Motion Magazine

MOTION

Nightlife Fashion Music

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advert

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full of stuff

So, here it is… Motion magazine.

Having always been fascinated with UK rave culture I gravitated towards the idea of creating a magazine that looks at the bits and pieces from our extensive history of getting wasted. The UK has always adopted music, applied youth, a dress code and a dose of rebellion to create our own musical subcultures throughout the years.

The UK has always had a colourful nightlife where youth culture thrives under the strobe lights and heavy bass.

Take The Blitz Kids for example that had their own way of dressing and their own attitude which revolved around clubs like the ‘Batcave’ during 1979 in London.

Like those that gathered in warehouses in the 80s, or those that drank champagne they couldn’t afford at garage raves, this magazine is for us to live through some of the memories and be inspired to create some of our own.

As well as the past, the future and current situation of nightlife is just as important. The club scene is a landscape that is always changing, with closures and new openings happening on a weekly basis. But hopefully ‘Motion’ can give you an insight into what the eff’s going on at the moment.

Olivia Kelly Editor In Chief

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Contact Me: oliviakelly_1@hotmail.com 07538668992

A huge thank you to everyone that has helped me. And a special thanks to, Rob De Niet, James Anderson and Gina Johal.

Fashion 6 Club Trends - Gold 8 Club Trends - Braids 10 Club Trends - Mesh 68 Christopher Shannon 70 Tzuji 72 Nasir Mazhar

18

Is The Record Shop Still A Thing?

24

Is Luxury housing killing London nightlife?

66

Keepin’ it Casual

Profiles

Interviews

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20 46 52 56 58 60 75

Chemical X Ewen Spencer

Remember?

Copyright Disclaimer © 2015 The content and writing provided in this magazine are governed by the copyright laws of England and the United Kingdon. Duplication, processing, distribution, or any form of commericialisation of such material beyond the scope of the copyright law shall require the prior written consent of its respective author and/or creator. all pieces of work and material exhibited on this site are under copyright and ownership of the creator: Olivia Kelly

Features

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Niche Shoom

Just for fun

Madam X Dave The Rave Flyer Collector Moony Olivia-Louise Miss Red Gemma Dunleavy Kele Le Roc

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Bad Case Of The Munchies

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The darkly lit club is a place where fashion has always had a platform; the nightclub is a catwalk show in every sense. Everyone dons their ‘Saturday best’ to show off their well thought out style choices, or even to show their rejection of the conventional ideas of fashion. That’s not to say that you have to go all out, in head-to-toe vintage Versace paisley print to catch people’s attention.

Most people nowadays are just opting for a simple statement. One or two pieces of jewellery, but the chunkier the better. All gold everything, fake or real is the new thing. Think MC hammer meets your stereotypical English ‘chav’. The bigger the better so grab your interlinked chain necklace and matching bracelet, slip on some rings by the gold plated pound and opt for something toned down to wear so that jewellery really shines.

The price of gold is up so it’s never been more important to show your appreciation with some cheapo tat. It’s almost so bad it’s good.

bracelet you are wearing means you can’t lift your wrist above your head –even for the drop, and the chain you are wearing must leave a bruise the next day from all the dancing.

Gogo Phillip would be a good place to start looking for your next purchase with their weed leaf or 3d geometric earrings. They also have a selection of rings that seek a double take. Most of their jewellery has that vintage feel that wouldn’t look out of place paired with a padded shoulder blazer from the 80s.

Or check the Stussy website for some skate wear inspired bling. Their signature monogram is spelt out over belts and cuff bracelets or in stud earrings. If you have a little more cash to splash head over to Maria Francesca Pepe who will make your eyes light up at her playful and ‘goldtastic’ designs. There’s also nothing like an old school Casio watch to sit amongst your other over-the-top accessories.

Now you’ve had your initiation you can go forth onto your gold hunting adventure.

Rules to follow are; Make sure your hoops are so big a bus can drive through them, always make sure the

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RA GET B

There’s nothing worse than being at a rave with tightly packed sweaty bodies with your hair down. It’s even worse when you get that feeling you’ve left your one hairband at home or remember giving your last grip to your friend when her fly-away’s became unruly on the way to the club.

AD GET F IDED

Then you get into the club and realise you have the whole night stuck with your hair, only if you could just shave it all off right there. Let’s rewind to the beginning of the night, before you left the house, when you should have braided your hair. No, it doesn’t make you look like a school child, more like a girl that knows she’s going to be partying hard that night.

It gives off the essence of an urban rave warrior with the brains not to let her hair get in the way of her dancing the night away into the early rising sun. Style it up in a way that suits you, channel your inner FKA Twigs, use corn rows in a section of your hair or do a loose fishtail to the side. Just don’t go looking like Pippy Long Stockings.

Braids or plaits or have been around for longer than you’ve been alive. Their origins can be traced back 6,000 years often found seen in artwork from all around the world.

There is evidence that the braid originated in North Africa as it is inscribed on cave walls.

But also the hair style appears in Greek art and has been used in many cultures throughout the years. Braids have even been at the foot of a debate about race, with some claiming that people adopt ‘black hairstyles’ such as cornrows as fashionable fads, as this hairstyle has been worn by people of colour for years.

Whatever the argument, the fact is that the braid has played its long part in history. Showing that this hairstyles functionality has been tried and tested, so why not adopt it for one night of madness?

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ED

Hair braids work well with (excuse the buzz-word) ‘sports-luxe’ trend which is a ‘Vogue-y’ way of saying dressed like you’ve just left the gym. Relaxed or slouchy fit clothing, with sportswear brands like Nike taking centre stage.

The ‘French plait’ hairstyle goes so well with this trend because of its implied practical aspects that is assuming you can plait the back of your head.

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It may seem obvious that in a club you would want to wear the lightest, most skin airing fabric there is. Something that’s versatile and

goes

with

pretty

much

anything

is

a

must. But you still want to look good right?

That’s where mesh comes in and saves the day

(or

merges

night).

into

trousers ultimate

crop

and

The tops

shorts

lightweight and to

fabric

panelling give

off

‘I-didn’t-even-try-hard’

on the

vibe.

This trend is most often seen on the crowd of girls you envy as they walk past. Probably on their way to an event knowing they will get

queue

jump,

free

entry

and

drinks

because they chatted up the bouncer, even

One designer that always incorporates mesh in his collections is Alexander Wang, that parental advisory sweatshirt has forever been in our dreams since we first laid eyes on it, with its relaxed fit, mesh panelling and capital letters plastered across the middle. Even the Versace spring/summer 2015 collection used mesh to its full potential.

Alongside prints that harked back to the more vintage designs that became popular during the garage era; mixing cocktail party dresses and club wear aspects.

Your old ASOS dress with the mesh slashes that leaves little to the imagination can work, dressed down with some air max 90s and a vintage denim jacket. Although never forget to wear something under your mesh, a bralet or a sports bra - never bare all unless you want to scare people away.

though their boyfriend is the headlining DJ. Don’t let this make you feel like a fat beast, treat yourself to an Acne Studio’s oversized mesh

top,

paired

perfectly

with

a

floppy

Put it this way, mesh should always be part of your rave uniform as it’s a nonsweaty way to dress meaning you’ll always look cool, calm and collected.

bucket hat and strappy bra underneath for a simple and clean aesthetic. Or try something a bit more out there like HotMesses printed longline tees over a pair of Adidas leggings for a style that can take you from shopping all day and chilling at a mates to the club.

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The first step to contacting anyone is drop them an email, give them a quick ring, or if you’re feeling ballsy enough go knock on their door, however contacting Chemical X this way was always going to be tricky.

His elusive character and secretive persona means that he wasn’t likely to start answering a list of 10 to 20 questions.

His previous club kid life and creative background has led him to produce the most unimaginable artwork made out of the substance that rave culture sits upon…the pill.

One of his first ever pieces were in collaboration with Ministry of Sound where he was tasked in creating a logo for them.

Chemical X noticed the need for branding in club culture as nothing similar had been done before; his logo still hangs proudly above the doors of MoS today. Other projects have seen him work with Banksy, Damien Hirst and he has gone on to design logos for Paul Oakenfold and Vans to name but a few.

The ecstasy pill itself has become an icon for the acid house days and has longstanding association with illegal raves. Its legacy still lives on with millions of revellers taking to the clubs on the weekend to knock

one back. The work of artist Chemical X chimes so well with the times of UK rave culture and speaks of the visual elements of raving that are normally associated with intrusive colours and loud designs. The artwork is clever mostly because it evokes different feelings in different people, which is the main point in art, right?

The most recent exhibition of his work was shown at ARK at Bear Cub Gallery.

The piece was named ‘The Prophets of Ecstasy’, the pills used made up a pair of church like windows called ‘The Rapture’ and ‘The Reckoning’ both with the signature ‘smiley’ and a white Dove.

Chemical X explained in one of his only 4 interviews that, “I’d be surprised if we make it to the end of this run if I’m honest. Any sniff of the authorities getting involved and they will be removed from the show.”

Unfortunately his works did get withdrawn from this exhibition because the Metropolitan Police were about to come and spoil the fun.

So, who answer is

is we

Chemical X? The don’t know either.

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G N I H T E SOM HE NIC

t to ou wan hing y the t y r , e t v u d abo sic, e n u a m ine e t l n u s re o Bassli of bas n you’ ounds e ive s h g w ’ d g n n r a i hea crack ‘whomp e n v o nce i a t c d i repeti z to ge mus of d buz e gara e e k l d i y e l t e s n e ar h This . n ot t muc o n re a h e , t m lice a you niche’ hts co the po lled ‘ but in he lig a t t c u l , B a e l s e n i e p . e t m p un olours ine sc someti ique a c e l n r s s u n s d a e a n w s g b a t the music races ed the e of i about of ioneer becaus rator cerned that p u n c merely o b c u e l h c the s. T usic ular.” ndale, ughtie rather ound m partic e Baxe the no ndergr eet up , Stev u r e h t r d e g s u n h u k t a t o c n r a n ve th since his b acks o t t g cal ad t i n i t le i s o a p e n u t m r e m n r a e this ers i 92 wh n happ Simila ble ex ne. ng ing 19 t nota ve bee d punt e i r s a e c t u o h m s t d m o u c e c h e d l n i s h l we sce ly. T lice ne mus t s heffie o i n t S p l e i an s c c n n s e i d i a a r b a t b Bar club opoli until ; it h o the at the own st e Metr u jungle h irth t t j t s b n r t e t o i e v g I v e n a e , g bei garag t Jam d, and cerns’ s w e n u o ed k o J r t i c c s l a a y Just safet down s own -up bo an e line public ys, it h ‘ a n t w e o e t t b n a w e h e o du s ch hav o be t a i t h of h w d h n . e t s o d n r soun happe artist ellati the No grime e canc s had on and h g a d t n h n i o r d y L o a t le ime et f e ich ci long t g targ ing th ver wh For a ongoin ut dur ment o b u g s , r a s a w nd s e n . ebate guns a l succ been i events this d s musica rugs, a , d to t c n s i w o e s p o t b u o d st the nds link a line m won ha ound ting tle arent f Bass r t t p o g u i p h r p l a t e e r s d o i e h n e N r Th se e wit the u we he ed. Th ce ental k over is one h to t silenc violen detrim nds too music throug u d o a e d d s h i e n d t e u o s a n o J a r ene’s h tr g g c e r n s n d e i e n d r c p a bassli u un ence n musi ng d 2 feat d even w i i T n o r v a r u e e g t prise k e a r i o n e sce home or n no su unes l ' O f on the It was rts. T ng to s H 'two u rs in . t r o K c p o U d e s d n f e UK cha a f e their in th ed na Be’ oken’ t x d n r n i e o b e m n G t l e unity r a h p m t a t t o ‘He and he re ine com am, wi at's I c l e h i t s r W N u s t ‘ B a s n ain b n m e . i h scene sed ag of the Platnu the ma that w ub clo ground spirit ty in l r i c e e r h d a e t n l h u u , t pop 2009 and m the on fro persed lived… reacti as dis ear. h y short g s n ’ a i P g w n R.I. follow reatin e e its fu h h c t i N with c ‘ t d a n e h e t e t t a h t i t h forgo assoc to see throug g ot be e club ub. n clear n l l i g n t c p s n a t t e ’ i c i h e t k l g k i o Lo The is sound the ni r forum d r a e e o Q l u d g f u q l n c i J e d a i n D i e part d liv Sheff 2006 r eed. this u e DJ in oved an neve ind n s from l i i i t l l e l e s s a n s l o s o s p p a a d o B t pe and the b The e soun d ‘ r n he bes a d o i t h a f l h s f d t s o e o i Some and “ ple g ar, it launch the ba of lly his ye al he peo sline” u t t v t s f u i “ a s o y v b s r e m e e a r o c e r u fr suc r th Febr osphe t the ive fo ul atm ed tha .” The al’ in . The they l powerf d show ywhere Festiv n n needed t a a s o s d l m t n n l c a e e t a e w s d b e l 0 b e 5 r age at s i e t a e f r v s w th ove r Shef have e ave a enre d o h g e I f t l k b s l r u s o wing i a l i p w Mez al’ any c radem al sho of th Festiv festiv ne. DJ ame a t ure e e c s for k c n e o a s i b l e e l c v r b s c o b u s i l e t cl us ‘Ba and a nce th and Ou e i l d ving m S r p e i “ e o e r d e n h , n p t t its till a Sidewi o many ng tha eir re is s from s 7 sayi was th at the heard in 200 h und. t t e o I v s ' .

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SHOOM SH OOM OO M SHOOM SHOO SH OOM OO M SHOOM SHOO SH OOM OO M SHOOM SH OOM SHOOM SHOO SH OOM OO M 16

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In December 1987 the sunny Balearic sound landed in London in a club called Shoom that became an epicentre for acid house, funk and soul sounds that intertwined with the hippy, easy living nature of the White Isle.

just goes to show that our generation admires this time for its sense of freedom and mass social connectivity - something which people now seek on social media.

After spending a whole summer in Ibiza, Danny Rampling came back to London with a mission to launch a new club night in a fitness centre and gym on Southwark Street that he had deejayed at previously. As he knew the owners, Rampling simply asked to rent the space out and that was it, Shoom sparked the start of British rave culture as we know it.

This time was full of optimism and positivity which the smiley symbolised in every way.

The drugs boom at this time obviously helped the feeling of love that spread through the clubs and gave people their carefree attitude and sense of euphoria.

There’s no surprise that the people of our generation now look back at this time through rose tinted glasses, wishing they were there to experience this increased sense of connectivity with people that is lost today due to the advance technology.

Dave Swindells photographed this enigmatic subcultural movement and said, “It took the potent cocktail of acid house, Balearic beats and (the widespread availability of) ecstasy to turn a club scene that had started going around in circles into a raving culture covered in smileys, dressed as Day-Glo-surf-disco pirates or in hippy chic and waving its arms in the air so much that sales of Sure went through the roof.”

Shoom closed in 1990 three years after it opened, this could have been an omen to the acid house rave scene? By 1995 the death of Leah Betts perhaps symbolised that this era of partying was over. The media created large scale moral panic that whipped the nation into more shock and despair that took the magical edge of the raving. Your mum and dad finally knew where you were going on the weekend.

In recent times we have seen the ‘warehouse revival’, with places like Sidings Warehouse in the London Bridge area. Cable also used to be hidden beneath the arched bridges before Network Rail reclaimed the building for apparent redevelopment of London Bridge station. And Crucifix Lane warehouse has recently announced its closure for the same reasons. General manager Alex Brooks saying “all good things come to an end.”

The warehouse revival has also cropped up in East and North London. Warehouse LDN for example is on an industrial estate in the middle of Tottenham hidden amongst an MOT garage and mounds of rubble. The renaissance of warehouse clubbing is supposed to give people the experience of raving during the hedonistic days of the late 80s and

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The record shop used to be part and parcel of every high street, a gathering spot for music enthusiasts and record collectors. Despite this it seems that record shops have been in rapid recline in recent years and with the arrival of the Internet and record shop giants like HMV, the future of independent shops looks bleak.

Record shops have become iconic in the past for their association with nurturing specific genres. Take Big Apple Records for example, placed in Croydon, it was the hub for artists like Skream, Benga, Mala and Hatcha even worked behind the till. The shop became a meeting ground for great minds to gather and could be said to have aided the development of the early days of Dubstep.

The shop has closed since but its legacy certainly lives on.

as the epitome of ‘cool’. Research by ICM backs this up as it found that 53% of people that brought vinyl records had no intention of listening to it, all for show then. Those people are most probably the type to buy their records along with their offensive clothing from Urban Outfitters, which is probably why the hipster haven claims to be ‘the world’s number one vinyl seller’. If that doesn’t show that the record shops are in trouble, I don’t know what does.

More than one million vinyl records were sold last year, but although there has been a vinyl revival it doesn’t mean to say that our little record shops are making any money from it whatsoever. The current trend in buying vinyl’s can only show that there is a new breed of person that sees the vinyl

Another blow to indie record stores came in the recent news of BM Soho closing its D’arblay Street doors. Not even London’s longest running record store is safe from the almighty powers of gentrification in Soho. BM Soho wrote on their Facebook page, “Unfortunately due to a contractual dispute

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One day set to save record shops up and down the UK is ‘Record Store Day’ on the 28th April. It started in 2007 in America to showcase their record stores and the UK soon latched onto the idea and following soon after. The day gives a round of applause to some of the hard working record shops that battle to survive in such a brutal market.

And gives them opportunity to welcome new customers and put on performances and other events in store, reigniting that much needed buzz about record shops again. The day also encourages limited edition products to launch, items that would make any music fanatic smile with glee.

Perhaps it just the high street that is changing around us, although there have been many record shops that have closed, the online market is growing showing that this is maybe the most modern way to buy vinyl’s now rather than getting that record store experience.

But does it really?

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With a lack of shops on the ground, and more variety at our finger tips on the internet there’s no surprise that people are choosing to purchase their vinyl and CD’s online.

Music lover and frequent clubber James Johnson said “I buy records quite regularly usually every couple of weeks, online most the time nowadays as most of the good record shops in Birmingham have gone. Online record shops like Red Eye, Boomkat, Juno & Discogs is where I often buy from as they always have good stock to pick from.”

Student and vinyl buyer Natalie Adams says that, “I feel that the future of record stores is that they are going to have to find other selling points. Like how Rough Trade, although already being a well-known and respected brand, they keep current by having frequent in store performances and BM Soho who despite being shut down at the moment continued to do well through not only selling records but also by having Beat Control residing in the downstairs selling DJ equipment.”

Just like how people do their food shopping online, clothes shopping online and everything online. It doesn’t mean to say that every shop will disappear; more like the ones that survive on the high street have a difference and have meaning and importance in the customer’s eyes.

“

“

IS THE RECORD SHOP STILL A ‘THING’?

over the building that has been home of BM Soho for the past 25 years we have been forced to temporarily close. Our landlord has been certain that our address will join the massive gentrification of Soho and regrettably we could no longer afford to fight the legal battle to stop that happening anymore”. Although they did put a stop to our fears when they announced that BM Soho would be back ‘bigger and stronger than ever very soon in central London.’

53% of people that buy vinyl records have no intention of listening to it.

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Madam X is the 23 year old boss lady of BPM records, and extremely talented DJ that gathers tunes of all styles into mixes that will be sure to get your feet tapping and head nodding at the very least. Madam X is the type of DJ that blends the best of the past and future music referencing the obvious grime, garage and dubstep but doesn’t place too much importance on genre meaning that pretty much anything could crop up in her sets, leaving you with a sense of excitement at the thought of the unexpected.

MADAM

Where did your journey with music begin? What was the moment you realised you wanted to DJ? At school I used to sing and play guitar in a jazz band, and geeked out loads in the music department. After I started taking Music Tech classes the obsession just kind of naturally progressed from there. It was learning how to use Ableton that made me want to learn how to mix properly with decks, so before I went to university I bought turntables, and went ham on the practise.

Was there anything growing up that influenced your musical styles?

Pretty much everything… Where I grew up, my school, my friends, my parents, the TV, radio, my music teachers. When you’re young you just absorb everything like a sponge. I was always into all kinds of music but it wasn’t until I started actively going out, sneaking into Fabric and clubbing when I was quite young (I shouldn’t admit that should I?) that underground music took preference over everything else.

What older music do you enjoy? Any old skool garage? Acid house? Anything from the early days of grime?

I’m into a bit of everything. Of course there’s the obvious grime, dubstep, garage, but I’m also into a lot of 80s stuff, synthpop, boogie and soul. And classic rock music like Led Zep, Pink Floyd, The Who and RnB too; I enjoy it all. A lot of the time when I’m just chilling I like to revisit old albums; it’s good to listen back to old stuff because you might pick up on something you missed, or just remember how classic a record was. When I play out I always try to mix it up between the old and the new.

Do you think that the old influences the new?

Why? Although looking forward is an important part of DJing, looking back is just as essential.

So much of what you hear today will have

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been influenced by something else, and that something else would have been influenced by another something else, and so on. A lot of the time an old tune can be relevant years down the line, but people just take a while to catch up to it. ‘That’s Not Me’ by Skepta is a perfect example for instance; it reached the Top 40 but the record sounds like something produced back in the day.

Those same sounds you’d identify with DJ Wonder, Wiley’s ‘Morgue’, Skepta’s ‘Autopsy’ – they’re more than 10 years old!

Do you remember playing your first set?

Explain where and when?

The first public DJ set I performed at was on this carnival float riding through Manchester during freshers week in my first year at uni. Surreal for a first gig, but pretty jokes.

What is your favourite song of all time and why?

Oh my days I can’t answer that, there are loads! At the minute I keep playing Leon Vynehall’s ‘Inside the Deku Tree’ because I put it in my Valentines mix and now I’m a bit obsessed. Anything with string instruments and a groove will do it for me to be honest!

Tell me something quirky and interesting that most people won’t know about you I learnt to skateboard the other day and it made me so happy. In another universe I’d like to think I’m a champion in the world of professional skateboarding.

How did BPM come about? What’s it like managing your own record label?

Phaze One and T.Dot started the club night around 5 years ago in Manchester when they were both students there. At the time there wasn’t really anything pushing grime or funky, and that was the music these guys had grown up listening to, and wanted to go out and rave to, so naturally they got together

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goes viral, the major have no clue about their history, scene, culture, context, and push them in a completely different direction musically, that leaves their fans completely confused. I guess the problem is that once this happens, the underground sounds tend to stay in the underground. Only now, with people like BBK are we experimenting with authentic Grime sounds on a mainstream level, and this I fully support. To be honest, this should’ve happened sooner, but like I said before, it takes a while for people (especially the mainstream) to catch up.

Do you go clubbing? If so what’s your favourite club?

It’s more about the club nights for me rather than the club. Soup Kitchen in Manchester is home to Swing Ting, and loads of other really great stuff, and definitely puts on some of the best line ups the cities’ seen.

The Roadhouse is where we do BPM, and where Hoya:Hoya’s hosted on a monthly, and that’s one of my favourite club nights also.

Would you like BPM to expand in the future?

Is this something you’re working towards?

Are there any new signings or releases that your excited about?

Yeah definitely, I’d like to look at getting the club night in other regions of the UK for sure. We’ve got a residency going at Bussey Building in London which is a great home for us, and obviously get more releases under our belt. The next one is a really beautiful EP from Philly and Jazz. Really different from the other releases we’ve put out.

You share your time between London and Manchester, what makes the two cities different musically?

Although there’s so much going on in Manchester, the scene is relatively small in comparison. So you get more of a collaborative & supportive approach with the music there.

A lot of people work together on a lot of different styles too. Take Fox for example, he did a weighty release with the My Nu Leng boys in Bristol, but can still jump on a Levelz track, or spit on something a bit more soulful & funky with the Swing Ting lot. In

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London it’s so big, and there’s so much going on, you have a lot more of a competitive atmosphere, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing because competition is motivating. I feel like Manchester gives you a lot more freedom to experiment, and do what you want to do with less of the pressure you get in London.

“

“

with a couple other uni mates, and BPM was born! 2 Years later when I came to Manny for uni, I joined and we worked at building the club night, changed our venue to Roadhouse after we got more of a dedicated following, we had a radio show on Manchester Community Radio which encouraged us to turn into a Record Label and the rest is history! It’s great running the label, just a lot more time-consuming than people will tell you!

The rest of the night moulded into a KevinAnd-Perry-Go-Large montage with flashing lights, alcohol and throbbing techno.

Do you think that underground sounds should stay underground or is it good that people become more open minded towards different genres?

I’m all for developing and giving the Underground the opportunity to breakthrough into the mainstream but I think the main issue with a lot of Artists when they reach that level of audience and sign a deal with a major, is the pressure they feel to dilute their sound. It’s happened with a lot of grime artists in the past. They sign to a major after one of their tunes organically

of side-projects in Manchester as well, so keeping busy alongside the gigs.

Are you playing any festivals this summer?

Do you enjoy playing them? What makes them different from playing clubs?

Yeah I’m waiting to confirm a couple more dates, but can announce Pangaea, Atmosfield, Hijacked & Blissfields festival. I’ll most likely be doing Reading again. To be honest it depends on the size of the stage. I play to thousands of people on the Radio 1 Dance Tent at Reading which is really cool, but I don’t like feeling so far away from the audience. When you’re up there it feels really lonely and the faces in the crowd look like flashing lights. The noise they make is super-encouraging though, but I’m a club person at heart. I’ll always prefer playing to an intimate club night where I can see and interact with the audience.

That’s what does it for me.

What’s your most memorable clubbing experience?

I’d like to say Trouw in Amsterdam, but memorable probably isn’t the right word for it considering how shit face drunk we got. I was in Dam for a gig, and stuck around an extra couple of days to watch my mate’s Cinnaman and Shamiro do their thing at Colors in Trouw. The rest of the night moulded into a Kevin-And-Perry-Go-Large montage with flashing lights, alcohol and throbbing techno. Cinnaman also killed the set! One of the best DJ’s out there if you haven’t already heard of him.

What’s the best set you’ve ever played? Why? Musically, the sets I play at BPM are always my favourite. I think it’s because at BPM I can literally play whatever I want, and go as weird and crazy as I like with the music. Apart from that, DJing in Berlin at HomieLoverFriend festival a couple of summer’s back was like nothing I’d experienced before. The energy there was incredible; I’ve never seen so many people go so crazy in the hot sun like that. The Amsterdam – UK - Berlin connection that day was strong.

What’s coming up in the future for you? Is there anything that you’re extremely excited about?

We’re working on the next release from BPM with Philly & Jazz which we mixed down at the Red Bull Studios in London which I’m pretty excited for people to hear. I’m also getting the plans in motion for my next Kaizen Movements Compilation which is massively rewarding, but an absolute ball ache to put together. And getting in the studio a lot more, trying to take it all in, and see what I can make of this Electronic Production business. I’m working on a lot

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IS LUXURY HOUSING KILLING LONDON NIGHTLIFE?

London’s going through changes, and it doesn’t look like the good

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type of change either. The word gentrification has been bandied about more recently than

ever. But what does it really mean? And what does it mean for our nightclubs?

The landscape of London clubbing is inevitably going to change over time but recently we’ve seen more clubs and pubs close quicker than you can say “get me a pint”.

The word itself is a more dystopian way of saying ‘urban renewal’, which to be honest sounds like a bohemian idea where places like Hackney will have ‘community’ injected back into the streets. But this is hardly the case, urban renewal, gentrification, bastardisation or whatever you want to call it, in this case is when the young, creative types move into a ‘rough and ready’ area.

They then add value to the area and then the media in turn claim that the place is better than sliced bread. Finally the wannabe’s with loads of money move there and increase housing costs due to the hype drummed up by over-excited journo’s. It also entices property developers to land grab and build overpriced property. This type of change is all sensationalism and is unfortunately in exchange for community, as the locals that have lived there for generations can’t afford even a drink in their local, let alone a new flat.

The influx of snooty trust fund kids that spend their winter skiing in France is becoming a risk to our freedom to dance in our clubs. The flats that already tower over our favourite clubs are complaining, demanding noise is kept to a minimum, as if they didn’t expect to hear the bass echoing the streets or a girl screaming for her mate at 6am. One clubber we spoke to, Grace said “I went to XOYO for the Skream residency one weekend and I thought the bouncers were extra sketchy about the noise, I was talking to a mate and they came over and said ‘please keep it down, we have neighbours”. Those exact neighbours are the ones they will be expecting a complaint to come from in the morning, threatening their existence once again.

One step in the right direction was the e-petition to ‘introduce mandatory noise complaint waivers for anyone who buys or rents a property within close distance of a music venue’. Although it’s now closed, it garnered a total of 43,085 signatures.

However the reply from the Government is that the policy and legislation that is already in use is more than enough to allow communities to enjoy live music while managing the noise environment and without placing an unnecessary burden on businesses. They also set the bar pretty high with a minimum of 100,000 signatures needed before it is ‘considered’ for debate by the Backbench Business Committee.

In recent times we’ve seen Fabric face closure as their license was reviewed by Islington Council due to drug deaths. This showed not one but two things, that the council and police are using this as a scapegoat

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to close the club. But it also showed the solidarity and union amongst clubbers of which over 40,000 signed a petition that was created by Wil Benton on Change.org. He wrote at the time that, “To lose fabric has serious cultural and societal implications - not to mention economic (given it attracts a global clientele) - for both London and the UK.”

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This mass support of ravers felt like a virtual gathering of like-minded people, just like if we were all dancing in a field together listening to acid house during the 1988 Summer of Love.

Fabric lovers from around the world soon commented with their opinions, Lionel Hill from LA said “Part of the reason I went to London was to go to Fabric. Being in a club that high quality that featured underground music instead of top 40 crap was a breath of fresh air. Newsflash - the world is hard to live in, stressful and busy and people are going to do drugs. You can either educate them or watch their ignorance kill them.

Closing Fabric just means they’ll be dying somewhere else.” And David Kennedy previous DJ at Fabric argued that “This is councilbacked gentrification under the pretence of public safety and crime prevention.”

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Added support came in swathes from social media like Facebook where the page ‘Save Fabric London’ was created and gathered more than 52,000 likes. This mass support of ravers felt like a virtual gathering of like-minded people, just like if we were all dancing in a field together listening to acid house during the 1988 Summer of Love.

However it is worrying that a club of such stature could come under threat as if it was just about to be snatched from us for good, just like that, overnight. Whilst we, the punters feel helpless to the change and only have faith in our fellow ravers.

We’ve even lost Plastic People in Shoreditch recently that was played out with a final set from Four Tet and resident DJ Floating Points. The reason for it closing is rather vague indeed with its founder Ade Fakile saying that it was nothing to do with licensing but rather management leaving. But would you really close such a notable club that has championed underground sounds for over 20 years, just because a prized member of staff was leaving? Or was it really closed because of pressure from the council due to continuous complaints from neighbours?

It seems Shoreditch has been hit pretty hard with other venues like Vibe bar closing, because of what the owner Allan Miller calls “excessive and unreasonable restrictions on our activity”. This area is the perfect example of gentrification, where it used to encourage the ‘young creatives’ to live as it was more affordable, it is now swamped full of brats, executives and anyone else that can afford the average rental value of

£515 per week. Not me or you then.

In London the night time economy equals £66 billion surely showing that the shutting down and erosion of nightlife will sure have a long lasting and devastating effect if nothing is done about it soon.

Also for a country that puts itself so high on a pedestal above other places like Amsterdam and Berlin, we’re certainly not anywhere near their level of management or consideration when it comes to nightlife.

Amsterdam along with other European countries elects a night mayor to patrol the streets and be a voice for clubs and ravers alike, his name is Mirik Milan. He names himself a ‘rebel in a suit’ and argues that “I come from the Amsterdam nightlife scene, if you want to change something you have to speak the same language. If I walk into the city hall wearing my cap back and pink glasses I won’t get anything done.” Private school educated, 40 something Politian’s commenting on our past times is similar to asking my 80 year old grandma what she thinks about nightlife and youth.

Disillusion springs to mind. So it seems that Amsterdam has got it right in a sense, give the nightlife the same attention as day time activities like education. But even still the position Mirik Milan fills is voluntary, so perhaps shows that many areas still place little importance on their night time economy.

One of the most publicised examples of our nightlife deteriorating is the planned

closure of Ministry Of Sound in Elephant and Castle. This ongoing battle has seen the club rally against plans to build a tower block nearby. Boris Johnson who wants to make “culture accessible for everyone” gave the go ahead for the work to continue. And states in his 2020 vision that Elephant and Castle is going to be transformed with over 4,000 new homes. Leaving us to ponder, what it will be next, The Coronet?

Although the developer, Oakmayne, has agreed to give the tower block acoustic protection and a ‘deed of easement’, who’s to say that people still won’t complain?

The tale of the Turnmills nightclub may be one that we will become much more accustomed to. The club was once owner of the first 24 hour license founded in part by Laurence Malice, but is now an office and retail complex worth £50-75 million. Its modernist, sparse detail is such a contrast to when it would have been packed full of sweaty bodies and vibrating bass.

Raving has long brought people of all types together, gay, straight, black, white, green, and red and so on. People oozing with love, high on ecstasy broke all type of boundaries especially in terms of racism and football hooliganism. So when we hear that clubs in London’s gay district Soho were under attack it’s very disappointing for the large community of clubbers.

The shutting down of Madame JoJo’s has been one of the most heart breaking closures to

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date, trading since the 1960s it became an emblem of the club scene mixing cabaret, house music and everything in between in equal measure, creating a name for itself that was loved by many.

In this case one violent situation was enough argument for its license to be revoked.

Alex Proud, owner of the Proud bars in London has been a key commenter on the demise of Soho’s nightlife. He describes Soho as an emerging ‘Disneyland for grown-ups’ and argues that “you may still have a notion of Soho as all being like Brewer Street. This still has a fair number of adult shops on it – and, until recently, it was the address of Jojo’s. However, very little of Soho is like this now. It’s much more about upmarket restaurants, trendy clothes shops, coffee bars and groovy office space. It’s now also very much about residential developments.”

The killing of such a vibrant and entertaining part of London could foreshadow the future of the city, characterised by property developers, moneymen and corrupt government that have local council authorities in their pockets.

No matter what way you look at it London is a place of great transition, we just have to accept that things change. Veteran clubber Hussaini argues that “I don’t think the future of London clubbing looks bleak.

There has been quite a bit of change but generally, only the negative things are publicised, good news is boring after all…

We definitely still have one of best and largest clubs scenes worldwide. I can only comment on this from what foreigners have told me on the dance floor. There is nowhere like London, especially when it comes to clubbing.” London would be a very dull, grey place without the colourful vibrancy of its night-time economy. But perhaps some parts of London are now too posh to party.

Just off Brewer Street is Rupert Street where The Yard, a gay courtyard pub and club, nestles between the great structures around it, almost like the walls have been closing in and squashing it. Its landlord, Hallmark Estates, wants to replace the 1880s Victorian stable with, guess what? Luxury flats. Luckily after much campaigning by the locals the council decided to refuse planning permission.

Westminster City Council’s planning committee chairman Cllr Andrew Smith, said: “The evidence is compelling and we need to take heed of the objections raised by English Heritage and conserve this structure. It is an important aspect of Soho, it has historical interest, not only locally but for the wider city and beyond.”

Over in East London the Joiners Arms are no longer ‘up in arms’ about whether it is to stay on Hackney Road. The pub was given an Asset of Community Value by Tower Hamlets council which allows the pub time to raise funds for the property and then bid for it. It was unsure if the council were going to keep their promise with the LGBTQIA community and Joiners locals. But with much campaigning from the ‘Friends of The Joiners Arms’ group the council recent decided to uphold this title for the pub.

Jackie Odunoye Service Head for Strategy Regeneration & Sustainability at Tower Hamlets council wrote, “I consider it realistic to think that there can continue to be an ongoing non-ancillary community use for the site which furthers the social well-being or social interests of the local community.” Congratulations to the Joiners Arms for putting two fingers up to gentrification.

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MUNCHIES 30

Photography - Gina Johal Styling - Olivia Kelly Models - Jarvis Kelly and Alice Curd

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Jarvis Wears ASOS Sweatshirt, Elesse t-shirt, Cheap Monday Jeans, Adidas Trainers, New Era Hat

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Alice Wears Reebok Trainers, Urban Outfitters Jeans, Gap t-shirt, Vintage Checked Shirt, Vintage Nike Hat

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Jarvis Wears Weekend Offender Bucket Hat, Ellesse T-shirt, Bellfield Jacket, Nike Air Force 1 Trainers Alice Wears Jaded London Crop Top, Stylists Own Adidas Jacket, Vintage Denim Dungerees, Adidas Stan Smith Trainers

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Jarvis Wears Nike SB T-shirt, New Era Hat Alice Wears Nike T-shirt, Topshop Beanie Hat, ASOS Silver Bomber Jacket

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MEET DAVE

On a strangely sunny afternoon in the suburbs of Essex, Dave Nicholson sorts through his impressive collection of rave flyers.

Not many people can say they have a whole room dedicated to their hobby, but Dave Nicholson can, with boxes and filing cabinets full to the brim with both new and old flyers.

On a strangely sunny afternoon in the suburbs of Essex, Dave Nicholson sorts through his impressive collection of rave flyers. Not many people can say they have a whole room dedicated to their hobby, but Dave can, with boxes and filing cabinets full to the brim with both new and old flyers.

Dave has such a friendly disposition, the type of guy that you would talk shit to for hours on a night out, and in the morning just remember laughing with this man but not a word that was said.

His story starts in the South coast city of Plymouth where he grew up, “I

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After Dave’s first encounters with the scene through these rave flyers you could say he never looked back as his collection grew and grew, “We got some Acid House tapes and really liked it, we were into Rock and Hip Hop at the time but when we heard this rave music we thought it was much better. My cousin used to send me down boxes of flyers from Essex from a record shop called The Bass Box, they used to do warehouse raves too, because there are so many more raves in London and I used to get hundreds and hundreds each week. We would plaster them all over our walls, like wallpaper.”

Filing cabinets, multiple boxes and flyers scattered on the double bed in the ‘spare room’, which of course is no longer really spare and acts as Dave’s shrine purely for flyers. But it’s all so organised, folders with lettering

to indicate what flyer is where. Even the various piles dotted around Dave knows exactly what they are. Shuffling through his collection he brings out his favourites to show me, “The Pez ones are some of the best artwork because he done it all himself. Although I’ve never been too keen about babies on a rave flyer but they seem to work quite a lot. My favourite design is probably the World Dance ones. You get no information on it only phone numbers

and never a venue. The police actually cancelled this one and intercepted it, one of them says ‘we tried desperately hard to do it all legally but were blocked at every turn and refused to sanction the rave’. It’s funny because a company like World Dance is so big and then for three years they disappeared and then came out again in 1992 using the same artwork.”

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guess I started getting into the raves back in 1991/92 when I was too young to go out, I was only 13 back then. We used to go round record shops and take all the flyers. My mate pulled out a couple of fantasia flyers and I thought that’s wicked artwork, and I thought wow, what’s this? A new culture, a new scene I’ve never heard of.” Not many people can say that at the age of 13 they were admiring artwork.

You would get like 2,000 ravers coming out the nightclub at 2 in the morning and just blocking the whole road, people wouldn’t really know what was going on, haha.

The flyers act as mini pieces of art and it can give an insight into the way raves were organised in the past, and of course offers some nostalgic pleasure. Dave mentioned that, “Tony Coulston Hayter did a lot for the scene he did the 20,000 raves with proper DJs and live PA’s. His events like Sunrise can go for over 100 quid on Ebay. This was a really famous rave, but the image is taken from stock art, which a lot of people didn’t realise. You don’t really realise until you start collecting properly where the arts from. At the moment there seems to be quite a big market for flyers, all these around here are my doubles that I’m trying to sort out and sell while the markets good to try and catch in on it. Normally we just sit on them and do nothing with them.”

Out of 15,000 flyers Dave shows me the first that he collected, “So these are Alpha raves, I was too young to go to any of these, I didn’t really start raving until end of 1993, these flyers are 1991/92. They’re from Plymouth, where there was a real bustling scene for rave back in the day. We had two clubs, one like the Camden Palace (KOKO) like an old theatre and another one that was an old cinema so both of them could fit 2,000 people in. It was so weird because Plymouth is only really known for fighting and The Navy but you would get like 2,000 ravers coming out the nightclub at 2 in the morning and just blocking the whole road, people

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wouldn’t really know what was going on, haha.”

Amongst the archive of flyers is some artwork done by Junior Tomlins, who has a long lasting connection with the rave scene having designed posters for promoters during the late 80s and into the 90s. “He designed for One Nation which is still going. Back then it all had to be done by hand, so those have been airbrushed on canvas, and then he would give that to the promoter. He said that once a promoter came back with one of these canvases, rang his doorbell and when there was no answer shoved it through his letter box! They would be worth thousands now.” Some of the Junior Tomlin’s posters have actually been cancelled by the council for its apparent hint to drug use.

it myself on Dream Weaver at college, after teaching myself. Someone just uploaded flyers onto it today which is what I like because not enough people do it!”

If the rave flyers are anything to go by the raves themselves must have been an explosion of psychedelic colour, pure happiness and up beat vibes. Some look back to the glory days, and others appreciate the current scene more now than ever. “People say ‘ah I wish it was like that now, there’s nothing like that around here’, but then you get people saying ‘there is stuff going on still’, and there is! Out in the country, these new warehouse clubs etc.

I think you can still find that buzz, if you look hard enough.”

But like with most things art has changed with the times, which is also something that interests Dave, “I’ve been looking at companies like One Nation and how they have progressed.

You get these, which are a bit more boring these days, there’s no fun left in the artwork. I don’t know if that reflects in fashions really because I don’t go out raving but from what I see on Youtube clips, you get people like ‘wow, everyone’s dancing like how they want to dance, there’s no one judging you, no one standing there and staring’ it kind of sounds like it’s gone full circle because that’s what rave broke away from.” This is the unity that perhaps our generation needs, rather than a selfie stick for Christmas.

Although Dave hasn’t been out raving since ‘Dreamscape 21’ on New Year’s Eve in 1996, the community of rave flyer collectors have the best memorabilia to remember the good ol’ days. And has been a medium through which he has made many friends. “Raveflyers.co.uk that’s Weeds website, his was the first sort of forum for rave flyer collectors back in late 90s, the internet wasn’t as developed as it is now but that’s how I got to know a lot of other people through that forum, basically just a message board really simple but I go to meet a lot of other people like Sam and Beach and we just like swap collections, and find out there’s a lot of flyer geeks like yourself.”

Dave’s own website, Phatmedia.co.uk, has been going for 15 years and is the largest online database for rave flyers. “I started it as a college project back in the late 90s. I think it was a company called Home Serve which basically did the templates then you put pictures on it. And then I built

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NY MO N M ON ON M O Y M OO Y M Y M OO NY N O Y O O M N O M Y M OO Y N O N Y O O Y M N O M OO Y NY M O N O O Y O M N O M OO Y N O M O N Y O N O Y O NY MO N M ON M O Y M Y O N O Y O M NY O Y O M N O M O N O M Y O N NY M ON M O Y M OO Y O O N O M Y O N M N M ON M O Y M OO Y O Y O OO Y N O M O N O M Y O N NY MO ON M ON Y M OO Y M OO NY ON M O Y M OO Y NY M O N O N O Y O M Y M OO Y N O M O N O Y O N O Y O N M N O Y M Y M OO Y N O Y M O N M Y O N O Y O M O Y O M OO NY N O M O N O Y O N O Y O N M N O Y M OO Y NY O Y M O N M O N NY MO ON M ON Y M OO Y M OO Y O N O Y O N M O Moony’s uplifting beats and garage vibes are enough to please the ears of ravers day in, day out. We got to know the producer and DJ and asked about his life and times in the music industry, from grime to garage to… cooking?

Where did it all begin? When did you start learning to make music?

Early teens really, a while after I learned to DJ I decided I wanted to start producing tracks. I got hold of a copy of Fruity Loops 3, installed it on the family PC then after a few months of trial and error got the hang of it.

What is your favourite song of all time and why?

Donnie Hathaway Song For You. It’s obviously very far removed from what make and play myself but for personal reasons it means a lot to me it’s a very emotive track and I’ve always said I want it played at my funeral.

What was the moment you realised you wanted to produce and DJ? I couldn’t pin point a specific moment, but I remember always having an interest in dance music. I used to buy Mixmag and listen to the free CDs and think these guys (the DJs) have the best job in the world haha. I must have been about 11, 12, they had a set of decks and some records at my youth club so I set them up one night and every night since then I was on them teaching myself how to beat match.

You don’t just stick to one genre of music, why is this?

I just get fed up, short attention span I guess... You can put whatever I make under the broader garage umbrella but really if I’m working on say four projects at a time and they’re all similar in style it becomes a chore and I don’t like it. So at any time I’ll be working on say one 2step track, one 4x4, one grime etc. just makes it more interesting. And I find little traits from each genre will trickle through to other genres I’m working on which I feel makes for more exciting and less generic music.

When you’re not producing or DJing who do you listen to?

Good question, to be honest I spend so much time either listening to what I’m working on or music I’d play as a DJ I get behind with popular music in general. I’m a big Stevie Wonder fan, I listen to a lot of soul and neo soul music apart from that whatever rap my friends listen to and whatever R’n’B CDs my girlfriend leaves in the car.

What do you want people to feel when they hear your music?

Anything at all! If I’ve made a song that’s made someone feel any type of emotion then I’ve done my job as far as I’m concerned.

Tell me something that most people won’t know about you.

I love cooking, I cook most of the meals in my house I honestly think if I weren’t into music I’d be a chef.

Is there a specific genre you prefer?

Obviously I’d have to say garage. When I first got noticed I was making a lot of grime and there’s always people that will associate me with it but I started out making garage and on a whole my garage tracks have always been better received. So as much as I’ll always follow and like grime you have to play to your strengths, I didn’t want to stay stagnating in one genre when I could thrive in the genre I started with in the first place.

Moony’s uplifting beats and garage vibes are enough to Was there anything growing up that influenced please the ears day in, day out. We got to know the producer your musical styles?

Absolutely nothing, you always hear musicians and DJ asked about his life and times in the music say they grewand up around this and that. Well Do you go out clubbing/raving, if so where? my mum liked Simply Red and my dad liked Not like I used to no, for the last few years industry, from grime to garage to…cooking?

Phil Collins and neither of them played an instrument as an adult so I have no clue why I’m musically inclined... But I’ve got a four year old son with a keen interest in my keyboard and decks and a one year old daughter that sings and dances to anything.

So they can thank me for their rich musical upbringing when they’re older haha.

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I’ve been playing out regularly so when I have a weekend off I don’t tend to go raving just for the sake of it much anymore. I do love the club environment I feel at home in a club, but honestly unless me or people I know are performing I’m a myth haha.

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music venue other than Concorde 2. All the other clubs have been sold on and re-opened as mainstream Oceana, Liquid and Envy, stagand-hen-type venues which is sad.

What’s the best place you’ve ever played and why?

Probably Outlook festival just because it’s a great festival to be a part of, playing in the open air in the summer to a massive crowd, ticks a lot of boxes for a DJ.

Is there anything in the pipeline for the future that you’re excited about?

EP releases? Anything out now?

Yeah currently wrapping up my latest remix EP, which if you missed previous versions is a collection of unofficial bootleg remixes.

That should be ready to go late March/early April. Also working on some original material with some great vocalists and singers as well as some big remixes, so yeah few bits in the pipeline.

Explain your most memorable clubbing experience Probably when I just turned 18 there was a garage/grime night in Brighton called Obsession. These where the first times I saw the artists I looked up to in a proper club, I couldn’t pick a specific memory but that era of my life really made me think “this is a bit of me”.

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That era of my life really made me think ‘this is a bit of me’.

Do you think that there any differences between garage and grime music in terms of the crowds you see?

There never used to be, it’s always been traditionally the same crowd but these days I find garage has a more diverse crowd both age and background, whereas grime definitely a younger more student type crowd.

You’re involved in making what some might call ‘underground’ music, which is always increasing in popularity do you think that people are becoming more open minded towards the more underground sounds? Is this a good thing, or do you believe that underground should stay underground?

Well yeah the term underground is subjective I guess it’s only underground until it gets a big enough following. From a garage point of view it seems to keep getting reincarnated

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(UK funky, niche, deep house, jackin’ house) Which all bubble away then become popular mainstream music then it goes back underground for a few years and until it’s next incarnation so looking at it over the years it’s neither good or bad it just shows that music goes in cycles and will always go in and out of popularity.

What do you think about the current state of the London club scene, are there any other cities that could rival the London scene?

What about Brighton?

If I’m totally honest I like playing up north. I think the London raver or just southerners in general can take it all a bit seriously sometimes. Whereas when I go to places like Liverpool, Leeds and Manchester people just want go party and are a bit more open to what they want to listen to.

But I don’t know maybe it’s just me, before DJing I’d never really been north of Milton Keynes, so it’s like in the last few years I’m discovering all these great cities for the first time so I could be a bit biased in that respect. Sadly the Brighton club scene is not what it used to be. I’m proud to have a residency at Audio (soon to be renamed Patterns) which is really the last proper

If you had to pick something musical that inspires you from the past, what would be and why?

There are certain production and arrangement techniques I’ve picked up from the old school garage producers I mentioned earlier, that I’ve stuck with till this day. For example bass programming from early Wookie stuff, drum arrangement from El B, vocal manipulation from Todd Edwards, track arrangement from Sticky. These are all things I’ve picked up and run with almost unconsciously really it’s only been the last few years I’ve been able to see what a direct impact these guys have had on my sound.

What is your opinion on the grime scene at the moment?

There’s some great stuff happening in grime, events like Butterz and Boxed. A new generation of producers like Murlo and Dark0 MC’s like Novelist have all helped give the scene a new lease of life and it’s great to see. From my point of view the problem I have and had is that it moved away from being club music with the raver in mind, and became basically a back drop for rappers and MC’s. There’s some really innovative and talented producers that have emerged but apart from a handful none of them are catering to the raver, maybe I’m showing my age here but whenever I’ve been to a big grime event in the last few years the highlights have been MC’s spitting over old classic instrumentals.

Really this is why I’m fully into this 4x4 bass garage stuff right now cos the energy of the music and the crowd reaction remind me of that era of grime. I’m playing 130bpm 4x4 bass music and having to give a tune 3/4 reloads in a club ‘coz people are screaming for it going mad. That said I’ll always love grime I still make grime, arguably my most successful track from last year was a grime track (Ballin’- released on project all out).

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Trees, Jamaica and reggae artist Burning Spear top the list for Miss Red’s inspirations. She’s currently living in Berlin so an email interview went forth, but positivity came pouring through her words as the Israel beauty told us how the collaboration with The Bug came about, and much, much more…

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How did you first get into music?

My brother and sister use to play to me in repeats doctor dre snoop dog beastie boys and Shabak Samech (Israeli rap crew in the 90s) as baby growing up. So I kinda got to know a lot of lyrics by heart and flows just from that. I got my first guitar when I was 10. I started composing and writing lyrics soon after. I did mainly classical guitar, and at the same time transcribed and learned all Metallica solo by heart.

My first band was me and another girl named Tal Engel who is an amazing vocalist coming from Haifa. We used to sing in harmony, pretty hippie. We performed at coffee places, jazz bars and whatever got us into the city. When I got a bit tired of the guitar and took a break from music, concentrating on theatre and poetry. Until I met the Easy Rider Crew which contains General G, Mentor Irie, Guma Ranks, Likle Madly and Yuta B who were making rub a dub and ragamuffin dances and bringing Jamaican vibes in town. They introduced me to the sound system culture, which I fell in love with right away. Since then we’ve been collecting and trading records, DJing and MCing and got out of Haifa, exploring the scene in the country and the world.

When and why did you move to Berlin? What is it about Berlin you like? How does it differ from London?

I moved officially to Berlin last summer because London was getting too heavy for me, also visa-wise it’s pretty difficult there.

Also Kevin (The Bug) moved here so I can keep my constant work with him. I have here the pleasure of staying in focus continually and working on my shit properly, I am kinda easy to destruct. So here I say no most of the time and lock myself in studio. I think it’s more about love than money around here… and the summer here is wicked.

How did the collaboration with The Bug come about?

The collaboration started in a tiny club in Yafo (Ana Loulou). Kevin was invited to play in Israel, and the day after the show the promoters hustled him to come and play for fun, and I just happened to hear about it. I haven’t seen the show live before. It was a

spontaneous party and it was wicked. I got really into it and grabbed the mike, and the same morning we rushed into the studio and recorded Dis Me Army.

You’re originally from Israel, What’s it like growing up there? What music do people usually listen to? Is there an ‘underground’ music scene there at all?

How is it like? Stress, and fear. Depending on what, how and where, but generally the country is continuously in war. Even if it’s not in your hometown, it is in your society, and stress and fear is generally there. But apart from that, or when you grow up with that basically not aware that life could be different, growing up in Haifa, which is in the north, for a child is pretty boring. Lucky to be close to the beach and have beautiful forest on top of mountain is what kept me going. The mainstream in Israel is listening to eastern pop bullshit or national pop folk songs. Yes of course there is an underground music scene, in Haifa my hometown we make our own shit alone and keeping the scene alive with opening our own bars raves and booze bringing it to the people, crew like Ghostown, 3421 and Easy Rider Sound wake up the town. And this area is open to everybody to party in peace.

It’s special and versatile you can get a lot of producers coming to Israel and a lot of self-making.

What’s the best/most memorable UK performance you’ve ever done and why?

The most memorable show I guess was the first one actually in Corsica Studios in London were my crew got in a fight with some Irish drunk dudes trying to take my ex’s jewelry. I got to see for the first time a real British crowd. Mentally marvelous.

What other new releases are you working on?

Any more collaboration lined up?

Right now I am working on my solo mixtape that will have a lot of collaborations with some of my favourite producers. Then there’s a collaboration with Japanese crew, Bim One, which is coming out soon. An Easy Rider album is being recorded these days. I’m constantly exchanging stuff with people.

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GEMMA DUNLEAVY

Gemma Dunleavy is the voice that so beautifully accompanies Murlo’s deep creations in a recent EP, named Jasmine. The 23 year old from Dublin isn’t just a pretty face and a unique voice, but is also into dance and cant wait for the summer.

When did your journey with music first start? Was there anything growing up that informed your interest in music?

I was singing and dancing from as young as I can remember so it was definitely my love for performing that informed my interest in music. I did everything I could to sing; I entered competitions, auditioned for the school plays, then TV shows. I would sing to anyone who would listen and I didn’t know exactly where I wanted to get to, I

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just knew I wanted to sing. I lived around the corner from Stephen Gately from Boyzone growing up so I’d always try to sing like him, forcing the vibrato in my voice. I remember one time when I was around 6 years old I was singing Boyzone songs, shaking my voice so hard to try to sound like them and my granny suggested singing lessons to me, I was crushed! After years of pushing myself into different areas with singing and performing I found a love for writing music

and sound which I didn’t know I had and that has kind of led me to where I am now, combining that with my love for singing.

What was it like collaborating with Murlo?

How did this come about?

Ah Murlo is great to work with; we were introduced by a mutual friend online and started working on a track which became the Jasmine EP. We didn’t actually meet until a few weeks ago, over a year after we started working together. I love his sense of melody and style of production, my ideas flow so easily when I work with him and the tracks have so much personality so it’s almost like adopting a character or role for each one. I love tapping into my R’n’B influences and I feel like his tracks really lend themselves to that style. It gives me this nostalgic feeling.

If you could work with anyone in music, who would it be and why?

I would love to work with Beyoncé, she’s had a huge influence on my vocal style and I’ve been a huge fan since her Destiny’s Child days so seeing what her creative process is like and bouncing ideas off her would be incredible! Oneohtrix Point Never because his work fascinates me so much, I love the structure in his music and I really admire a lot of the artists on his own record label. And Julianna Barwick, because her compositions inspire me so much in music and dance and creating a live show from that would be a dream!

Do you have any other new releases coming out soon? Any other collaborations?

I’m working on some more tracks with Murlo and have a couple of other features with some very exciting artists on the way. It’s amazing getting to collaborate and work with people who I respect and admire. I’ve spent a lot of time working on collaboration projects, most of which started out as side projects and ended up becoming a main focus.

I don’t like things to get watered down so whatever is demanding the most in terms of deadlines gets 100% of my time.

I’ve wanted to take time to work on my own stuff for a long time now but it’s hard to turn down opportunities to work with artists who excite you or who you’ve admired for a long time, so the last 2 years have been mainly focused on collaboration projects and it’s been great. I’ve slowed that down now and having spent the last few months working

by myself I feel like I’ve figured out so much, my ideas are much more formed and my head is so clear about what I want in music and that’s really rewarding. I’m looking forward to finishing some of that work and sharing it soon!

Are you inspired by the past? Do you look back at any old music for reference?

I’m very inspired by the past; you could say I live in my memories. I love looking back at music through the ages and seeing how it’s evolved and what’s been lost along the way, or finding the elements that were treasured then that may not be so important now.

I love listening to choral music for reference from Gregorian chant to traditional tribal choirs, hearing so many sounds and textures come from the human voice is incredible.

The voice is capable of so much more than we hear in current pop music and I’m so excited to explore that. Right now I’m listening to a lot of classical music and I’m learning so much just from that. We’ve so much music from the past to appreciate and learn from.

There’s nothing like listening to some Nina Simone to bring you back down to earth and remind you what’s important in music. It’s so special and warm; it reminds you to feel again.

What’s your opinion on the music industry at the moment?

You know what, I feel like whenever I see a question like this the answer is negative but I feel good about the music industry right now. It’s really amazing to see artists tap into other fields to express themselves, I feel that’s being done now more than ever and it just makes bigger projects and ideas seem possible. I feel like the arts are coming together to join forces a lot more now and everything seems so much more easily accessible than a few years ago. It fills my heart with joy to see contemporary dance be appreciated like it is by people who never knew it before. So of course I’m delighted to see all of these things I love come together. Yes it’s tough, yes I’m broke but I feel good about it because I know my ideas aren’t impossible and I will make them happen. I like to have full creative control in anything I do, I know what I’m willing to compromise and what I’m not and as long as I stick to that I know I’m happy because I’m being true to myself. It’s all about surrounding yourself with the right people and submerging yourself in what you love.

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EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER EWEN SPENCER

EWEN SPENCER Ewen Spencer is a photographer that can say he has been there and seen it all. Born in Newcastle and now based in Brighton, his photography can speak 1000 words. He captures youth culture through documentary style photography; most notably he photographed the garage and grime movements, snapping the dancing, champagne and kissing at garage raves. And the serious, concentrated faces of grime MC’s during their open mic battles.

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A plethora of books have been published with his work including his most recent ‘Open Mic’ which goes alongside his latest film for Channel 4’s series ‘Music Nation’. The beautiful pale pink ‘UKG’ hard back book also goes hand in hand with ‘Brandy & Coke’ the ‘Music Nation’ film on the garage subculture that swept through the noughties.

htiw dehsilbup neeb evah skoob fo arohtelp A nepO‘ tnecer tsom sih gnidulcni krow sih mlif tsetal sih edisgnola seog hcihw ’ciM ehT .’noitaN cisuM‘ seires s’4 lennahC rof osla koob kcab drah ’GKU‘ knip elap lufituaeb eht ’ekoC & ydnarB‘ htiw dnah ni dnah seog erutlucbus egarag eht no mlif ’noitaN cisuM‘ .seithguon eht hguorht tpews taht

Spencer’s other work ranges from Size and Nike advertisement campaigns to a project named ‘Guapamente’ which is a series of images of the youth of Naples in all their sun-baked and angst glory.

dna eziS morf segnar krow rehto s’recnepS tcejorp a ot sngiapmac tnemesitrevda ekiN fo seires a si hcihw ’etnemapauG‘ deman rieht lla ni selpaN fo htuoy eht fo segami .yrolg tsgna dna dekab-nus

His aesthetic of work with its youth driven focus gives an alternative viewpoint of these enigmatic youth cultures. And Ewen Spencer is able to tell the story of subcultures and teens that more often than not are ignored in the media or have negative representations.

nevird htuoy sti htiw krow fo citehtsea siH eseht fo tniopweiv evitanretla na sevig sucof recnepS newE dnA .serutluc htuoy citamgine dna serutlucbus fo yrots eht llet ot elba si ni derongi era ton naht netfo erom taht sneet .snoitatneserper evitagen evah ro aidem eht

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KEEPIN' IT CASUAL The football terrace, just like the club, has been seen to harbour subculture though the years. First the Skinheads took to the games in the late 60s in their anti-fashion, working class attire. But as the Skinheads way of life slowly died out something unusual replaced it, the Casual.

Most subcultures were able to truly blossom during the time of little technology and limited communication on TV and over the phone. Unlike what we see today where youth culture has less time to grow into something defined due to the fast paced, digitalised world we live in. By time the media gets wind of ‘something new’ they publicise it, package it and resell it to us before we’ve even noticed.

The Casuals had time to cultivate, and as the punks were still attracting all the attention at the beginning of the 80s this afforded even more time for the Casuals to grow into something as the media, journalists and trend spotters weren’t so much keeping an eye on what was going on at football stadiums nationwide.

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There is much debate around where the ‘Casual’ subculture first came about, influential writer Phil Thornton in his book ‘Casuals: football, fighting and fashion, the story of a terrace cult’ begins the story in Liverpool. “As Punks musical influence waned after the initial shock of ’76, some of the residual fashion traits, such as drainpipe jeans and trousers remained intact. The success of Liverpool F.C both domestically and in Europe during 1977, when they won their first European Cup in Rome, also introduced Scousers to new, unheard-of labels and fashion items not available in Britain. Continental sportswear labels and training shoes, especially obscure German Adidas and Puma items, suddenly became popular with Merseyside’s match-going lads.”

The Scallies had an identifiable look, during 1977 this consisted of Lios Jeans, Stan Smith trainers and three-stripe Adidas t-shirts, but this evolved by the winter into Lios straight jeans, Adidas Samba and navy blue snorkel parkas. Wearing straight jeans in Liverpool at that time would have been a huge statement as flares where the norm. Peter Hooton Author of The End fanzine recalls, “people were laughed at, y’know: puffs, divvies, state of him.”

The uniform for a Casual is what it says on the tin, casual sportswear. But each supporting team had different traits that defined their loyal appreciation for their team and made them stick out as a group; hooliganism was rife during this time possibly because of the easy nature of spotting a group that ‘isn’t from around ‘ere’.

As UK football teams were playing so well, their die hard supporters began travelling to Europe to places like France and Italy where they would purchase designer sportswear such as Ellesse and Fila, this wasn’t the cheap stuff. Away and home football matches were filled with English supporters dressed to the nines in designer gear and now didn’t look so out of place next to a chic European supporter.

Subculture extraordinaire Ted Polhemus explained that subculture usually comes from working class backgrounds and each subcultural group either ‘dress up’ or ‘dress down’ to their working class origins.

For example a skinhead would be considered as ‘dressing down’ with their Doc Martens boots and turn up jeans which actually more resemble work wear. This is the opposite to the Casual as they ‘dressed up’ above their working class status, with brands like Burberry and Lacoste forming part of their leisure wear looks.

The Casuals weirdly encapsulate Margaret Thatcher’s ideologies during her reign that their ‘dressing up’ would bring them wealth and power. In a similar way to the Yuppie, dressing to impress was linked to good jobs, wealth and power. All of which were placed of high importance in 1980s England.

Like all good subcultures, the Casuals came to an end by the 90s. For a group that mostly split their time between the football terraces and nightclubs the arrival of the Rave scene in the late 80s has been dubbed their killer. Maybe all the partying and ecstasy made them exchange hooliganism and the beautiful game, for dancing and free love.

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CHRISTOPHER SHANNON SS15

All our prayers were answered when Christopher Shannon announced a spring/ summer womenswear collection, how have we lasted this long without one? After all his menswear collections are enough for a woman to fantasise about with their street aesthetic and no nonsense referencing.

Take his popper clad AW14 menswear collection for example that reminded us of those Kappa trousers that were the rage in the 90s. There was also a nod to Tesco supermarket value range, alongside the slogan ‘save me’ which prompted us to think about the 43 stores they announced they were closing recently.

The Shannon woman is one that will keep the designers inherent air of ‘cool urban’ alive.

Like a diamond in the rough, the sportswear styles are given a refined and feminine edge taking the styles that the designer is known for and fusing them with girly attributes.

The collection comes together with the graphic and obscure floral shapes provided by none other than the fashion illustrator John Booth, someone that Christopher Shannon has always admired.

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There are frills all around in this collection distorting the shapes of t-shirt dresses and all white crop tops. Frills are also attached to combat trousers and zip up runner jackets complimenting 90s look.

There are also splashes of hot pink in a velvet two piece with wavy detailing to play with form and texture.

Tiny shorts and bellowing sweatshirts have been carried over from his menswear collections. But rather than having the ‘Shannon’ name plastered across them, the sweatshirt has a slogan that reads “all for your delight”, which this collection clearly is.

Fluid club wear shapes inspired by “the older girls at school” and fresh white air max 90s could present the perfect picture for someone like Ewen Spencer to snap, a photographer whose work also became a driver for this collection.

All we can say is thank you Christopher Shannon for providing us with the understated cool clothing we’ve always wanted.

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TZUJI So there’s fashion and music, and then there’s Tzuji voguing somewhere in between.

The fashion brand was started by DJ and trend setter Larry Tee in 2013. You would more likely know Tee for his song writing abilities after writing ‘Supermodel (You Better Work)’ which was sung by RuPaul in 1992, and fast became known as the most fashionable track in the history of fashion.

Tee first started designing clothes when he was travelling the world as a DJ, as you do.

His skill for designing soon became recognised by all his superstar friends and they started to ask for items to be designed for them. Tzuji was born.

His designs have been directly influenced from his career of DJing as he witnessed club culture unfolding before his eyes. As you can imagine the silhouettes are loose fitting and follow a sportswear aesthetic.

His spring/summer 2015 collection #SaveTheHumans was more #SaveTheRaver with its brash and toxic coloured items. The baggy sweatshirts and drop crotch trousers had a hallucinogenic feel and lightweight fabrics would let the skin breathe at a 24 hour rave for sure. There was also a shimmer of iridescent asymmetric zip up skirts with matching crop tops, and of course a poncho with a collage of faces to keep you dancing in the rain.

LarryTee explained his collection to us, “When I started making the SS15 collection

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we tried to capture what is going on around us not just in fashion. I liked the idea of making a statement about our future and our environment, but with clothing you run the risk of being frivolous because after all, its’ just clothing. But wanting to put a good message out appealed to me. I thought iridescent fabrics and futuristic prints with dinosaurs and robots, both non-living creatures, to tell the story would be a great way to get the idea across.

Certainly when I was running clubs in the 90s I was influenced by rave culture and one brand in particular, WL&T by Walter Von Beirendonck made a huge impression on me. And DJing in Japan and meeting menswear designer Kohshnin Satoh, lit the spark that has made me crave cool clothing.”

The Tzuji autumn/winter 2015 collection referenced the Electroclash music movement, of which Larry Tee helped to launch.

The club wear vibe still heavily features in all in one boiler suits and vibrant red bomber jackets. The collection is extremely graphic with black and white allowing the slogans and pops of cherry red to come alive. Ripped jeans and latex are plastered with Polaroid images and stickers of broken hearts contrasted against the saying ‘happily ever after’.

The lightning bolt used in this collection represents the fun and excitement that Tzuji is all about. Staying true to its club kid roots and providing wearable but attention grabbing items that, let’s be honest, everyone wants to wear.

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Nasir Mazhar the man that made Victoria’s Secret cool again last year, the man that you can always rely on to go against the ‘grain’, presenting us with strong, powerful women dressed in the best creations head to toe, his spring/summer 15 womenswear collection was no different in its approach.

The models looked like intergalactic tribeswomen, sent to this country to cast the human species into a frenzied dance into the night. Tight crop tops revealed mid drifts and the mini-skirts gripped to the models bottoms and stuck tight to their legs. This tribe’s signature look is the Nike Air Max 1 trainer that ensured a functional aspect to their barely there clothing, and obviously hinted to the fact that these girls were looking for an all-night party.

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NASIR MAZHAR Tie-up detailing encompassed almost every aspect of this collection, allowing materials to overlap and colours to clash and attract at the same time. Suspenders were used so that material could hang freely from the models thigh to the tip of their kicks, adding yet another dimension to this collection.

The classic 90s silhouette that Nasir emulated wouldn’t have looked out of place on the girl band TLC back in the day. Even the most simple of looks such as the allwhite tracksuit and sweatshirt had the stamp of approval of Nasir’s own monogram.

Nasir Mazhar has most definitely made a name for himself when it comes to high end streetwear. But not only does he create clothing we all want to wear; his show music is the stuff we want to dance to. His SS15 soundtrack had grime beats a plenty, big bass trap sounds, police sirens and dog barks mixed together by Rinse DJ Faze Miyake. Past soundtracks have included collaboration with grime king Skepta for SS15 menswear and more recently LA producer Kingdom for his AW14 menswear collection.

The music and design of this collection carefully construct the idea of the Mazhar girl – a bad bitch that wants to party.

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TEN TIMELESS TRACKS

1

Joy Orbison - Hyph Mngo – This tune has the ammunition to make every hair on your body stand on end. The immaculate percussion, build up and drop with that simple but affective vocal is magical.

This may have been released on Hotflush recordings in 2009 but it still has that house, techno, electro sound everyone craves.

3

Artwork – Red – Released on Big Apple Records in 2002 this song has the sound that defines dubstep in all its glory, the ‘whomping’ sound. Its repetitive nature helps you to figure out every aspect of this wobbly tune, finding something new every time you listen.

2

5 7

Inner City - Good Life – The band that formed in Detroit brought this tune to the charts in 1989.

Even though most of you reading wouldn’t have been alive during this time, this song still has the ability to get you dancing.

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MJ Cole – Sincere – The sounds that unfold on this track make it possibly one of the best garage tracks there are. If you don’t even tap your foot to the happy melody something’s wrong with ya!

4

Skepta featuring JME - #ThatsNotMe – Whatchu mean? Whatchu mean?

Longtime MC and his bro JME have championed grime since the early days and are pushing the genre into mainstream popularity with tunes like this. So far but so close to its bedroom produced, home grown roots.

Dizzee Rascal – I Luv u – What sums up the early noughties better than this tune? NOTHING. The father of grime spitting his expert lyrics over the in your face bass makes this track one to get infinite RELOADSSSS in the club.

A FINAL WORD WITH

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Ten Walls – Walking With Elephants – Anyone that spent the summer of 2014 in Ibiza, or actually anywhere, will know that this tune was extremely popular. The bass and added thumping in this track sounds weirdly like you’re… walking with elephants?

Marshall Jefferson – Move your Body – This is house at its very best, an uplifting piano tune with the signature Chicago house vocals. Move your body!

Magical, musical and happy are the words that define the garage era for Kele Le Roc, the voice that epitomises the garage sound, even to this day. Tunes like ‘Things we do’ produced by Sticky and ‘My Love’ have an everlasting popularity, evoking feelings of true nostalgia from those that lived through the garage days. Even those who didn’t get the chance to rave during this golden age of music are most certainly envious of those that were in the clubs when Kele Le Roc songs dropped.

How did you first get into music? Where did it all begin?

I went to dance school from the age of 3, that's where it all started although initially I wanted to be a dancer. But due to a knee injury when I was 12 I decided to just pursue a singing career.

What music did you grow up with that informed your taste?

I grew up in the 80s so aside from black music like Soul and Reggae. I was lucky to be privy to really good Pop music. Music in the 80s was diverse and creative everyone was unique and had their own vibe and sound, as opposed to music being so samey nowadays.

What were the garage days really like?

Garage in its heyday was the place to be everyone was happy and smiling and of course the music was amazing.

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Benga & Coki - Night – Two dubstep heavy weights come together and what do you get? Some dark trippy production, fusing the well-defined dubstep elements with an electronic vibe.

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Huxley – Box Clever – Another classic house tune, the looped piano instrumental gets better and better throughout this song. It’s so good that you have to wait 4 mins until the vocal kicks in, but when it does, WOW.

KELE LE ROC

What’s your fondest memory of the garage scene?

I would have to say Gas club as that was one of the first garage clubs I went to. And Twice As Nice at club Coliseum every Sunday.

I am so proud and grateful to have witnessed this era.

Do you know if there’s much of a garage scene now? When did it fade out for you?

My main source of income is from public appearance's and these are predominantly garage PA's so yes there is still a scene albeit underground. It has its quiet moments but it's always there people love garage it's happy music and holds such positive memories for everyone.

Are you still in contact with producers like Sticky? What was it like to work with him back in the day?

Yes I'm still in touch with him, we have sessions every now and then. I actually knew sticky for years before we worked together when he was an R’n’B DJ. So that's how we knew each other.

What has been your best performance ever?

And why?

I would have to say just recently performing at the garage event that was held at Wembley arena, UKG Chronicles. To perform there was a childhood dream of mine that perhaps didn't transpire as I imagined it but it definitely came true.

Was there a specific style/fashion to the garage scene?

I would say for the guys it was definitely the crazy matching printed Moschino, Versace and Iceberg suits however for women it wasn't so defined.

Are you involved in the UKGFest? What are you most looking forward to? What type of atmosphere does it create?

I am there this year and performed there last year too. It's an amazing event and is really positive for the scene. It was nice to see younger people there last year too. Garage music is like a time machine it takes people back to a happy time in their lives. I hear it all the time from people when I perform. My songs are associated with a positive memory of their youth it's amazing to make someone instantly relive that happiness just by singing a song.

What are you up to now? Any new releases?

I am recording a new album LeRoc Music which is long overdue. And I am on tour with Basement Jaxx and PA-ing all over the country, life is good I can't complain. I'm very blessed.

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UK £5.00 £5.00

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