Pennygiles

The story of Pennygiles’ rise to success can be considered a whirlwind romance of sorts, having gone from an unknown Welsh lad to an internationally renowned producer in the space of just over a year. Having started DJing in 2006 – most likely to deal with the monotony of living in a tiny town in Mid Wales – he originally found himself immersed in the house scene, but the loveliness and brilliance of the music coming from Calibre’s Signature Records and Marcus Intalex’s Soul:R turned him onto drum and bass.

After continuing to DJ, listen to, and love the sound of the genre, it was only a matter of time before Pennygiles – real name Stuart Maccallum – tried his hand at production, and having no musical background or any real knowledge of musical theory wasn’t going to get in his way. Picking up his first DAW in 2010, he began working on his first tunes, paving the way for what has been a hugely successful couple of years for him.

Though most producers spend years and years working towards their first release – some giving up before they see any recognition at all – Pennygiles scored his first just a year later in 2011, and has since then created a constant stream of stunning drum and bass. His list of artist support reads like a list of dnb legends – the likes of LTJ Bukem, Random Movement, Makoto, Loxy, and of course 1Xtra’s Bailey and MistaJam all rinse out his tunes regularly, and they’re just the tip of the iceberg.

If you take one look at his SoundCloud page, you’ll find out why Pennygiles is earning all this support and why labels such as Innerground, Demand, Liquid V, Mars, Fokuz, Rubiks, and more have put out his tunes. And it’s not just labels who are fighting to work with him, but other producers too – he’s collaborated with the likes of RoyGreen & Protone, Phil Tangent, Spirant, and Mr Joseph, who he’s currently working on a brand new 12” with.

You may think that his speedy ascension to fame is almost impossible for someone who started producing just over two years ago, but it was his lack of musical knowledge – combined with his insane ability to sample almost anything from his vast and eclectic collection of music and make it work – that seems to have helped Pennygiles become one of the quickest-rising and undoubtedly-talented new faces in drum and bass today. In his own words, he says that ‘not knowing the in’s and out’s of how music works I feel gives me more freedom than anyone with great knowledge of how chords should progress.’

If you’re into drum and bass and you haven’t heard Pennygiles yet, do yourself a favour and go and find him. No matter if you’re too lazy, though – he’ll almost certainly be reaching you in 2013 whether you like it or not.