Three new UK music producers you need to about know in 2021
With the UK in an ongoing battle with Covid 19, nightlife as we once knew it has been obliterated. DJs have been working collectively to keep the spark alive, however difficult that may be. Dressing up to go to your living room has become the new out-out, a quintessential pandemic inspired subculture that is classified as the new norm.
As we enter the new year, young talent populates our social media screens with budding new ideas of how we can party at home in a safe manner, without putting others at risk. While many youngsters gather for illegal parties in warehouses and forests across the country, many others dance responsibly from the comforts of their own homes. With access to the internet, a variety of platforms grace us with their presence and musicality.
I join some of the UK’s freshest new and upcoming talents and talk all things producing, playing and partying in a pandemic. Reflecting on their own year dealing with lockdowns and their online presences, a new wave of club culture is depicted through the eyes of the very people creating it.
Meet the incredible Ruby Savill-Downs, other wise known as Savvy. An influential female figure in the Leeds electronic music scene. In her third year at the University of Leeds, music editor for BabyStep magazine and co-owner of Ladieslovin radio station, Savvy is a force to be reckoned with. At the prime age of 21, Savvy had achieved many brilliant things pre-Covid, but nowadays is achieving just as much with the release of her very own music on multiple different labels, including one in Germany.
Lockdown taught her how to cope with the closure of clubs and equip herself musically as not only a DJ, but as a producer. As I’m sure we can all agree, the nightlife sector is dominated by men. So, the women succeeding in this predominantly male orientated industry are undoubtedly ones to aspire to be, listen to, support and cherish. As far as queens go, Savvy is top of the list.
How has your year been?
“Around this time last year was when Ladieslovin was doing its best and getting off its feet which was really exciting. It’s coming up to a year since our first event. At the start of lockdown I felt as though all of our plans were coming to a halt and that was my main creative outlet. We couldn’t do radio anymore which was quite upsetting.
At the start of the first lockdown, me and my mates started isolation station which was a creative platform for people trying to create during lockdown but not really being able to do much. That was really good because it was a community of people coming together and kind of being upset, but also celebrating their creative talents. I started DJing a lot over summer and finding my sound and that was really fun.
I started producing in August and thats when it started to take off a bit more for me because as a DJ, not in a club, there’s only so much you can do. But as a producer there’s so much more you can do because you are creating music. That was a big mark for me in terms of my creativity journey. Since then, I’ve released four tracks which i’m really happy with. I’ve got two ready for release that are coming out on labels next month. That’s really exciting! In terms of DJing, I’ve done a few livestreams which were fun, but there’s only so many you can do.”
Did producing make you adapt musically?
“Definitely. So much of the enjoyment of DJing is from being in a room full of people dancing to the music you’re playing, or being in a club and being able to say ‘I’ve got this event coming up’ so I want to make sure I play a good set. Whilst you might find new tracks and you’re listening to music leisurely, I don’t feel like it’s the same; it’s not something for me to get excited about and look forward to. I’ve had to adapt in that sense, I don’t really DJ anymore. Mixes are one of the reasons I continue DJing and playing on the radio. But producing has definitely kept me inspired in the genres I’m interested in.”
Have you been able to do any radio shows for Ladieslovin?
“Since September I had a guest show on Megababes and I did a back-to-back with Anzel, a Leeds garage DJ. We did a slot each for Stretchy Dance Supply who are a Leeds-based events company, and that was really exciting because I think stretch are sick. Most recently I did a show for this guy called Speed Gonzales on Netil Radio. I’ve just left my residency on Foodhall Community Radio called Fancy Footwork, but I have a trial show for moving it to Subtle Radio at the end of this month.”
What would you like to achieve for yourself this year?
“Making music that pushes me. I haven’t been producing for that long but every track I make seems to sound quite similar. Obviously it’s good to have a style but I find myself leaning a certain way or chords sounding the same. It always ends up quite ambient booty house, which is what I enjoy listening to but I want to push myself and do different genres. That’s one of my main goals. If and when stuff opens, throwing myself out there, playing as much as I can, putting on as many events as I can. Thats more of a long term goal.”
Any future plans for radio?
“All the people I work with are very Leeds-based. Theres a radio station in Bristol called 1020 and I’m going to apply for that. I want to stretch my work to other cities.”
How’s everything going with BabyStep magazine?
“Really well. I’m music editor now and I work alongside Josh and Rob, who are the best guys to work with ever. It’s such a nice thing to do because it really makes me feel connected to people in Leeds. Even over lockdown everyone seemed to have such a positive attitude towards us and everyone is so nice that we interact with and eager to get involved which is really nice. It always makes me feel a bit happier every week.
Since I’ve been involved, it was almost the time when lockdown happened, me and Josh were talking about it the other day and saying how we have been through the worst of it. Finding a magazine and kind of having to almost find new content and ideas at a time when nothings really going on. It’s an exciting position to be in because now I can look forward to when things open back up again and all the things we can do in real life rather than it just being an online magazine. So much of what we do is actually in person.”
What kind of stuff have you been doing for them?
“I have the new music Friday column. Every Friday I round up the best music from up and coming producers which is always really nice because I get to keep on track with what everyones doing and releasing and just getting to chat to people and talk about their new music which is always lovely because they’re so into it. I also run the socials. Writing features when they come about. I’m doing one at the moment on the rise of rap in 2020/21 and the people to look out for. Theres this new BBC documentary called Music’s Dirty Secrets, about sexual abuse in the music industry, so I’m going to do a write up on that – it’s seriously one to watch!”
If you could advise other up-and-coming DJ / producers like yourself how to adapt and move online due to Covid, what would you say?
“Don’t let the limited opportunities off now, prevent or stop you from doing it. I used this time to get to a really comfortable level of mixing and find the music i’m interested in. Use this as a time to experiment and get comfortable. When all of this stops, you will be a sick DJ with confidence. Instead of looking at it as a bad thing, look at it as a chance to do it when you might not be able to at another point. Don’t be disheartened because clubs will come back at some point.”
In your opinion, do you think nightlife is being reinvented? In terms of what we perceive nightlife as now?
“I wouldn’t say it’s being reinvented. I don’t think nightlife ever could be, I think it’s too much of a precious thing. People are trying their best to feel it again but in ways that it’s not the same. Through live streams, producing, mixes, these are all things that replicate that. But everyones itching for it to come back properly because there’s nothing like it. It’s getting to the point now where the momentum to do livestreams etc, is not there as much as the first lockdown.”
Meet Max Owen, other wise known as MAXIBON, co-runner of Fraise Records with his brother Will Owen. Originally from Southend, Max and his brother have brought the magic of their fruity flavours to the depths of London’s clubbing scene. Playing at many quirky and underground nightclubs in London pre-covid and squeezing in a few socially distanced ones during the cause of the past year, these boys events are not ones to miss! Working collectively with DJs across the globe and releasing their very own vinyl tracks on their label, Fraise Records is definitely a name to look out for this year.
How has lockdown life treated you?
“At the beginning of last year, during April, we started to release our first record which was solely on vinyl. That was already delayed because of the pandemic, but it sold really well. It sold out within two months within releasing it and we got 350 made. In regards to events, before Covid we did an event in February which was our launch party for the label, that went really well it sold out and we had around 180 people in total. It was at Works Bar in Kings Cross. It was alright but the sound system wasn’t as good as we thought.
We had a party booked in for June at Star Lane Pizza, once the pandemic hit we had to postpone it to August, thinking it was going to be alright by then. So we did a tiny party in our garden, just close friends. After that me and my brother played at The Cause for a socially distanced one, for our mates label called Dancediscs. We had to keep telling people to stop dancing, it was pretty dead. Especially when thats your main job as a DJ, the security kept coming over and telling us off. Then we had our Christmas party at Star Lane Pizza in December.”
How did you get into DJing and producing?
“Me and my brother only started DJing in London end of 2019, before that we were playing in Southend. There used to be a bit of a scene down there. I started deejaying when I was about 15, but only at parties really. It’s very different music to what I’m playing now, it was pop music. When I was about 18, my brother was 23 at the time, he was playing way before me and I was just sort of messing about at home, he said why don’t you come out and play with me. 2018 was our first set, in Talk nightclub, even that’s closed down now. 2018-2019 we were just deejaying in Southend but all the clubs were so run down, I think after Covid they will be obsolete.”
Do you feel like you have had to adapt with how you share content during the pandemic?
“In terms of the label and releasing music, not really. When we did our first release with our mate Peaky Beats, we started off with garage, with that release we didn’t really know how it was going to go because the clubs were closed and we didn’t know if people were still going to be buying music as much. If anything, because people are stuck indoors they actually bought more records and I think this whole period people have been making music thats more relatable. This year was the biggest year for vinyl in 25 years. Definitely on and up.”
I watched your live stream the other day, it was sick! How did you pick the charity?
“It was quite decent. By the end we were smashed. Previously we had done a livestream for the people who had asked us to play at the cause and they did it for Mind Mental Health. Because everyones stuck inside and mental health is such a big thing at the moment, we thought it was an appropriate charity to raise money for. We weren’t expecting to raise over 500 pounds. We put the goal as 200 and we smashed that! It was quite crazy actually as we had someone from Columbia playing. A year before me and my brother never thought we would be watching somebody from Columbia DJing for our party. Even though it was online, it was still really cool to see.”
How did you get that connection?
“He’s been producing music across the genres we play, so we said hello on instagram and through that we have been talking online for a while. We decided to get him online for the livestream as it was a collaboration with STM, a Youtube channel. For the Christmas party we got him to play first. We wanted to start collaborating with other people, you can both grow with each other.”
Had you been producing pre-Covid?
“I did a music course last year but it wasn’t really the best time to do it. It was super intense and I was going out a lot, so I didn’t actually remember a lot of the stuff I got taught. I did it at Point Blank in Shoreditch, it was one day a week and you would go there all day. From there I knew how to use the software, but only since lockdown have I started to produce myself and with my brother. My brother’s been producing for about a year and a half now. Lockdown also enabled me to really perfect mixing as well because I wasn’t as comfortable on vinyl as I am now.”
Bit of a cliché question but, if you could advise other DJ/producers like yourself on how to adapt right now, what would you say?
“Not to sound cringey, but not to loose hope. There is light at the end of the tunnel. A lot of people think it’s never going to be the same, which it might not be. But I think it’s too big of an industry to ignore. I think eventually, if it’s not by the government, the people will do something about it. If you only DJ, maybe get into producing as well as it’s a good opportunity to practise, with clubs not being open. That’s another thing we have noticed ourselves, slowing down the tempo of the music we play at the moment as you’re not actually used to being in a club anymore.”
Have you got anything exciting on the cards for Fraise Records this year?
“Release-wise, there’s still a lot of exciting stuff. We are trying to do a thing where we sign artists who haven’t really produced stuff. From the 90s, because a lot of the music we collect is from that era, we are trying to find artists that haven’t released for a while. And if we can sign any of their music in their back catalogue or stuff they are still working on but they haven’t had the platform to release it on. We’ve got a few people we’ve asked, but with older people it’s on Facebook so it’s a bit long. It’s all obviously not face-to-face at the moment so all of our contact is through social media. Thats another weird thing, the amount of people we have made contact with this year is probably more than when we were going out. There are some positives to it. It feels like everyone’s come together a bit more, music wise.”
In your opinion, do you think nightlife is being reinvented? In terms of what we perceive nightlife as now?
“With livestreams and that, yeah. I think people are stubborn to try something new. It’s still not the same when you are sat in your room listening to something on your laptop screen. I still feel like its not the same as being in a club with a really good soundsystem with your mates, it’s a different vibe. That’s the party side of it what makes a lot of people get into it, but now it’s more focused on the music. With the label we’ve got two separate things, the events are obviously about the people and the different crowds, the label are people all over the world supporting us.
When we do the events it’s just UK based. In some ways it might have a positive effect (clubs re-opening) because it might bring back residency DJs, but thats also because of the whole Brexit thing. But that’s also a huge minus because of the amount of money its generated from getting international DJs and stuff like that. It’s not really a thing anymore to have residency DJs, there’s obviously clubs like Fabric that are still doing it, but back in the day it used to be huge. That’s how you would earn your stripes.”
If you could go to any club in London right now, what would it be?
“Fabric or Corsica Studios. Just because the Fabric soundsystem is insane. I had a big list of clubs I wanted to go to in London and I’ve only been to about half of them. I’ve never been to Phonox in Brixton!”
Meet Newcastle’s finest, the wonderful Ted FitzPatrick, otherwise known as eseluji. A DJ, producer, musician – you name it. Studying Sound Art at London College of Communication, Mr FitzPatrick is a musical phenomenon. Originally from up North, eseluji has brought his musical quirks down to London, with strong influences from dub and reggae that are evident in the music he plays and produces. As well as this, he helps run a bi-weekly residency with a radio station.
What have you been doing since the pandemic hit?
“I’ve been staying at home, producing tunes constantly and improving my mixing skills. Being at University, trying to organise digital exhibitions has been varied because some people think the online format is great, but it doesn’t make sense to me. I want to make physical connections with people and create a dialogue between the speakers and the dancers – but that isn’t going to be happening in a Skype call.”
In your opinion, do you think nightlife is being reinvented? In terms of what we perceive nightlife as now?
“Yes, I think nightlife isn’t going to be the same again and I think there will be a great renaissance in music and art. After the pandemic people will take themselves more seriously around others when their time and social interchange is limited.”
If you could advise any other musicians/DJs/producers/labels how to adapt during the pandemic, what would you say?
“Learn to code!”
If you could go to any club in London right now, what would it be?
“Definitely the University of Dub at Scala.”
Are you using any online platforms to share content?
“I am part of a weekly radio show called the Dub Replacement Service which came into existence at the beginning of the first UK lockdown. The radio was intended to just be a replacement bus service while we waited to be able to go out again. Now with no clear sight of when lockdown will finish, the radio show has become its own entity and I have loved doing it more and more.”
Feature image by anurag kaushik from Pixabay.