Influences:Brawther

My real love affair with electronic music started with Aphex Twin when I was 15. Before that it was part of a greater void of randomness where I would enjoy anything from Skate Rock, Dub, Hip Hop, Indie, Hardcore, Pop, you name it. I was properly hooked on as soon as I heard ‘Come to Daddy’ and bought the EP. I was obsessed with anything coming out of the Rephlex camp and thought Brain Dance was the most forward thinking music ever created, which i still believe today. It opened up my mind and completely rewired it. SAW2 is one of my favourite LP’s ever, i used to fall asleep to it time and again.

And this is how i stumbled on Aphex Twin’s Come to Daddy. It appears at the end of the movie at a crucial moment and sends chills down your spine. I need to watch it again, but it’s definitely one of the darkest and most disturbing movies I had ever seen at this point. It delves into the dark world of Snuff Movies, which are pornographic movies that depict the murder of some of the actors in very graphic and brutal ways. I’d never heard of this concept before and it really freaked me out. There’s a proper tension building up and it haunts you well after you finished watching.  The trailer doesn’t really do it justice and doesn’t show you anything besides Nicolas Cage running around angry and scared. A must watch.

One of my favourite Underworld albums. In my opinion one of the greatest dance music albums ever made, just so many classics in one single package. They have educated me on so many levels with their live performances and I must have watched the DVD of “everything everything” until it became unreadable.  This album shows a range of emotions and depth that really resonates with me. These guys definitely inspire me to keep bettering my craft and strive to reach that standard of quality. I consider these albums to be benchmarks.

Those who know me know that I have always been a Pepe Bradock fan boy.
It started when I saw Ark on the French cable television music Channel MCM around 2000, going bonkers in his studio and dropping the needle on two epic 12″s, the Bleep to Bleep album from Micronauts and the Escalope de Dingue EP from Trankilou (which he formed with Pepe). This moment really stayed with me and got me on the diggin’ Trankilou and subsequently the work of Pepe Bradock. On top of having contributed to a bunch of stone cold house music classics, he has remained a bit of an enigma and never succumbed to the hell of social media. Despite what some people say about his DJ skills I actually rate him on that front too as I’m more concerned with track selection and vibe. More please…

Marcus Guerra is the mastermind behind this label and all the releases that have come to light since its creation in 2005.
There is a consistency throughout all the releases that is rarely heard, and the sound is rooted deep in the tracks that have been ploughed during the early 90’s. I’m always inspired by Marcus and we have a special relationship, I really value his guidance and friendship overall. He has been dealt many bad hands working with distributors and pressing plants in the past which has forced him to stay in the dark for a while. Luckily for all of us he is back with his uncompromising trademark deep garage. Check out the latest one “Square’s There”.

This is one of my favourite labels ever, it’s owned by Betino (owner of Betino’s records in Paris) which was the home of some of the greatest deep house to have ever graced France. Frank Roger and Next Evidence all had Straight Up as their departure point but the main staple producer was always Olivier Portal aka Playin’ 4 The City. It’s inspired me on so many levels but knowing that my fellow Frenchmen were able to provide such a quality output that could stand proudly in the pantheon of dance music, it’s always driven me to better my craft. Straight Up was able to mix jazz, soul and funk with the smoothest grooves and basically redesign the blueprint of deep house, “a la française”.

Chez Damier is a very important person to me. I don’t know many other dj/producers who possess his qualities as a human being and who’s quest is to continually inspire and nurture the upcoming generations of artists. I used to feel the need to reach out to my fellow local heroes when I was younger to find guidance and become more confident. Luckily this is where Chez filled the void and taught me things that I live by and in turn profess to those who seek answers and reach out to me. We’ve got a master disciple relationship and as time as passed by, I think that the school of Damier has continued to grow and we keep spreading that sonic gospel and try to empower the next generation. I could write a novel about Chez and what I have learned from him. From his very early days at KMS records to living in Paris in the mid 90s, to his return and everything in between, he has been the witness of all the reinventions of the word DJ and house music. Nuthin but love baba…

I stumbled on DiY’s Floppy Disco event in 2001 at the legendary Nottingham venue “The Bomb”, I was 17 and this was my first experience of feeling the power of proper house music amongst an amazing crowd, basically losin’ it to the music, and me too. I remember hugging the dj I was so buzzin’ from it was my Eureka moment where I knew that whatever energy was floating around that night, I wanted to be able to live amongst it for ever and harness that feeling again. DiY Discs is their label and the one I possess the most records from more than any other imprint. A lot of people overlook the importance of the DiY Soundsystem collective, they championed the sound of house music since the late 80’s in the UK, via the free party movement. They were forced to slowly abandon the freedom of outdoor raves due to the clamp down from the Tory government on raves and the advent of the criminal justice act of 1994. They are the most selfless and most talented DJ’s out there. The core DiY DJs are Simon DK, Digs & Woosh, Jack, Harry, Cookie & Emma. They are not all active anymore but keep your eye out for the fabulous Grace, who still flies the flag in London and beyond.