Heard Lynx’s new release yet? You really should… His debut on Playaz, it’s five tracks of bona fide switch flippers and some of the most diverse stuff Lynx has ever produced. From wonky contemporary jump up to utter bashment filth, it covers all sides of the dance and plenty more. PLUS we have an exclusive free track that you will not find anywhere else. Buy the whole EP and Vitamin Germ is yours, gratis.
We thought we’d give Lynx a call to see what’s popping…
The Midnight Funk Association sounds like a great crew to be rolling with. I assume it’s free to join?
Ha! Yeah it’s absolutely free to join. Everyone’s welcome as long its midnight!
Great stuff. It’s a killer sample… Where did you find it?
It is isn’t it? Funnily enough I got given it by a friend in Germany called Adam Rolo – a big thanks to him if he’s reading! He’s a big D&B supporter. He sent it to me five years ago, I’ve been playing around with the bits for ages as a loop. It’s great to see it finally finished.
Wow… Five years?
Yeah! Not all tracks take me that long but that’s the way it rolled on this one.
Let’s chat Micro – there’s a big bad bashment element to it!
Thanks. It’s a progression of Bangin Arcs which was on the B-side of the first ever Detail release. I love playing with different rhythms and steps, rather than just doing the classic two-step sound. It is pretty bashy!
Tribal, even…
Yeah I love doing tribal drums!
Hellrazor appears quite a lot in your productions. How do you know him?
He owns Airtight Studios where I used to be a sound engineer. We never made tracks together back then but we’ve been collaborating loads over the years since I left the studio. He works differently to me and it’s really inspiring and refreshing to work with him. He’s more of a sample digger, which I don’t usually do. He finds the most obscure samples which are often the basis for inspiration. It’s a very interesting way to work.
I’ve heard that before; the sample is the trigger but by the end of the process the sample isn’t actually on the tune…
That’s exactly it.
How about Bobby Says. Tell me about Bobby…
Bobby Esmond works with a hip-hop guy called Dr Syntax. We made a track called Bug Out, it’s a very cool track which is forthcoming on Detail and it doesn’t take itself too seriously. So yeah, I had a load of samples of Bobby’s vocals which weren’t used on that track so we used it on this. The backing track for Bobby Says was influenced by H.M.P Runnins which is an old Playaz track; I’ve been inspired by that track for a long time!
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuU1tRg8Ksk
Full circle vibes!
Absolutely. I’ve included influences from that release on other releases; I love that whole steppy vibe so it’s great to be able to reference that officially on Playaz.
Is this the start of a long and fruitful relationship with Playaz?
Hopefully! Hype and Pascal are great to work with. I really wanted to do a few releases that people don’t expect me to do. I contacted Playaz and Hype and Pascal were really encouraging and great to bounce ideas off. We’ve got some more material that didn’t make it on the EP but are very strong tracks so hopefully we’ll release them too. It’s early to say but I’m sure we’ll do something again in the future.
And of course there’s the exclusive to Drum&BassArena track: Vitamin Germ!
Yes! It seems like a nice way to finish the EP… It’s a bit of a reference to the deeper stuff I’m normally known for with an almost Bladerunner style intro with lush strings and atmospheres. I hope people like it.
I’m sure they will man. So that’s the Playaz release covered. What’s coming up on your own imprint Detail?
We’ve got three releases planned over the coming months. Detail 10 is called Revolutions, which is something a bit different; it’s a dubstep track with Footsie, MC Fats and See. On the flipside there’s a remix of Locked On The Low which was the previous release on Detail that featured Namoi Pryor who I’m writing an album with at the moment.
Oh cool!
Yeah it’s a bit different. It steps me way outside of my usual environment which is a great challenge. It’s a massive departure with all sorts of sounds like house, ballads, dubstep. The very few people I’ve played it to have compared it to Magnetic Man meets The XX. It’s so different from anything I’ve done and it gives me a chance to showcase a different side to my productions. I’m not sure how we’ll work it. It’s a new world for me and a chance to progress from the D&B I’m used to. It’s very exciting, it feels like when I first broke into D&B.
Wow. What else is coming on Detail?
Detail 11 is Bug Out with Dr Syntax and Bobby Esmond. It’s a mad halfsteppy vibe that doesn’t take itself too seriously; I’ve not sent it to anyone yet but it’s gone down a treat on all my club sets. On the flip of that there’s a collaboration with Hellrazor called Silver Vibe plus a very cool remix from Bop. Then finally there’s Detail 12 which is a liquid roller project with Julia Messenger, she’s got such a raw, soulful vocal. It should set people up nicely for the summer…
Indeed. It sounds like you’re stepping up the Detail operations again?
Yes definitely. It launched with a lot of releases and digital exclusives but I didn’t do too much on it last year as I wanted to focus on quality over quantity. This year I want to find the middle ground and ramp up the quality releases and keep more of a consistent profile out there. I had over 40 unreleased tunes sitting on my hard drive at one point, and it can drive an artist a bit mad with all that sitting there, not doing anything!
Loads of stuff to look forward to then?
For sure mate!
It starts right here… Midnight Funk Association is out now on Playaz.
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