. Our second birthday was our best party yet, pure vibes and ram, it makes all the long cold nights of flyering worth it!  Also if you're starting out as a dj or producer believe in your sound and make music from  your heart, try and create your own vibe, and always be humble and be willing to take positive criticism.

What is commin' up? (bookin', rupture nightz, or realeses)
We just had our second birthday which went proper well so we will hopefully have another date before the end of the year. Double O has some music forthcoming on Mac2 , Rythm Seeker, Hidden Hawaii and Syncopathic Audio.

What are your plans for the future? (where would u like to take Rupture)
We have found our dream venue in Corsica Studios. It has such a heavy sound system and the space and vibe of the venue is perfect. We will hopefully be runnin' 4 parties a year, spacing them out can make sure we take our time with the line ups and  make sure that we put in 100% to the promotion.

You guyz have a site or links to myspace?

www.rupturedbeats.com
www.myspace.com/rupturedbeats