CODE @ SUBTLE AUDIO 2005.11.07.
"From Bacon & Cabbage to Thai Gourmet, I like it all :-D Not too sure about that Puffin dish they are reported to eat in Iceland though..."
First things first, tell us about you and Subtle Audio records.
Me, I've just always been into music, ever since my mother forced me to take piano lessons and play the tin-whistle and all that when I was really young. At the time I would have watched Top of the Pop's and things like that and jumped around our living room playing the electric cushion. ;-)
Anyhow, eventually I started getting more into electronic music...There was no such thing as pirate radio really where I lived, so I more or less fed off whatever was on the national radio stations. Obviously they weren't diggin' in the crates much, but I did pick up on bands like Erasure (don't laugh!) and the Pet Shop Boys who had a very electronic sound.
I also noticed myself focussing in on the drum tracks of different tunes...and remember listenin' intently to John Secada's "Just Another Day Without You" because every so often there was a double snare hit that I loved! :-D ... You can only imagine how happy I was when things like the Shamen and the Prodigy finally infiltrated the mainstream! DRUMS!
I got a loan of the Prodigy Experience off a friend at secondary school when I was 12 or 13 and that twisted my brain! Went off and bought my own copy soon after and then proceeded to play it on repeat for the year!
Just happened that the same guy had a friend who had a cousin who lived in London and through that loosely linked chain, 7 or 8 tapes of early hardcore made it's way onto my stereo. The likes of DJ Monk, Dr S Gachet, LTJ Bukem & MC Conrad @ Dreamscape 5 (1992) and a few other tapes from pirate stations too.
That was it!
Sold!
So... that's kinda how I got into the whole Hardcore / D&B thing. Ended up buying magazines to find out more and saw an interview with a guy called 'Goldie' talking about the UK 'Hardcore' sound. He talked alot about Reinforced Records... then I just happened to find a mixtape by Randall called the 'Definition of Hardcore' in a local music shop in Limerick. I dunno what the chances of that were because they didn't ever stock things like that but it was just meant to be I suppose! I found Reinforced's address on the inlay and sent them a letter asking them to send me a catalog of their tunes...A few weeks later I got it ! And from that I bought my first Hardcore / Jungle record... the Enforcers 5 picture disk! There was no turning back after that !
The music amazed me and that big 'Metalheadz' logo printed onto the disk made an indellible impression on me. After that I got more records from another shop in the UK by mail order and a few years later I got cheap turntables and then I went into the city to see what was going on in the nightclubs. Some dance music shops had opened so I got some tunes there too and got wind of a night that sometimes played D&B. Was only 15 when I headed up to the 'dodgy' bar armed with a record bag - telling the bouncers that "I was the Dj" !!
Anyhow, my first real gig was in 97. Had just started collage and a new breaks / hip-hop / D&B weekly called $kint had started in Limerick. I gave the guy who ran the night a demo and he gave me a gig! There was a good crowd in the first night I played and the set went down okay! It probably wasn't the tightest set I've ever played (actually I known it wasn't - I tried to put a record on, on top of one that was already playing - lol!!!) But the crowd reaction was good and that was me hooked! Started playing parties at collage and got gig's at the $kint night (the breaks / hip-hop / D&B weekly) every few months. Eventually that night stopped and me and 2 other lads that played D&B were at a loss for somewhere to play.
So, in October 1999 we put on our own night in a bar... the first night went okay but things happened with the venue so we had to go elsewhere. Then in December 1999 we hooked up with Bassbin and brought Fierce from Virus Recordings (and now Quarantine) to play in Limerick... we got a good crowd and in February 2000 we started another night in a bar called "Nu Killa Beats". It's still running now! Will be our 6th B-Day in February next year.
So why did you decide to start your own label?
Well, through running nights etc you build up contacts. So, I started getting CD's from the likes of Beta 2 & Zero Tolerance, Naphta etc. Then in 2003 I brought Chris Inperspective / Equinox / Senses and Breakage over to Limerick. I got CD's from them too and some of the stuff they gave me was amazing. As time went on I logged onto Subvert Central and started hearing about other new producers who were making the kind of D&B I really liked. For a few years the drums had been missing and I missed them! So it was really great to hear that other people besides Paradox and Danny Breaks were doing things with breaks! I had heard of Fracture & Neptune through their radio show and their release on Droppin' Science too. I think it hit me after awhile that alot of the music I was getting on CD was never going to see the light of day and that really saddened me, especially when I'd go down to the local record shop and walk away empty handied again!
Obviously, Bassbin, Inperspective & Offshore were releasing records at the time but you need more than 3 labels to get enough quantity and variety of music. So, it dawned on me that I'd just have to do it myself if no-one else was going to. Luckily it seems a few other people were thinkin' along the same lines coz now there's Subvert Central Recordings, Counter Intelligence, Forestry Service and a few more + Exegene and SC:Digital (for mp3's). And Seba has resurrected his Secret Operations label and Paradox has 3 labels on the go, which is really brillant.
What is planned for Subtle Audio for 2006?
Well, I've got a good few plans. I'm really excited about the next 2 12"s, 003 is just about to come out now, so I expect that will still be selling into the new year. After that I'm putting out a 12" by Sileni. It will be a 3 tracker, all going well. "Pressing Buttons" + "Bouncing Octagonal Fragments" + one other track to be decided. That's release 004.
After that, 005 is going to be by Fanu...two of my favourite tracks by him, so I'm really happy to have them. "Heavenless" and "I Play It Cooler". After that, I not too definite yet. But I do have plans to release CD albums, I'm compiling one by Macc & dgoHn at the moment. They are making some really amazing music both collectively and individually. So, there'll be tracks by Macc & dgoHn aswell as tracks by Macc solo and dgoHn solo, aswell as collaborations between Macc & 0=0 and Macc & Duffah. It really is something I'm looking forward to releasing because I think it's real album music, something that can be listened to again and again without losing it's quality.
I have plans for a similar release by Polska and have some stuff signed for that too. He's another genius that is making music that can transcend genre bounaries and bring D&B to people who normally would disbarrage the music. After that I also have plans for a compilation album...few things set aside for that too...but don't wanna say too much because it's far away! Oh yeah, have got a Macc remix of Sileni and 0=0 is doing a remix (apparantely 17 minutes long!) of "The Phantoms" by Equinox...so, I might be putting those out on a remix 12" - still haven't heard 0=0 remix though, so can't say for sure yet! Hopefully Mr. "Punctuality" delivers soon ; )
Is there any record that never leaves your record box?
No. Though, the Subtle Audio 12" are usually in there nowadays! But hate playing the same thing all the time so I hardly ever have the same things in the bag from gig to gig.
Do you think you'll be listening to drum'n'bass when you're 50 years old?
Definitely! If only because it annoys others as much as it inspires me!
What is your favourite food?
Well, I've been told I'd eat sh*t...So, not sure my opinion counts! I like food in general but I'm not fussy! I do still remember some really nice Korean food I had when I was over in Oakland, California. That was really nice...it all came in a timber box thingy with loadsa compartments and there were all these wierd cold vegetables which were really nice! As I say though, I'm not fussy. From Bacon & Cabbage to Thai Gourmet, I like it all :-D Not too sure about that Puffin dish they are reported to eat in Iceland though... :-\
So you don't cook for the Nu Killa guests?
I did cook Chicken a la Orangey for Chris Inperspective one time...It's a specialty of mine. And I whipped up some cheap frozen pizzas for 0=0 last week. He was crying when he had to leave...
Where is your favourite place?
Hmmm...Don't really have a favourite. If I had a studio, that would probably be it! But I was in Croatia this year and that was really beautiful! Will be travelling more in the future, so I plan to find the places I really like. My girlfriend wants to goto Cuba sometime and I wouldn't mind checking that out either! I've been to America, all of the UK and a good few countries in Europe at this stage. I want to go somewhere really different, like Cuba or China / Japan or somewhere like that...Russia is on the agenda too!
What about Iceland?
Yeah, that's the kinda thing I'm talking about! Somewhere with a distinct climatic / culture difference to Ireland / the UK / most of Europe. Somewhere they do crazy things, like stuffing their mouths with Puffin and the like.
And drink brennivín...
Yeah!
What is the most embarassing thing that's happened to you?
Heheh! ... Well, I'm sure lots of people would say it was my drunken / semi-naked state outside the venue of the first Technicality all-nighter, or my subsequent proclaimation to the tube work-goers that morning to "BE THEMSELVES" !!! - as I struggled for balance in the middle of the carriage ! :-D Jober as a Sudge...heheheh...
If you were a Russian scientist for a day, what would you invent?
A Vodka Hangover cure...Nah...dunno? Are they good at inventing things?
Well, you have to ask yourself that question
Well, a remote clock-in card for work would be nice! :-D
Do you play any sports?
Yes, been involved in sport and teams all my life really. I used to play Hurling & Gaelic Football (two Irish sports) aswell as Football (Soccer). Hurling is (what looks like) a crazy game with sticks and a smaller leather ball (bout the size of a tennis ball). It's 2 teams of 15. Anyhow, I used to play those three sports until I snapped the cruciate ligament in my knee. Took a long time to get the injury diagnosed and then to recover so, I was out of sport for nearly a year and a half or 2 years, which was really hard for me. Now, I'm being a bit careful, so I'm just playing football (soccer). Play for a team in the Limerick Junior League. We're trying to get promoted to the Premier division this year!
So what's your favourite sport / team?
My favourite sport is soccer...I support Manchester United, have done since I was 10 or so.
If you were any kind of a teacher, who would you want to teach and what would you teach them?
I actually would like to teach...I think I'd like to teach something I understood really well. Yeah... so, that's me f**ked then! I plan to start producing soon and sound production and manipulation really interests me, so if I ever came to understand production techniques and sound engineering well, I'd love to teach that. Because I think if you're passionate about what you teach, you can teach it well. The enthusiasm rubs off on the people who you're teaching.
As for who I'd like to teach...well, anyone who'd listen really! :-D Preferable people that didn't make up nasty names for me or put thumb tacks on my chair... :'( haha!
Could a machine do your job?
Yes, I think R2D2 would make a great label boss. Not Cee-3-pio though, he'd be signing up Brittany Spears and all that crap...
What is the weirdest dream you remember dreaming?
Hmmmm...well my girlfriend always gives out about how boring my dreams are (but they're only the one's I tell her about ;-) ) ... can't remember any really wierd one's off hand. And I think it's better that I keep some of the one's I can remember to myself...
What are you afraid of?
The RSPCA
But what do you think the drum'n'bass scene is afraid of?
Er...real experimentation for the most part!
Well, that was my last question. Do you have anything you want to add? Comments, shouts?
Well, just to add to the last comment.
I can't understand why the same samples crop up in some tunes all the time. I mean, there sooooo much scope available when making a tune...why use a sample that's already been caned? Anyhow, that's not to say I'm not happy about alot of the music that I've heard in the last year or so, some great things going on but I just hope people keep experimenting with the style and the sounds and try to do their own thing instead of going for the flavour of the moment. I like to hear more D&B made for listening to aswell as for dancing to. That's my favourite thing about the genre...how it can make you dance but yet be listenable at home. Well, for people like me anyway!
Just to send a shout out to all the producers, promotors and labels that I've been in touch with...nice people in the breakbeat D&B circle ;-)
Excellent. So thank you for your time and good luck with Subtle Audio!
Okay, no worries! Cheers Jon!
-Jón Berg
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