Moving Shadow Label Takeover - Interview, Top Tracks & More!
Moving Shadow is one of the most influential and respected labels in the history of breakbeat, jungle, and drum & bass. Founded in 1990 by Rob Playford, the label has released over 200 singles and 30 full-length albums, covering a wide range of styles from rave to jazzy vibes to hard-stepping drum & bass.
Moving Shadow has been at the forefront of innovation in the genre, releasing some of the most groundbreaking tracks and albums of all time. Goldie's seminal album Timeless was co-written, engineered, and recorded at Moving Shadow, and the label has also released classic tracks by Omni Trio, E-Z Rollers, Aquasky, Dom & Roland, 2 Bad Mice, Foul Play, Calyx, Noisia, Future Prophecies, and Corrupt Souls.
In addition to its groundbreaking music, Moving Shadow has also been a pioneer in the marketing and promotion of drum & bass. The label's music has been featured in feature films, TV shows, video games, and advertising campaigns, and Moving Shadow has also been instrumental in bringing drum & bass to a wider audience.
Today, Moving Shadow continues to be a leading force in the drum & bass scene. The label's current focus is on promoting its extensive back catalogue and maintaining its history and artist repertoire. Moving Shadow is also active on social media, where it shares news, music, and videos with fans around the world.
Check Rob Playford's interview and top track pick among the enormous Moving Shadow's catalogue.
Interview with Rob Playford
Please can you give us a little background history around Moving Shadow. When it was started, who originally was behind its inception and what the idea was when staring the label?
Moving Shadow was started in 1990 by myself, Rob Playford. At that time I'd been DJing at various raves but by March 1990 the events were starting to come under a lot of pressure from the police and subsequently quite often closed down. So, in the time I then had spare, I decided to have a go at making some tracks myself, rather than just playing other peoples’. I purchased an AKAI S950 sampler to add to my existing Atari 1040ST and Yamaha DX7 keyboard and the resultant efforts became The Orbital Project 'Orbital Madness E.P.’ (later to be cat.no. TOP002, May 1990). I sent the tracks to labels for feedback, but I was impatient and as there weren’t any immediate responses I thought it might be fun to see how the whole process of pressing my own vinyl would work. By coincidence, I happened to be listening to a show on Radio 1 one Saturday afternoon and they mentioned a book that contained a bunch of information about the music business. It was aimed more at bands, but it had plenty of info on what was involved in pressing records. So, on my next record buying expedition to London I popped into one of the large bookstores nearby and bought a copy. Armed with that information, I cut and pressed my first 12 inch. That first release was just a hand-stamped white label and I sold them to the stores I usually bought records from; predominantly City Sounds (Holburn), Red Records (Beak Street) and Music Power (Ilford). I then commenced work on a follow up and the next release 'Chinese Lollipops E.P.' (cat.no. TOP003) came in the summer in a full sleeve which was designed by a friend. I had the idea for the label’s name when I was out one night at The London Astoria in Soho; I caught sight of a wall covered in moving shadows cast from the lasers and thought that encapsulates the nightlife and clubbing aspect of the scene nicely. With a name in hand I paid for some logo designs and one in particular stood out; that was the birth of the Moving Shadow logo. The label now had an identity and other people started to approach me, local artists/friends of friends etc, and within the year it was a fully fledged record label with global distribution.
What were some of the early releases that helped establish Moving Shadow as a pioneering label in the Breakbeat/Jungle and Drum & Bass scene?
In the early years of the Breakbeat scene, 2 Bad Mice's 'Bombscare' from the 'Hold It Down E.P.’ release (SHADOW14) was essential and huge in the clubs, whilst Blame’s mammoth track 'Music Takes You' (SHADOW11) has a firm place in our history too as it was the first to be signed by someone we didn't know at the time; after being sent in to the label on a cassette. We later advanced to putting out remixes too; Hyper On Experience’s 'Lord of Null Lines' (Foul Play remix) for example was born from artists wanting to do remixes of other artists’ tracks, rather than “the record label” simply exploiting its catalogue.
How did Moving Shadow contribute to the development and popularization of specific subgenres within Drum & Bass, such as jungle, techstep, and atmospheric Drum & Bass?
The continually fluid and fast evolving scene allowed us to cover a broad spectrum of sub-genres. We wanted to reflect the sound of the scene at any particular moment rather than get trapped in a niche of a particular sub-genre. We weren’t deliberately directing anything; just getting it out there to the people that wanted to hear it. That, in itself though, allowed other producers to bounce off the ideas others had come up with and hence propagate and develop the scene.
What role did Moving Shadow play in nurturing and launching the careers of influential artists in the Drum & Bass scene?
One of the key facets of how the label was run was to be thoroughly organised, which meant we were in a position to maximise the potential of the artists we had signed such as licensing the E-Z Rollers 'Walk This Land' to the Guy Ritchie classic movie 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels'. We also had a label deal in Japan with AVEX Trax who released exclusive editions of the Omni Trio 'Deepest Cut' and Foul Play 'Suspected' CD albums, and gave the opportunity for label artists to tour the globe. We were also in a position to link up with Rockstar Games for the GTA series. My involvement as engineer, writer and producer with Goldie on the classic 'Timeless' album was pivotal in it getting signed to London Records. I’m pretty focused and organised, a little too much, but with a maintained schedule and the odd spreadsheet here and there, we were able to allow our artists’ careers to realise their potential.
How did Moving Shadow contribute to the international recognition and expansion of the Drum & Bass genre?
By being a professional, available focal point of the scene. People were able to find us and call us up – DJ's / TV / Film production companies, that was our USP. We had a wide ranging overview of the scene and its sub-genres and were likely the first to sign artists to album deals. Our office was staffed, which meant there were people available to contact and who had responsibilities for different areas of the label.
How did the Drum and Bass scene expand globally and influence music scenes in different countries?
The USA were early adopters, Florida and New York especially, but Germany and Japan were also there too, picking up on the emerging Drum & Bass scene. A lot of this, as it was before the Internet, was purely down to vinyl records being distributed around the world. Shops, dedicated to the music, were opening up in different territories and events were being set up to host UK DJ's alongside their homegrown talent. Ultimately, and in the USA in particular, it could be argued that this set in motion a series of events that led to the rise of dubstep and the huge EDM explosion in general.
What impact did Drum and Bass have on other genres of electronic music and mainstream music?
Drum & Bass producers were renowned as the real vanguard of music production in the mid-90s, constantly pushing new technology to its limits and beyond as it was a very competitive scene where producers would vie to outdo their peers. This would influence producers in other areas, some of whom were running parallel such as Aphex Twin and Squarepusher. Many influential artists who were keen to stay abreast of the underground scene would bring elements of Drum & Bass into their work, notably David Bowie, but then others as diverse as Everything But The Girl, Therapy, Fugees and countless others would commission remixes. The sound invariably made it into mainstream pop music as well with Girls Aloud 'Sound of the Underground' being an obvious example.
How has the Drum and Bass scene evolved in recent years, and what are some current trends or directions it is taking?
The music continues to evolve, splinter, push production barriers as it always has, creating new avenues, reinventing previous eras anew, creating hybrids and bringing in more vocalists of different flavours - all of that and more, expanding and contracting like an evolving amorphous blob. The influence and involvement of Grime MC's such as P Money bringing tight flows to Whiney productions, the resurgence of the Atmospheric Jungle scene to fill the Good Looking Records void, the continued revision of jump-up and extraordinary soundscape building are all notable examples of current trends.
How did technology advancements, such as the emergence of digital audio production and DJing, impact the evolution of Drum and Bass?
It was essential and played a pivotal role in the genre, as well as electronic music in general. Hardware advances were used and abused then software allowed further programming sorcery to come to the fore. A lot of producers may not even have been “musicians” yet technology allowed them to still be creative and shock the world.
Ok, here's our last question(s) and, to be honest, we’ve been holding them too long now; what is the reason you have waited until now to release the catalogue digitally? Does it mean we could expect some new content?
The catalogue has been available digitally to some extent since the early 00's, but it’s been a lengthy process getting the very sizeable catalogue fully together and to a degree future-proofed. Particularly the artwork, which, being from the early 90’s, was not of the spec required for today's platforms in terms of resolution; a lot of time and effort has gone into getting these up to date and in fact beyond the current requirements. It feels great to be able to finally have the entire catalogue looking its best, sounding as good as it always did, and available for all to enjoy. As for the last part of your question, I defer to the late great Joe Strummer ..'The Future Is Unwritten'.
Top Track Picks
1. Omni Trio - Renegade Snares (Foul Play Remix)
The all-time best-selling Moving Shadow track across the catalogue, this legendary remix offered a different spin on the already classic Omni Trio favourite and threw down the gauntlet for Moving Shadow’s 10-inch remix releases to come.
2. 2 Bad Mice - Bombscare
A huge early release on the label that still gets played in sets to this day at events like Bangface and Old Skool/Hardcore parties. Serially licensed to compilation albums covering the early 90’s rave scene, label boss Rob Playford alongside Si Colebrooke and Sean O’Keeffe defined the era with this absolute killer track.
3. E-Z Rollers - Walk This Land (Lock Stock Full Length Mix)
Most well known for being used in the soundtrack to Guy Ritchie’s 1998 film Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, E-Z Rollers’ Walk This Land has become one of the most instantly recognisable drum and bass tracks from the era - it even featured as the soundbed for the Purple Brick’s UK TV advert in 2021. It’s still got it!
4. Renegade - Terrorist (featuring Ray Keith)
Terrorist is one of a small number of Drum & Bass classics that have thrived across subsequent generations with its instantly recognisable bassline and piano breakdown. Much imitated but not surpassed, this track laid the blueprint for Ray Keith’s continued status as one of the pioneers of Jungle/Drum & Bass.
5. Deep Blue - The Helicopter Tune
Subject to a three-part package on release, the essential original is a go to release for classic Jungle/Drum & Bass compilations, whilst the Rufige Kru (Goldie) and 2 Bad Mice mixes on the subsequent 10” releases kept this track in DJ sets for years afterwards.
6. Blame - Music Takes You (2 Bad Mice Remix)
Music Takes You is the track that put Blame (Conrad Shafie) on the map; originally by the highly sought after version that was hammered in clubs up and down the land that surfaced on very limited promo vinyl release, then via the commercial release and this huge 2 Bad Mice remix.
7. Dead Dred - Dred Bass
From the opening otherworldly soothing synth pads and ‘What the time you have there dread?’ vocal this track lulls you in before a huge, first of its kind, warping bassline attacks. Altogether, the biggest track of the year in the clubs. Instantly memorable and identifiable.
8. Omni Trio - Renegade Snares
Omni Trio (Rob Haigh) took his classical piano skills and melded them with the polyrhythmic art of breakbeat manipulation to create an uplifting and enduring anthem. To this day, a contender for the all-time Drum & Bass classic lists, its profile kept active over the years not least by being remixed by High Contrast giving it an updated twist. ‘Take me up!’ indeed.
9. E-Z Rollers - Tough At The Top (Vocal Mix)
Prior to the success of ‘Walk This Land’ on TV and film soundtracks, E-Z Rollers set up their golden period with this double-bass-led dancefloor smash. Laced with a jazzy flute and an infectious melodic undercarriage the single was subsequently remixed by Dom & Roland, Timecode (label boss Rob Playford), Origin Unknown (Andy C & Ant Miles) and Rennie Pilgrem which gives an indication of its popularity across all sides of the Drum & Bass scene and beyond.
10. Dom & Roland - Thunder
The opening track on Dom & Roland’s debut album ‘Industry’ on Moving Shadow and a Techstep classic, the intent from one of Drum & Bass’s most respected and still very much active artists was clear from the off. A pallet of swarming Reece bass, distorted drums and dystopian sonic malevolent atmospherics put Dom at the vanguard and cutting edge of a seashift in the hardcore continuum.
11. Noisia - Block Control
“After years of making tracks and releasing them a dream came true: our own release on Moving Shadow in the form of the Block Control EP (which most Noisia fans consider a defining moment). We were and still are honoured to be a part of the amazing history and unique track record of this label.”, Nik / Noisia [May 2023]
12. Calyx - Follow The Leader (featuring Teebee)
Teebee & Calyx have since had a monstrous career, but Moving Shadow was where they truly established the partnership that would ultimately result in them signing to, and releasing, three albums on Andy C’s legendary RAM Records. ‘Follow The Leader’ stands out as a key track in the Calyx catalogue and truly highlights the skill of this production partnership.
Moving Shadow:
Posted by Brenton Clerkin
