The Perfect Recipe :: Response & Dominic Petrie Cooking Up A Storm On Ingredients

Ingredients Records came back strong this month with the beginning of a double release from Manchester new boy, Response, the first of which dropped earlier this month. This marked the beginning of a flurry of releases within a six week period, including the next single from Response and a seven-track EP from Aberdeen based producer, Dominic Petrie.

In this first part of our focus on Ingredients Records, we take a closer look at all three releases...

Following on from his collaboration with ST Files, which was also released on Ingredients a little while back, Response unleashed 'Creep' and 'Resistance' on a label which is synonymous with breaking new talent and justifiably respected for it. This single sets the tone for his forthcoming material with a focus on tough, stepping breaks, brooding atmosphere and heavy low end.

'Creep' exemplifies this perfectly, kicking things off with a simple two-step beat before building and dropping with heavy, distorted bass stabs which rumble along throughout. This is real heads-down business, reminiscent of classic Renegade Hardware and Phantom Audio releases, demonstrating how simplicity can do just as much damage on the dancefloor as more complicated sounding tracks.

'Resistance' comes with a slightly more rolling feel to it but hits just as hard with Burning Spear vocal samples and a dub-infused bassline. Check both tracks out below and see what you think.

Forthcoming on October 21st, the follow-up single from Response not only proves Clive at Ingredients' faith in this artist but also further cements him as a producer to keep your eye on. It's hard to believe he's been making music for ten years but is only just finding his way into the limelight now.

'Surveillance', which has been championed by the legendary Fabio and is a firm favourite here at Blackdub HQ, starts out where 'Resistance' left off. Although a little deeper than the tracks on the previous release it still holds enough weight for the dancefloor, which you'll understand when that bass drops. Comparisons to Marcus Intalex are easy to see here but that's a good thing in our opinion. Vibes!

'One Nation' is the moody teenager of this single. Deep, dark and coming with an old Virus style sound palette, this one grumbles along with a deadly reese bassline that was enough to make label owner, Clive come over all giddy.

You may not have heard the name Dominic Petrie before as, as far as we're aware, this is his first release under this moniker. However, like Response, he has been producing for a while, under the name Y2D, with a slew of releases under his belt on labels such as Nerve, Phuzion and Sound Artillery.

This EP really showcases his diversity as a producer with tracks like the sublime 'Riverside Blues' and 'Beyond the Wall of Sleep' bringing that Calibre style smoothness. In contrast to these, you have 'Ephemerol Test' and 'Exponent of Escape', which wouldn't sound out of place on an Autonomic podcast, as well as our favourite of the bunch, 'TMA1', with it's sparse soundscape and distorted bass.

The thing that ties all these tracks together is the atmosphere and the actual emotion and feeling you get from them which is a hard thing to accomplish these days. It also speaks volumes that this release was originally supposed to be a single but Clive and company at Ingredients couldn't decide firmly enough on two tracks to put out. We're also feeling the artwork on this one. Lovely stuff.

Q&A :: Hex [AutomAte/Symbiosis Glasgow]

Our special guest this month came in the form Scotland's Hex. We got hold of him recently to find out what makes him tick and what we can expect to hear from him in the future.

Don't forget, you can check his mix out in the seventh episode of our podcast here: http://blackdubpodcast.blogspot.nl/2013/03/blackdub-podcast-7-feat-hex.html


For those of us who don't know much about you, can you introduce yourself?

Hi, I’m Hex! I’m a Drum & Bass DJ and producer based in Glasgow, Scotland. I help run Symbiosis (Glasgow’s longest running active Drum & Bass club night) and I run the DNB Dojo blog.

How did you get into the Drum & Bass scene and what made you want to DJ/produce?

My path into the D&B scene started back in 2004 or so when I started getting into electronic music via the likes of Aphex Twin and Squarepusher and the jungle-tinged IDM/breakcore scene. After that I started getting into Dubstep (back when it was still good) via the early Fortified Sessions nights in Glasgow where I saw guys like N-Type and Vex’d play, and I wanted to buy the tunes I was hearing so I started to buy vinyl records. Once I had a stack of 12”s I began to think about getting decks and learning to mix, which I eventually bought after finishing University and getting a proper job.

Around the same time as I was finishing Uni, I went to Shambhala festival in Canada and caught Ed Rush & Optical and Evol Intent throwing down on a 100,000 Watt soundsystem! Needless to say I was pretty much instantly converted to D&B, and found that I enjoyed mixing it far more than I enjoyed mixing Dubstep, hence my start as a D&B DJ. Neil and the Symbiosis crew gave me a set at one of their events in 2010 and I’ve been playing out as much as I can ever since.

As for production, I got interested in that more recently; I know quite a few producers who make all sorts of music and plenty of them encouraged me to give it a go, and once I’d learned the basics I found it pretty addictive…nothing quite beats the feeling of sitting in front of your laptop nodding your head to a beat you’ve actually constructed. 

How would you describe your sound/ethos both in the studio and the club?

Broadly I lean towards the techstep and neurofunk sounds both in my productions and DJ sets, though I also appreciate the deep halfstep and soulful liquid vibes. I think ultimately I’ve always been drawn to dark, angry music, all the way from listening to punk and metal as a teenager through getting into electronic music via tracks like Come To Daddy. Sometimes it’s fun to make or mix deeper tunes but more often than not I want something hench. It’s all about feeling that sub growling in your chest on a good rig! 

Can we expect to hear any releases from you in the near future?

I’ve got a pair of tunes signed to Automate Tech which should be coming out sometime this year, one of which you can hear in the mix. I’m aiming to get on it and write plenty this year so hopefully there’ll be more coming soon…watch this space!

Away from D&B, I took some time to write a four track EP of spacey, chilled out electronica leaning towards garage and dubstep which is available as a free download here.

Current top 5 tunes?

Always so hard to pick…right now I’d say: 

• Black Sun Empire - All Is Lost (Memtrix Remix) 

• Optiv & CZA - Bring It Back 

• Telekinesis & MC Coppa - Pocket Full Of Drops 

• Fourward - Street Knowledge 

• Command Strange – Regrets 

That list will probably change by next week though! 

Can you give us a little insight into the mix you put together for our podcast?

For the mix I wanted to try and go on a little bit of a journey, starting deep and then building things up into the harder, nastier tunes, and also showcase a couple of my own bits. The mix opens up with my remix of Lethal’s Seductive (which you can grab as a free download via my Facebook page) and goes through some other deep ones (like the excellent Fracture remix of Phantom Force and the sublime new Dub Phizix tune Rainy City Music) before hitting into harder territory with new cuts from Telekinesis and Memtrix. I always try and get a few classics into the mix too, and some lesser known artists/labels like the stuff from Audio Habitat on Sidechain and the tunes from Arkaik and Arclight. Hopefully the Blackdub listeners will feel the vibes! 

Any final thoughts/shouts you would like to add?

Big shout outs to Stu, Jules, Neil and Altron (the Symbiosis crew), shouts to the Automate crew, biggups to everyone who sends me promo at the blog and much love to everyone who’s ever taken the time to listen to my tunes or mixes. 

Anyone in Scotland reading this, check out Symbiosis in Glasgow every 3rd Saturday of the month down at Audio on Midland Street and come catch me playing at Midgefest in Galloway April 12th-14th. Peace!

Q&A :: Lethal [Surround Sound Recordings]

Lethal was kind enough to provide us with a guest mix for the third episode of our podcast series. To whet your appetite we caught up with the DJ/Producer and got a few words with him to find out a bit more about what drives him, what we can expect from his label Surround Sound Recordings and how he feels about the ever-present MP3 vs. Vinyl argument.

For the people who don’t know much about you, can you introduce yourself and give us a little background on the label?

My names Dan Franklin aka Lethal and I own the label Surround Sound which I run alongside my good friend Mike Rogers who is also one half of Able Danger. The labels been going since June 2009 and we’ve had 26 releases so far. We release predominantly Drum and Bass, but have also branched out into Dubstep with plans to move into other genres too.

What made you want to set up a new label?

Mainly it was to have that creative control over my music and output, although it was always a goal of mine to have my own label and one that I was very happy to achieve. I had been working with Raiden helping to manage Offkey and the connection to ST Holdings got made, so I took the opportunity to put my concept for a label forward. Things went from there and here we are today.

How would you describe the ethos behind Surround Sound? What are you looking for when you sign a track?

It’s hard to say, a well thought out arrangement and balanced production is always good for me. I like tracks that have some substance to them, where you can tell the producer has put some thought into it and not just slapped a bunch of loops from a sample CD together. Surround Sound is about a variety of styles and genres that can all work together in context. Techno is a big influence for me personally; however I don't let it dictate the label.

The MP3 vs. Vinyl argument continues to rumble on. As you run a digital release focused label, do you feel D&B is a little unyielding in its refusal to embrace technology more?

I don’t really feel there’s much of an argument anymore... you can only argue with the numbers so much. The reality is vinyl doesn’t sell like it did, especially not for smaller labels. Many who put out vinyl do it at a loss, which is a real shame. I would love to do some more vinyl releases but the numbers just don’t add up. Who knows what the future holds, but I can’t see things moving back.

What’s up next for you and Surround Sound?

I have a 5 track EP out now on Surround Sound that features some tracks originally scheduled for Position Chrome. Then we have a 3 track EP from Able Danger with more to come. We’re still finalising the schedule but details will be up on the surroundsoundrecordings.co.uk as soon as their ready. Other than that I’m currently working on solo and collab projects, as well as a techno project too.

Can you give us a little insight into the mix you’ve put together for us?

I wish I could say there was some deep thought that went into it, but I'd be lying. I just wanted to pull some old bits and throw them in the pot with some new tracks. It’s very easy to get caught up in the latest tunes all the time so it was good to dig through the old CDs and pull out some old personals.

Any final thoughts you’d like to add?

Follow me on Twitter, @DanLethal and Soundcloud for up to date info on what’s going on with me and keep posted to www.surroundsoundrecordings.co.uk and @SurroundSoundUK on Twitter for all label and associates news. A big thanks to the Blackdub crew for asking for the mix, big ups to you guys. A shout goes out to Mike (MR2) and the Surround Sound family, expanding by the day. Big ups and respect to all those that support what we do. 

Introducing :: Protect Audio

Drum and Bass is flourishing at the moment and with that, there is a consistent rash of labels popping up here and there. 
It's difficult in times like this to stand out from the crowd and keep the quality control high. Worcester based label Protect Audio seems to have both of these factors locked down. They already have a solid debut release out now in the shape of Marukumo's Visions/Ganymede so we thought we'd catch up with head-honcho Pete to find out what's up next.

For the people who don’t know much about you, can you give us a little background on yourself and Protect Audio?

I’m Pete, I’m 26 and I own Protect Audio (sounds like blind date haha). I’ve always had a massive interest in music and I’ve played different instruments for the last 15 or so years.  I started off playing drums at age eleven and soon moved onto bass and guitar. I still play guitar now. 

Around the age of sixteen I started playing around with FL studio, making some weird Aphex Twin inspired music as I was really into that trippy genre back then. At age eighteen I thought about going to guitar school and getting a degree in technical guitar playing as I wanted to teach/session etc. Instead I got a job and worked for a couple of years then went to SAE Institute London to study audio engineering. I ended up quitting my course after a year and I started a small label named Tongue Flap. This is where I learnt the foundations of music business and music management etc. 

2012 came along and it was time to start Protect Audio and really focus it on nineties influenced Drum and Bass. I've been building up my contacts and knowledge over the past three to four years so starting the label and getting people aware of it was a bit easier. We’re now just waiting for PA002 to land on September 17th.

How would you describe the ethos behind the label? What do you feel sets you apart from everyone else?

Protect Audio's ethos is to release Drum and Bass that has a nineties inspiration but with a 2012 feel. We’re not aiming for the commercial sounds and not trying to follow a trend. We just release music that we love which has enough firepower to compete with the big boys and it appears to be working. We’ve had some amazing DJ feedback & support so far. Watch out!

What’s up next release-wise for Protect Audio?

On September 17th we have The Protection EP dropping worldwide. It’s a four track various artists EP featuring Congress, Mono, Homemade Weapons and Marukomu. There is something for everyone in this release and we’re very proud of it. As for forthcoming music, we have a release from Homemade Weapons, Cursa and Hyroglifics. I’ve already said too much so you’ll have to wait to find out more info!!!

Any shouts or final thoughts you’d like to add?

Thanks to everyone that is supporting Protect Audio and cheers to all the guys who work very hard for me. You can hear our forthcoming release by playing the Soundcloud set below.