Interview – UNITED BY BASS

Timeless LA Turns 15: A Quick Conversation with Dip Vertigo

Ridda — Mon, 26 Dec 2022 21:11:02 +0000

Timeless LA Turns 15: A Quick Conversation with Dip Vertigo

On January 7th, Timeless Los Angeles will be celebrating it’s 15 year anniversary with a special lineup featuring Hospital Records artist Degs with supporting talent Dip Vertigo b2b Scott Allen, Jen Symmetry, 2B Happy The Jay with MC’s J-tec, Ridda, Slim and Chemistry MC. The anniversary event will take place at the Offbeat Bar in Los Angeles and is sure to be a truly memorable night. Tickets are going quick so we highly suggest securing your spot on the dance floor today.
Just ahead of the 15 year anniversary, United By Bass had the opportunity to catch up with Jeremy Eichberg aka Dip Vertigo, the man behind the Los Angeles-based Drum N Bass outfit to chat about all things Timeless. Check out the full conversation below to learn more about Timeless and get ready for an amazing celebration.

"Timeless was born out of the next generation of the illustrious, legendary, History making, Grapevinez crew, led by the general, MCMC."

Jeremy Eichberg - Dip Vertigo

What is it like to be celebrating 15 years of Timeless?

“It is truly an unbelievable feeling to reach a milestone like this. It doesn’t happen without an immense amount of support from our loyal following new and old, but we’ve always maintained the same attitude which is, if you continue to come out and support us, we will continue to throw events. That support hasn’t waned, so we’ve continued this journey. There’s been many ups and downs, and moments in the past where PJ and I wanted to throw in the towel, but one of us always gets the itch and picks the other up. I think for both of us, seeing the smiles on people’s faces at our events makes it all worth it. It’s never been about the money. We do it for the love!“

How did Timeless start and where do you see it going?

“Timeless was born out of the next generation of the illustrious, legendary, History making, Grapevinez crew, led by the general, MCMC. We were all artists and promoters for the powerhouse promotion company helping to throw some of the biggest DNB events in all of America. As MCMC moved towards retirement, and simply couldn’t put in what he had before, the OG co-founder of Timeless, Solomon Baldeo aka Neuropunk and I had always talked about curating our own lineups together and throwing a show. In 2007 we got our opportunity and threw the 2 nd to last Grapevinez event ever, called Rize, and it was a complete success. The fulfillment from that event lit a fire in us, and we knew we had to start our own thing. Thus, Timeless was born and the “Each One, Teach One” motto of Grapevinez continued. The two of us would go on as partners keeping Timeless a monthly for 10 straight years at multiple venues while also throwing our massive LA Beatdown events at The Music Box in Hollywood. 2013 saw PJ Yates, Mr. 8:40 himself come in at just the right time. Solo and I didn’t know if we wanted to do it anymore, but he lit that spark again which led to our insane run at The Medusa Lounge. Now, in 2022, we have two new event brands: Our park party, Rays & Vibes, and our day party, Rise n Shine, which have continued to fuel us and give us the momentum we need to bring a headliner like Degs and throw a proper Timeless. It’s taken us a while to find a bar that would be a fit for Timeless and with the
success of Rise n Shine, we’re being given an opportunity to really pack the place in and show what we can do. We love our new home, The Offbeat, and see ourselves continuing to do big things there on the regular but know that it can only hold us for so long. So, the search continues for an even bigger venue to take Timeless, in the words of MCMC, “up another level!”

What have been some of the most memorable Timeless moments

“In our first year in 2008 Twisted Individual played for us at the original home of Timeless, The Little Rock. At the time this was by far our biggest show ever and just about everyone from our SoCal scene was there. This night put Timeless on the map.
Bailey at the Medusa Lounge in 2013 was an absolutely insane night and the place was filled to the rim. The Medusa Lounge allowed us the opportunity to have two areas of sound, and both areas were going off. I remember getting off the decks from my bday set amazed at how full the place was and feeling so much gratitude.
AK1200 & R.A.W at The Complex for our 11-year anniversary was off the hook too and rammed. All the Timeless residents did a wicked set together that I don’t think any of us will ever forget.
A couple other moments that standout, Migat’s debut dnb set at The Little Rock. He had 75 + people for an opening set and I swear you would have thought Andy C was playing. The crowd was going nuts.
Our very first Timeless ever, January 12 th 2008 with Scooba headlining, a 2X4 from myself and Circuit, and a 2X4 from Sound Control with JTec and Ridda, started it all. The rest is history!”

Thank you to my partner PJ and his right handman, Brett (DJ Wonderbread), for being the best sound men out there and providing the booming 8:40 Productions sound at all our events over the last decade. Timeless would have ended a long time ago if it hadn’t been for you. Thank you to all our Timeless residents, past and present, for the amazing sets you played and hosted, and everything else you have contributed during your time with Timeless. Thank you to every DJ and MC that has graced our Timeless stages over one and a half decades. Thank you to MCMC for being our guide and inspiration. We learned it all from you! Finally, and most importantly, thank you to everyone who has supported us over these 15 years. It takes a village to make it to 15 and we appreciate you all so much!

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UBB Interview: A Quick Conversation with Pyxis (Beats In Mind – Headsbass)

Emily Widuch — Fri, 28 Aug 2020 05:28:01 +0000

UBB Interview: A Quick Conversation with Pyxis

Newcomer producer pyxis is no stranger to drum & bass, having worked for some of the scene’s biggest labels and producers for over 20 years. Having lived and breathed drum n bass for all of her adult life, she has done it all from running vinyl to distributors and record shops, marketing, writing for magazines, managing studios, artists, events, and nightclubs. She now runs S2K Music with her business partner Laura, and together, they have signed over 1,200 artists and represent a catalog of over 25,000 songs.
As if that wasn’t enough, in 2019, pyxis picked up an old hobby and started making music again, with her first release on Mitekiss and Mr. Porter’s label Goldfat in December 2019. Started her label ‘Beats In Mind’, which she set up to release the Headsbass series, to raise funds and awareness for mental health charities.
To say Pyxis has done a lot for the drum and bass community is an understatement. And it shows in the amount of worldwide support she has received for Beats In Mind.

Headsbass Volumes 1 & 2, which you can grab here, have featured tunes from Chris.SU, Furney & Lady Emz, USDnB artists Winslow, Theatrix & Dip Vertigo, United By Bass favorites Ben Soundscape with SOFi MARi, and Collette Warren with Facing Jinx and Loz Contreras. Volume 3, which drops on Friday, August 28th, is yet another stacked collection of tracks by the likes of Mixmaster Doc, Leniz & Henry, Peshay, and, of course, Pyxis herself.
With 2020 being… well 2020, we wanted to learn more about this awesome project that brings awareness to mental health through drum and bass from around the world. So we sat down with the head of Beats In Mind and mastermind behind Headsbass to find out how the project came to life, the collaborative efforts behind the album series, and what we can do to help.

For those who haven’t heard of it, tell us about Headsbass. How did the whole project start?

“It was an idea that came to me in October 2019 on World Mental Health Day. I saw so many of my producer friends posting up their own stories, struggles, experiences, and messages of support for others. I thought I’d love to do an album with some of these guys and donate the proceeds to mental health charities. As life does get in the way, I sat on the idea for the rest of that year, and in January 2020, I kickstarted it by posting the idea up on my Facebook page. I got a tremendous response, so many people wanted to get involved. Resound said he would master it for us free of charge. Mitekiss offered to do the artwork. I spoke to Cygnus Distribution about the idea, and they asked, “Why do only one album? “ I said, “Why indeed!” So we strategized together, and it went from there. We pulled Headsbass Volume 1 together by April, Volume 2 by June, and here we are on Volume 3 for August,. Volume 4 almost finished for October and Volume 5 planned for December.
ZeroZero mastered Volume 2, Guzi mastered Volume 3, there are so many lovely people around us in the drum n bass scene willing to help and rally round.”

That's so awesome! It’s always amazing how the scene can pull together for the greater good, especially for a cause that affects so many people. How did you go about choosing who would be on Volume 3? Did you have artists in mind, or were people generous there as well?

I’ve had so many messages from producers asking if they could contribute and be a part of the Headsbass family.About two thirds have come to us with their music and then about a third of me reaching out to producers I really get on with and respect. Pretty much everyone has said they’d love to. Not everyone has had time to submit yet, so I’m hoping they do soon. I never dreamed we’d get to Volume 3, let alone Volume 5!

Five volumes is a huge undertaking! What can listeners expect from Vol 3?

Volume 3 is much as we’ve been – a real mixture of styles. I haven’t done the whole A&R thing with this project, and I haven’t told anyone their songs aren’t suitable, because it’s the full expression of their production style. We have everything from old skool vibes to full-on jump up. We’ve had missledz doing her first liquid track for Headsbass, boy/girl collaborations, which is a much-needed aspect to drum & bass, we have two on Headsbass 3 from D-Struct & Chickaboo and myself (pyxis) & Mixmaster Doc. I think Headsbass has been crazy inclusive across the board, and I’m proud of that aspect especially.

Yes! Listening through the album, I loved how diverse each track is. There is a little something for everyone. I especially liked your remix of Phoenix. How was it remixing that track?

Phoenix is a track I wrote about 20 years ago. Back then, the song wasn’t called Phoenix, and I wasn’t called pyxis. It wasn’t released so I sat down last year and re-wrote it. I had a couple of versions, one of which was used on Headsbass 1, and I was chatting to Mixmaster Doc a few weeks back about doing a collab when I remembered Phoenix V1 was sitting there on my laptop, unfinished. So I suggested he take the stems and finish it. He was well up for it, and he asked Favata to do some guitar riffs for it. The Guitar Dub Mix was the result. Doc was so easy to work with, I love the fact I can send a bunch of stems to someone in America and receive back a finished track a week later.

It must have been so cool to watch an old project come back to life! And be able to collab with someone on the other side of the world to do it too. Ultimately, what is your goal for the Beats In Mind project?

The goal was only ever to do one album, so the ultimate goal has already been reached, in essence. The first five albums in 2020 are some achievement, considering I’ve never run a label alone or curated any music. Next year I am slowing it down. We will do albums in May and October for World Mental Health Week in May and World Mental Health Day in October. I might do some singles in between, or maybe some remixes of past releases, but this has been an awesome experience. Very bonding and cathartic. I’ve made some fantastic connections with people through music, that was always the intention. It’s the one thing that is undoubtedly medicinal for any situation.
The goal was always to raise funds, but with the way downloads and streaming platforms pay these days, we will be grateful for anything we can raise. But in the time we’ve been doing Headsbass, we’ve raised something money can’t really buy – to show everyone that they have someone who will listen, who understands and who cares.

Is there a way for supporters to not only buy/ stream the album but also donate to Beats In Mind directly?

I set up a GoFundMe page, and at the time we released the first album, the pandemic hit and we went into lockdown. But it’s still there if people can manage it. I also went onto prepare a limited edition of care packages that include a sleep spray, candles, free downloads, and a bunch of other stuff to help you relax. Those are available via my Bandcamp.
As much as we want to raise funds, the key thing has been showing support and understanding, both from a sympathetic and empathetic viewpoint. We have the YouTube channel that has all the videos for the singles. It also has full documentaries up with mini mixes running behind them, which gives highlights from not only the producers on the albums but also other artists in the scene contributing to show their love and support.

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UBB Interview: A Quick Conversation with Blacklab

Emily Widuch — Mon, 10 Aug 2020 16:48:43 +0000

UBB Interview: A Quick Conversation with Blacklab

Brothers Kashim and Kariem, aka Blacklab have been steadily building a name for themselves in the worldwide drum and bass scene over the last 10 years. Based out of Las Vegas, Nevada, these two have created an incredible dynamic that has landed them releases on some of the largest labels in DnB.
For their most recent release, the boys have crafted 4 beautifully produced liquid tracks for one of our favorite labels at United By Bass, Soulvent Records. UBB editor Emily sat down with Blacklab ahead of the release on Friday, August 7th to chat about how 2020 has been treating them so far, which tracks they had the most fun making, their inspirations, and advice for visiting Las Vegas.

Tell us about the scene in Vegas in 5 words

Both: Skip the clubs; go downtown!

What has been the best part of 2020 so far?

Kariem: Starting 2020 with releasing new material after being quiet in the studio for the last year has been pretty neat. In the same regard, 2020 has been rough for a lot of people around the world. Seeing the collective efforts to overcome the challenges caused by the coronavirus pandemic has been heartfelt for sure. Big up to the creatives who are pulling together to help keep the music scene going.

What or who do you listen to for inspiration?

Kariem: Our Spotify playlist has a lot of our favorites when it comes to drum & bass inspiration in the studio. Artificial Intelligence, Keeno, Calibre, Camo & Krooked, GLXY, Icicle all come to mind.
Kashim: We also enjoy classical, jazz, and some RnB for anything outside of drum & bass. We like to listen to movie and TV scores, as well.

Which DAW do you use? Favorite plugins and VSTs?

Kariem: We both use Ableton. Our libraries are completely mirrored as well so we can juggle our Live projects between separate computers pretty easily. I’ll try to use the stock plugins whenever possible – Ableton’s sampler is in just about every project. We’ve been utilizing the Valhalla suite recently, super easy to create great atmospheric stuff without much fuss. For drum sound design, Addictive Drummer 2 is really versatile and intuitive. Serum and Absynth are also top choices for handling the bass and ambient stuff. We also have a Model D clone for getting some analog sound design done in the studio.

Kashim: I really like Arturia’s V Collection. Guitar Rig 5 is also a go-to.

If you could collab with any artist, drum and bass or otherwise, who would it be?

Pola & Bryson, GLXY, Halogenix, Mitekiss, Charlotte Haining, Visionobi

Which of the four tracks on the EP was your favorite to work on?

Kashim: Violet

Kariem: Hard to choose. It was fun designing the various elements for Unreal. Violet was also pretty catchy from early on. Overall, each track has some sentiment behind it for sure.

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MC CONRAD MAKES AN APPEARANCE ON THE VOCAL – MUST LISTEN!

Ridda — Thu, 20 Feb 2020 22:28:53 +0000

MC CONRAD MAKES AN APPEARANCE ON THE VOCAL - MUST LISTEN!

Valiant Emcee is back with another great episode of his uniquely crafted Podcast The Vocal. For this episode he is joined by one of the most influential Vocalists and MC’s in drum-n-bass, MC Conrad. They go deep into his foundations, his partnership and eventual split with LTJ Bukem, and his path forward. Getting to hear from Conrad himself on this subject was one of the standouts from the interview and we commend both Conrad for his honesty and Valiant Emcee for asking tough questions.

Musically, they drop some of Conrads classics which had all of us bobbing our heads in the UBB headquarters and feeling nostalgic. Plus we are treated with an unreleased tune from Valiant Emcee and Conrad Subs, plus more.
Overall, this episode extremely insightful and was one of the best to date! Make sure to subscribe/follow Valiant Emcee and The Vocal at all the links below and keep it locked.

The Vocal is a podcast which focuses on drum-n-bass vocalists and airs on the legendary Kool London every Second Friday of the Month. You can Follow & Subscribe to Vliant Emcee and The Vocal at the following links:

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A Quick Chat With DJ Craze

Ridda — Tue, 20 Aug 2019 18:25:56 +0000

San Diego is in for one HELL of a night on August 23rd at Spin as we celebrate 9 YEARS of SD Union! To commemorate the milestone, we are bringing out the G.O.A.T., the one and only DJ Craze for an exclusive all drum & bass set. United By Bass Editor Emily sat down with the legendary DJ ahead of his first-ever all drum and bass performance in San Diego to discuss how the three-time DMC champion of the world prepares for a dnb set, how to succeed as a DJ, and what drum & bass artists get him excited.

When people talk about your career, they tend to think of your DMC championships and, most recently, Slow Roast Records. But you have had a long-standing love for drum & bass. How did you first get into DnB?

Yeah, I’ve been into Drum & Bass since the late 90s. I first got into it when I played a gig in Munich back in 97′, that’s the first time I heard DnB in a club and I’ve been hooked ever since. The DJs playing that night were Hype & Shy FX so you can see why I got into it.

How do you approach your drum & bass sets compared to the other styles you’re known for?

I approach my DnB sets like I do all my sets. I prep things I know will work and I try to sneak in a lot of things that I like, things that separate from all the other dnb DJs. For example, I’ll definitely sneak in some of my hip hop roots whether it be an acapella or a dope lil intermission. I’ll add some flavaful scratching (not too much) And I’ll do a lot of trick mixing.

Time to name drop! What current DnB artists have your attention and why do they excite you?

Signal, Current Value, Urbandawn, Audio, TC. There are just too many great producers in DnB. The quality coming out right now is amazing!

…I miss Dillinja though

You’re playing at the SD Union 9 Year Anniversary party on Friday, August 2d3r. What can attendees expect from your set, especially if they’ve never seen a Craze dnb performance?

I’m bringing the heat to SD Union’s 9th anniversary. My DnB sets are pretty fire if I do say so myself. Expect a lot of energy and dope mixing!

I want to thank DJ Craze for taking the time out of his busy schedule to answer my questions.

We guarantee you are not going to want to miss out on this incredible night and we want to see all of you on the dancefloor. Catch DJ Craze alongside hometown heroes Garva, Rebellion, DJ Ronnie, and Burncam with mic support from MC Ridda and Subliminal this Friday, August 23rd at Spin Nightclub.

Secure your spot in Spin Nightclub today to save cash at the door this Friday!

Emily Widuch

Editor @ UBB

A Quick Chat With Submorphics

Ridda — Thu, 25 Jul 2019 22:46:04 +0000

A Quick Chat With Submorphics (Interview)

The one and only Submorphics is back in the states for a short run of shows this month and we were lucky enough to catch up with him ahead of his performance at SD Union on July 27th.
Now that he is based in Amsterdam, NL we wanted to see how living abroad has been treating him, where his inspiration for his music comes from and what he misses about the States.

It’s been a little over a year since you made the move across the pond to the Netherlands. What are some of the things you miss the most about the U.S. DNB scene?

I miss my friends + family in Detroit, Chicago, and SF/LA, tacos, pizza, burgers, and sunshine! But I’m loving being based in the NL right now– I always wanted to try living in Europe and in D&B I think you really need to be based across the pond to do this thing at a higher level. My North Quarter family and new agent Tom @ ESP have been amazing and it’s an exciting time for me as I make plans for 2020!

Your sound is very unique, using a lot of vintage samples that span several decades. How do you go about selecting the perfect throwback tracks to put your signature twist on?

I tend to go for obscure 60s-early 70s soul samples on indie labels or privately pressed; stuff in a minor key and with a melancholic or bittersweet tone to them. If a melody speaks to me and I have ideas for how to add my own musical layers I go from there…and figure out if it works in 172 bpm!

You’ve collaborated with some pretty impressive names in drum & bass, Lenzman, Jenna G., and T.R.A.C to name a few. If you could collab with anyone, who would it be?

I love working with folks outside the D&B realm. These people I’d die happy if I ever worked with: Moses Sumney, Anderson.Paak, Herbie Hancock, Madlib, The Internet, Q-Tip, Rakim, Moodymann… I’ll stop there cause I could go on + on…

San Diego LOVES us some Submorphics. What do you look forward to the most when planning a trip here to S.D.?

I’ll only be in town for about 5 hours but I obviously need me an SD burrito! That place that Calculon takes me to with the Mexican wrestlers on the wall!

I want to thank Submorphics for taking time to sit down and answer my questions. He is truly a motivated man with a bright future ahead of him and we can’t wait to see what comes next.

If you’re in the SoCal area, you can Catch Submorphics this Saturday, July 27th at SD Union as he returns to San Diego alongside MC T.R.A.C., Bachelors Of Science and a slew of San Diego’s best. Make sure to Follow Submorphics on all of his socials so you can keep up with everything this busy man is up to!

Emily Widuch

Editor @ UBB

A Quick Chat With Sirus Hood (Interview)

Ridda — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 17:19:54 +0000

A Quick Chat With Sirus Hood (Interview)

Paris, France based producer Sirus Hood has steadily gained international momentum since he first came bursting onto the scene. With releases on Dirtybird, CUFF, and the support of some of the biggest House acts such as Amine Edge & DANCE (CUFF), Claude VonStroke and Justin Martin (Dirtybird), Sirus Hoods music emits an infectious energy of enjoyment on the dance floor.
I spoke with Sirus Hood ahead of his San Diego performance this Friday to talk about his recent release, who he would like to collab with and more. Check out the interview and make sure to grab your pre-sale tickets today!

You’re kicking off your U.S. summer tour here in San Diego! For those who haven’t seen a Sirus Hood show yet, what can we expect?

“It’s not gonna be a show. Actually, it’s gonna be the opposite, it’s highly recommended to go in the middle of the dancefloor, close your eyes and enjoy the journey. You can expect unexpected sounds, discover new music, and this is where I put all my efforts, creating, editing and finding this unknown music that will blow your mind.”

You had a busy month in May! Any moments, in particular, stand out for you?

“In May my 2 best moments were in 2 opposite places in the world. The first a very little venue in Gold Coast, Australia called Elsewhere. The second a huge festival in Curitiba, Brazil called ZOOminimal. The first was a few hundred people and the second more than 10k people and both gave me goosebumps because of the crowd being totally into the vibe. When most of the people are just into it, dance hard, they even forget to take a video with their cell phone, they are not a spectator of the show, they are part of it.”

Congratulations on your latest EP, Out of Order on Sola. Did you have any particular inspiration for those tracks?

“Thank you, I wanted to make different tracks than what we can find on Beatport. I always try to sound unique, try new techniques in the studio, new grooves. While I was doing this track, I had a little break, opened an Instagram story from Kevin Knapp saying about a lake: it’s Out Of Order… I sampled it and sent the final track to him. He loved it. I received a lot of support from artists like Jamie Jones and then from the crowds. The B side Brotha is more a personal track, it’s actually my fav track of the EP. It reminds me of the rhymes of my childhood.”

f you could collab with any artist, living or not, who would it be?

“For the living artist, I would say Daft Punk. Not living: Michael Jackson.”

I want to thank Sirus Hood for taking the time to answer our questions. Catch him this Friday, June 21st at UBB Presents as he touches down alongside local DJ’s Evlo, Oren and Stedicam. Make sure to Follow Sirus Hood on all of his socials so you can keep up with everything this busy man is up to!

Emily Widuch

Author, Editor @ UBB

A Quick Chat With Flite (Interview)

Ridda — Wed, 29 May 2019 21:45:53 +0000

A Quick Chat With Flite (Interview)

US based producer Flite has steadily gained international momentum since 2011. With releases on Hospital Records, Liquicity Records, Monstercat, and the support of some of the biggest DNB promoters such as UKF Drum & Bass, Liquicity, Suicidesheep and more, Flite’s music has done so much to move USDnB forward.
I spoke with Flite ahead of his debut San Diego performance to talk about his massive plans this summer, his Skankout project with Ownglow, tacos, the future of drum & bass in America, and the artists and tracks he’s feeling the most right now.

This will be your first performance in San Diego! What are you looking forward to the most?

On top of actually playing to a new crowd and meeting the SD crew, I’ve become quite a foodie lately and can’t wait to see what San Diego is known for. Few things better than a culinary tour.

Oh absolutely! Tacos are definitely a food group here, I assume they will be on the list?

Living in Austin means that at least 1% of your body is made of tacos at all times, so naturally I’ll be feeding the addiction.

You have a busy summer coming up. What’s on the calendar for you?

“A ton this year! I’ve been super hard at work for over the last year and a half making music and shaping up what is now my second EP… It’s been a pretty wild ride getting this music released, but I’m proud to say it will be out at the end of June on Liquicity Records. I really feel like these tracks embody me as a person, so that took a lot of effort to create. Now that it’s finished, I can’t wait to see what people think.”

“Not only that, I will be playing around the states and at Liquicity Festival in Alkmaar, NL in late summer–really excited for that, as I have 2 sets (one with Boxplot) at my favorite festival so far. Then back on to new music!”

On top of all that, you’re currently working on a pretty exciting project with Ownglow. Can you tell me a little about that?

“Hell yes! Sam and I have been really excited about this. Around October of 2018, he and I were thinking about what we could do to contribute more to the US Drum & Bass scene. Both of us being fairly young producers, we really want to invest in our culture here in America so that we can have a thriving, productive ecosystem for new producers, promoters and listeners. We decided to create a drum & bass media brand that we’re calling Skankout.”

“Skankout is our answer to the question: “What is American Drum & Bass”. We want to break Drum & Bass to a young american audience in a way that feels fresh and exciting. We think it’s important to showcase the best parts of our scene and really make them shine, as well as supplement the efforts of all the artists, promoters and industry involved in the American DNB scene. We plan to launch this summer.”

This is SO important! USDnB doesn't get nearly the love it deserves, especially from the younger crowd. As an artist who's been abroad, what do you think needs to happen in our scene to move it forward?

“It definitely deserves more, but I’m constantly seeing more people getting hyped up about it and even new producers getting stoked! It’s really awesome to see. Having seen lots of crowds where the median age is 21 in Europe, and tons of people dancing away for 6+ hours, I think we have what it takes here, albeit a little bit differently.”

“One thing I think would be really attractive to younger audiences would be more modern music or artists playing. Sometimes I walk into gigs here at 10 or 11pm and the DJ is just slamming 2000s neurofunk at 180bpm. It’s hard to think a newly 21 year old with a few years or less of listening to DNB will enjoy that, especially the more gentle types. One criticism I see online often is that DNB is perceived as ‘old’ in the US, which sometimes can’t be helped in a genre that’s now 25+ years of age. Injecting fresh acts into the show rounds will make a big difference.”

“But don’t stop there; a huge part of DNB here not attracting younger people is the presentation. Plenty of people come to the DNB scene purely from the music, but to a lot of showgoers, atmosphere is incredibly important. The tough, gritty, graffiti covered aesthetic of the 90s and 2000s is still rampant here in 2019, and is really difficult to relate to with younger crowds. Going from a PLUR show to a drastically darker atmosphere definitely turns some people off. Not to mention how masculine some of the aesthetics are. I would love to see more shows with an inviting vibrance to them, something everyone can feel comfortable in. A modern approach is a good thing.”

Agreed! Speaking of fresh acts, who are some of the USDnB up and comers you’re most excited about?

“There are a ton of new artists on the horizon lately! Some really notable mentions are Echo B, who just released a monster EP on Dance Concept, Des McMahon, Boxplot (who also has a massive EP coming soon), Sixfour, Winslow, Shibumi, Reaper, Kallan HK, Zeal, Lasu, Hajimari, Alexvnder, AWOLTALK, and many more. Way too many to name.”

That’s quite the mighty list! What tracks are you digging the most these days?

“Oh boy, really digging anything from Mefjus or Synergy right now. On the flipside I’m also in love with Dawn Wall and Mohican Sun tunes. I’ve even been rolling through Jon Hopkins tracks day to day, they’re always so expressive. Urbandawn has always been a legend, but ever since he sent me his Come Together dub I have been out of my mind for this dude. I guess one last one would be Bruises, by Fox Stevenson. I belt that one out every time.”

I want to thank Flite for taking time to sit down and answer my questions. He is definitely a motivated young man who has a bright future ahead of him in the DNB scene and all of us at UBB can’t wait to see what he does next.

Catch Flite this Friday, May 31st at SD Union as he makes his San Diego debut alongside Sam Binga and a slew of San Diego’s best. Make sure to Follow Flite on all of his socials so you can keep up with everything this busy man is up to!

What’s New with Gerra & Stone? (Interview)

Veronica Stetter — Thu, 04 Apr 2019 17:31:44 +0000

What’s New with Gerra & Stone? (Interview)

The next installment of We Love Bass is just around the corner, and we are so excited to provide a space for house, techno, and drum & bass fans to converge and enjoy a fantastic Saturday of beats.

In anticipation of the event, we asked Gerra & Stone a few questions about their current playlist and the state of D&B in 2019.

Read on to learn what the duo have in store, and don’t forget to lock down We Love Bass tickets for you and your crew.

What is your favorite thing to do when you visit Southern California?

“We’ve had some fun trips down to Tijuana during the last couple of tours when stopping through San Diego!”

What is on your playlist right now?

“Been playing this one every set for a couple of months now, great mix of techno vibes and upfront D&B sounds. Sinic – Left turn (Flexout Audio)”

“We’re also both big techno fans, and especially like Shlomi Aber’s label, which is called Be As One Imprint. This is one of their latest releases, straight up dark roller!”

Your style is so diverse - how do you decide what kind of set you'll play each time? What factors go into your song choices?

“To an extent it can depend on the place or country we’re playing in, as some places (particularly in eastern Europe) do seem to prefer the harder edged tracks. So that can influence our decision of what to play a little.

Having said that, we always try to encompass a lot of moods, emotions and styles into a set, as that’s what attracted us to the genre in the first place.”

Tell us about your next release, big festival bookings or anything else you want the world to know!

“Our latest EP titled ‘Pathfinder’ is out now on Shogun Audio’s sister label ‘SGN:Ltd’.

Following that, over the next few months, we’ve got new music forthcoming on Program, Shogun Audio, Flexout Audio, Vandal Records to name a few!
Keep it locked for more details.”

Follow Gerra & Stone

Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/GerraandStone/ SoundCloud → https://soundcloud.com/gerraandstone

Follow SGN:LTD

Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/SGNLTD/
SoundCloud → https://soundcloud.com/sgn-ltd

We love nothing more than bringing fresh talent to our beautiful city of San Diego. Whether it’s a house, techno or drum & bass party, we believe that lovers of bass should always stick together and support one another.

Miss our last event? Make sure to check out the Facebook photo album from our last show with Pleasurekraft & Brennen on Facebook, and keep up with all the latest event promos and content on both the We Love Bass and the UBB Instagram.

Don’t miss the party with Gerra & Stone, Jesse Perez, Reid Speed, and many more – Saturday, April 6 at We Love Bass San Diego. Buy your tickets now and save!

Veronica Stetter

Author, Editor @ UBB

A Quick Chat with Reid Speed (Interview)

Emily Widuch — Tue, 02 Apr 2019 21:13:04 +0000

A Quick Chat With Reid Speed (Interview)

With more than two decades in the scene, you can’t talk about U.S. drum & bass without mentioning Reid Speed. Consistently ranked as one of America’s top DJ’s, she’s known for her straight up skills on the decks, effortlessly mixing between genres on the fly.

I had a chat with the Queen of Caturday herself to talk about what we can expect from her performance at We Love Bass, her label Play Me Records, women in drum & bass, and of course, pizza and cats.

This will be your third time playing in San Diego for United By Bass! What are a few of the tracks you're most looking forward to playing at We Love Bass?

“I’m super excited to drop some of that new Delta Heavy, a couple of the songs off the Dr. Apollo EP dropping April 5th on Play Me, and a brand new No Concept remix of me & Dr. Apollo’s tune Electrotherapy that we also have coming out this summer!”

As the boss lady of Play Me Records, what do you look for when signing a track or artist?

“When signing new music, I look first for originality, then, how well the song fills the frequency spectrum and works as whatever genre it is, and finally, is it memorable? Then I look at social media numbers and interactions to try & gauge if the artist is building their own support network. There’s a lot of moving pieces to the puzzle, but having most of the boxes checked when you submit really helps.”

Speaking of boss ladies… you are very vocal in the worldwide movement for female inclusion in drum & bass. What do you think needs to happen in order to level the playing field a little bit?

“Female inclusion across all genres seems to a problem. It’s frustrating that there can be hundreds of “sound-alike” dudes or guys who don’t contribute much but if they are friends with the gatekeepers of the industry, so to speak, they are all given seats at the table by default. Any woman trying to come up is held to much higher standards, and even doing all the things and more than her male counterparts, it still doesn’t assure her a place and often goes ignored by the industry. If a woman does start to break through, her credibility and legitimacy are immediately called into question. The boys club atmosphere makes it so prohibitively difficult to make any headway. We take tiny steps, and then a new guy just shows up, and we get quickly pushed aside.”

“All that said, within drum & bass, I think women still have a ways to go to reach our full potential with regard to producing to the level of our male counterparts. There are a few, but not many who are doing it at the required level. Drum & bass is super technical to make, and most guys don’t want to discuss your WIPs with you. Having a few solid female-peer support collectives popping up to discuss our music has probably been the most helpful thing so far. Perhaps if we can band together and really lift each other up, we can just build a new table…”

You’re having a Caturday pizza party… who are you inviting?

I would invite every homeless unloved cat and feed them all!!

We want to thank Reid Speed for taking time out her day to sit down with us. We can’t wait for to touch down at We Love Bass this Saturday in San Diego, California. Discount Tickets and info can be found HERE.

Emily Widuch

Author | Editor @ UBB

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What’s New with Gerra & Stone? (Interview)

What’s New with Gerra & Stone? (Interview)

What is your favorite thing to do when you visit Southern California?

What is on your playlist right now?

Your style is so diverse - how do you decide what kind of set you'll play each time? What factors go into your song choices?

Tell us about your next release, big festival bookings or anything else you want the world to know!

Follow Gerra & Stone

Follow SGN:LTD

Veronica Stetter

A Quick Chat with Reid Speed (Interview)

A Quick Chat With Reid Speed (Interview)

This will be your third time playing in San Diego for United By Bass! What are a few of the tracks you're most looking forward to playing at We Love Bass?

As the boss lady of Play Me Records, what do you look for when signing a track or artist?

Speaking of boss ladies… you are very vocal in the worldwide movement for female inclusion in drum & bass. What do you think needs to happen in order to level the playing field a little bit?

You’re having a Caturday pizza party… who are you inviting?

Emily Widuch

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