Mapping out the evolution of footwork, one of the most radical dance music genres of the 21st century, with a true pioneer, by Oskar Jeff. Photography by Will Glasspiegel
RP Boo RP BOO OPERATES on his own terms. Alongside the likes of DJ Rashad and DJ Clent, he jumpstarted footwork, a genre of rhythmically complex dance music that originated in Chicago. The style went on to pique international interest in the late 2000s, and to this day he remains one of the most singular producers to emerge from the scene. 2023 sees the release of Legacy Volume 2 on Planet Mu, a compilation of classic tracks and lost gems. The project marks the ten-year anniversary of his first release with the label, who themselves helped introduce the sound to the wider world. I sit down with the man behind the moniker, Kavain Wayne Space, to discuss how it all came to be. He has an endearing manner, enthusiastically regaling me with tales with a mixture of wisdom and wonder. He traces his introduction to Planet Mu back to DJ Rashad, who was a key instigator of footwork’s international spread via his extensive touring. “I trusted in Planet Mu, by way of talking to Rashad, Space explains. “He was one of the first people to talk to me about the label. He always told people about all the other producers in Chicago that helped birth this.” Rashad tragically passed away in 2014, but his influence continues to loom large over the wider electronic world. Space’s debut album Legacy was released in 2010, a quasicompilation made up of old tracks and new, a defining document of early footwork. Legacy may seem a strange title for a debut full-length, but it was a sign of an industry playing catchup. The errant footwork scene had been active in the Chicago underground since the late ’90s, mutating from ghetto house, itself a localised, rougher evolution of the city’s more conventional house music. The solo release was a follow-up to the first Bangs and Works compilations that Planet Mu had released in 2010, itself the result of the connection made between Rashad and label manager Mike Paradinas. The two releases compiled reams of unknown artists from Chicago, a densely potent display of the anarchic and far-reaching possibilities of the genre. High-speed syncopated kick drums batter unrelentingly, while percussive hits land haphazardly and gonzo samples are hacked at mercilessly. The result is often jarring, a polyrhythmic mass that often marries sparse instrumentation with dense composition.
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HE TRUE SUCCESS of Bangs and Works lay in its highlighting of the individualistic nature of each artist, representing a fertile scene that held endless potential. Amongst those included was RP Boo, who seemed to exist within his own reality altogether. One of the highlights of the compilation series is his track ‘Eraser’, which rightfully reappears as the opener on Legacy Volume 2. The track exudes pure nihilism, assembled from a staggering sub-bass rhythm, rigor mortis drones and antagonistic taunts such as “no holds barred, eraser” and “fuck dat, burn them all”. Its forebodingly glacial pace is at odds with the frantic speed the genre is known for. The vocals echo the fervent trash talk Space witnessed at the legendary Chicago dance battles in which the sound of footwork first began to take shape, notably at events like War Zone. “There I met a whole set of West Side footworkers,” recalls Space. “Their style was crazy and I’d hear them talk crazy to each other. So I thought I’d make a track for them.” The tone of the track seems to be a far cry from the man talking to me, beaming as he recounts its inception. But then
