DJ Vengeance Interview
East Anglia based producer, drummer, label boss and veteran selector...if you don't know about DJ Vengeance by now, 2020's the time to rectify the situation. You see, Vengeance has been doing this drum 'n' bass thing for years. Way back in 2004 his DJ skills won him a “Young Musician of the East” award – judged by no less an authority than Mr Metalheadz himself, Goldie. As if that wasn't enough, he's gone on to release a string of heavyweight tracks on labels including his own Vengeance Recordings and Cutting Edge Soundz, as well as MC Fearless's Hustlin' Beats – which he also helps run. And that's before we get into the A&R skills that have seen his imprints bring through a swathe of next gen producers. So, with fingers in multiple DnB-flavoured pies and two decades of track record, we thought it was about time we found out more about the man himself.
From the likes of Photek and Flytronix to Upgrade and T>I, East Anglia has always seemed to punch above its weight when it comes to producing huge DnB artists. What do you think it is about your region that makes it such a creative hotspot for our artform? And what local artists inspired you as you were on your way up?
I think there must be something in the water, there seems to be a passion and focus that drives artists from the east coast to great heights! When I was first getting serious about producing tracks I spent a lot of time with Bladerunner. I would go and hang round Devan’s and we would listen to each other's tunes and give each other feedback. We made a couple of dubs together; Devan was doing the main engineering and watching him work with him sharing production tips was a great help and had a definite influence on my work flow even to this day. Another artist I had a lot of respect for was a guy called Shere Khan, signed to Moving Shadow. He was a genuine good guy who would always give me good feedback and I really liked his sound.
Having been involved in the industry for a long time now as an artist - as well as behind the scenes - you'll have seen the huge changes that things like social media and digital music distribution have made to the way we operate. Do you feel optimistic about the way the scene's developing, or do you think maybe there are elements of the old skool way of doing things that we should try and bring back?
Good question. I think the whole digital transition the music industry is going through has taken a certain charm away from the way things were done back in the day. I think the rise of the internet and social media has the ability to create illusions and delusions. Even though it's opened the floodgates to everyone who wants to put themselves out there, true talent is getting lost in the swamp of the web. It's freedom for all but the quality control leaves a lot to be desired. It’s now more important for a good DJ to select the right tracks. I’m looking forward to seeing what the future holds for DnB. The scene moves fast and as the saying goes if you don’t move with the times you get left behind.
One of the big changes in DnB since you began in the late nineties is that sub-genres have multiplied and separated, sometimes almost splitting off into individual scenes. What's your thinking on sub-genre divisions? Do you - as an artist and label boss - consider yourself as repping any particular sub-genres, or do you prefer to think of DnB as one multi-faceted whole?
The thing is, when the scene divides the audience splits too, so you end up with smaller groups. On one hand it hasn’t been good for the rave scene as a whole, but on the other hand the music has expanded with fresh styles, and those in turn can grow with popularity and move the scene forward. Sometimes not always in the right direction in my opinion, though. I do like to see DnB as a whole, however I still categorize my labels. The labels I run would fall into jump up for Hustlin’ Beats, dark techy for Cutting Edge, and a more varied selection of styles with a focus on more musical DnB for Vengeance.
You started your musical journey as a drummer. How has that influenced your approach to deejaying and production? And, having an understanding of the technique and theory of drumming, do you find yourself being extra-critical of other artists' drum programming?
A lot of DJs I know were drummers before they took to beat-mixing. I think it definitely helps to be a good beat-keeper. When I DJ I’m using the crossfader like a drum musician playing fills, but by slicing hits into the mix. That requires good timing, and if you’ve already had a lot of practice keeping the tempo you kind of have a sixth sense when DJing. Again it's helped me knowing how to play the drums when it comes to programming. I’m at the point where I can picture the beats in my head - how the pattern should go - and I can translate that to audio drum hits on the computer. I’m not over-critical but I can tell when something’s not sitting right. If you're making tunes to be mixed they have to be DJ friendly in my opinion.
You've hit some wicked milestones in your career so far. Are you working to a long-term gameplan or are you just taking things as they come? Do you have a vision of where you'd like to be in your music career in a few years' time?
I think its good to have a game plan and focus, but you also have to be able to adapt to things and change when things aren’t working out. I’m a little bit stubborn as I like to have control of my music and release it own my own labels, build my own brands. This, in some ways, held me back in terms of not getting the respect you would if you were getting tracks out on big labels, but I’m also not playing the waiting game so I feel I have the freedom to get my tunes out there and not feel frustrated or put on the back burner, which can happen when trying to get stuff out there. My production can only get stronger and I would love to get on some of the big labels in the future but it's not the be-all and end-all. I think I'll know when the right time and tune comes along, but, for now, I’m happy building my labels up with a good back cat.
And finally, what's lined up for you, Vengeance Recordings, and your other projects in 2020?
I’m looking forward to releasing lots of good music! I have a group of very talented producers around me. To name a few: Bad Influence, Destiny, Dead of Night, Trauma DBC, and the Kontact Era boys who all have releases forthcoming this year. They're all making some serious dancefloor drum 'n' bass. I have plans to work with award-winning vocalist Alicia King later this year, I’m also looking forward to getting on some new vocal projects with MC Fearless and MC Vaga-D, and get on some fresh remixes of classic tracks from the Vengeance back cat so watch this space!
Here's DJ Vengeance (aka Excalibur) flexing his studio skills:
And here's Vengeance in the mix representing flavours from all his labels:
Vengeance Recordings on Facebook
Posted by Tom Denton
