a brand new instalment of the series "And They Say There's No Such Thing As the Hardcore Continuum!"
instalment #10
From interview with Geeneus on the occasion of Rinse FM's 16th Birthday
Interviewer: Out of all the genres that you’ve supported, which has been the most important?
Geeneus: They’ve all been important. They’re all one scene, it just keeps transforming and mutating. It’s like garage turning into grime, which also turned into dubstep, then turned into house and funky. It’s all from the same train of music. It’s part of something called the ‘hardcore continuum’... I’ve read about it. The ongoing underground scene keeps moving and the names keep getting changed but it’s all the same thing over and over.
Monday, September 6, 2010
a brand new instalment of the series "And They Say There's No Such Thing As The Hardcore Continuum!"
instalment #9
from
dan hancox tweetstreem:
• fav wiley i/view out-take: unprompted, he essentially outlines the hardcore continuum theory. promise you won't tell simon reynolds plz. LOL about 7 hours ago via Echofon
from
Wiley Zip Files - The Interview
Hancox: British music evolves so quickly doesn’t it?
Wiley: “Yeah – and I like all the elements that we’ve got. When I go to the studio now I stop and I think ‘right, I’m in England’. The music in this country that I’ve been a part of is hardcore, drum ‘n’ bass, jungle, it extends onto garage and then into grime. And if you go back before any of that my dad’s just flooded my brain with reggae, ragga, soul, jazz… so obviously if I’m going to go and make music, I am surely allowed to touch every one of those elements that has been clubbed into my soul.
“It’s all part of it – Rebel MC, Ragga Twins… even Rick Astley, Kylie Minogue; any pop music that came out in the days when I went to school. Whatever I’ve heard is a fusion of what I give back.”
instalment #9
from
dan hancox tweetstreem:
• fav wiley i/view out-take: unprompted, he essentially outlines the hardcore continuum theory. promise you won't tell simon reynolds plz. LOL about 7 hours ago via Echofon
from
Wiley Zip Files - The Interview
Hancox: British music evolves so quickly doesn’t it?
Wiley: “Yeah – and I like all the elements that we’ve got. When I go to the studio now I stop and I think ‘right, I’m in England’. The music in this country that I’ve been a part of is hardcore, drum ‘n’ bass, jungle, it extends onto garage and then into grime. And if you go back before any of that my dad’s just flooded my brain with reggae, ragga, soul, jazz… so obviously if I’m going to go and make music, I am surely allowed to touch every one of those elements that has been clubbed into my soul.
“It’s all part of it – Rebel MC, Ragga Twins… even Rick Astley, Kylie Minogue; any pop music that came out in the days when I went to school. Whatever I’ve heard is a fusion of what I give back.”
a brand new instalment of "And They Say There's No Such Thing As the Hardcore Continuum!"
instalment #8
from
Robin Howells's interview with postdubstep crew LHF in FACT, August 2010
Howells: People do seem to think your music strongly evokes certain precursors, for example the Metalheadz crew or DMZ. Who or what inspires you all?
Amen Ra: “Growing up I was all about jungle and hardcore from the age of about 12 or 13. I’m infected by a lot of that style, it won’t ever leave me! Also house and garage, 2step, all those old pirate sounds were all me. Broken beat sparked me massively and when dubstep started emerging that was a very deep time too, early FWD vibes. Everything I do comes through that filter...."
Double Helix: “The musical history that London’s streets and surrounding counties hold are important to me as an individual and a producer. I see the hardcore continuum as the UK’s gift to the world – its effect on the way that a massive cross-section of society interacts is huge and can’t be overlooked. Early jungle and breakbeat hardcore pioneers feature heavily in my record collection. Metalheadz 01-50 are quite possibly the most influential tracks that I own, and what Goldie did with Timeless and then Platinum Breakz Vol.1 is actually ridiculous. 90.6 FM under its many names was the home of two crews that without doubt had a massive impact on our sound, SLT and Bass Inject – they always came with new dubs on a weekly, nobody had the tunes they had and it was seriously fertile ground for music. Garage and the significant founders of the early movement that evolved from 2step into dubstep are seriously close to my heart… the beat patterns they came with were an eye opener as to what can be done at those tempos.”....
Howells: If music from what’s often referred to as the hardcore continuum is important to a lot of you, do any of you feel some sense of descent from musicians in its past? Do you think it’s necessary to be familiar with it to understand your music?
Amen Ra: “Definitely, people who do not come from the continuum will have a different understanding of our music – just as valid an understanding as people who have come from there as I think there’s enough to cater for both. There’s definitely a lineage that we feel a part of, from the early hardcore, through to jungle, through to the Metalheadz era; through garage, grime and dubstep, especially when DMZ came around. But things aren’t like what they were in the past, they aren’t as rare and underground, so we kind of have to draw a line under them eras, while remembering them at the same time if that makes sense.”
Double Helix: “It’s almost impossible to avoid the impact of its sonic lineage when you’re exposed to those sounds and ethics from a young age – the way that they interact and resonate with London as a multicultural society becomes clearer the more you look, and it’s a really powerful thing . I don’t think that grass roots familiarity with the continuum is essential to experiencing our music fully, but there will naturally be far more reference points in tracks for people that grew up with the continuum.”
Low Density Matter: “I think it’s inescapable really: if you lived anywhere near the M25 corridor once it was built, no matter how old you were, the continuum would almost definitely have affected your life in one way or another – be it through friends giving you tapes, record shops opening, people talking about the convoys, picking up rogue pirate stations in the car or even the bad press about raves. We’re no exception. The FM dial was rammed full of pirates and a ridiculous cross section of music was on tap, so you naturally develop an affinity with those sounds over the years.”
Solar Man: “We take a lot of influence from styles that have a direct connection to the continuum, and some that have influenced aspects of it without being so obvious, so it’s open to listeners of all backgrounds really. If you check beats by Amen, Helix or LDM for example, elements of garage, jungle and house are all clearly present in the sound they produce, but they’re all fused and punctuated by bursts of Bollywood, jazz, hip-hop, soul and a variety of samples from many genres.”
No Fixed Abode: “You don’t have to be familiar with the continuum to understand our sound, but it helps: there’s definitely a certain understanding of the continuum required to truly get it, I think. I twist the traditional format and bring in other influences that other heads might find too risky, as it goes too far from “UK” shit. I don’t care, this is no time to play it safe and this ain’t the time for those who just stick to what is comfortable and keeps them “in the team”.”
^^^^^^^^
The fact that LHF's music is ruddy excellent is just maple syrup and whipped cream on the Belgian waffle that is their splendid fidelity to the Way, the Light and the Truth.
instalment #8
from
Robin Howells's interview with postdubstep crew LHF in FACT, August 2010
Howells: People do seem to think your music strongly evokes certain precursors, for example the Metalheadz crew or DMZ. Who or what inspires you all?
Amen Ra: “Growing up I was all about jungle and hardcore from the age of about 12 or 13. I’m infected by a lot of that style, it won’t ever leave me! Also house and garage, 2step, all those old pirate sounds were all me. Broken beat sparked me massively and when dubstep started emerging that was a very deep time too, early FWD vibes. Everything I do comes through that filter...."
Double Helix: “The musical history that London’s streets and surrounding counties hold are important to me as an individual and a producer. I see the hardcore continuum as the UK’s gift to the world – its effect on the way that a massive cross-section of society interacts is huge and can’t be overlooked. Early jungle and breakbeat hardcore pioneers feature heavily in my record collection. Metalheadz 01-50 are quite possibly the most influential tracks that I own, and what Goldie did with Timeless and then Platinum Breakz Vol.1 is actually ridiculous. 90.6 FM under its many names was the home of two crews that without doubt had a massive impact on our sound, SLT and Bass Inject – they always came with new dubs on a weekly, nobody had the tunes they had and it was seriously fertile ground for music. Garage and the significant founders of the early movement that evolved from 2step into dubstep are seriously close to my heart… the beat patterns they came with were an eye opener as to what can be done at those tempos.”....
Howells: If music from what’s often referred to as the hardcore continuum is important to a lot of you, do any of you feel some sense of descent from musicians in its past? Do you think it’s necessary to be familiar with it to understand your music?
Amen Ra: “Definitely, people who do not come from the continuum will have a different understanding of our music – just as valid an understanding as people who have come from there as I think there’s enough to cater for both. There’s definitely a lineage that we feel a part of, from the early hardcore, through to jungle, through to the Metalheadz era; through garage, grime and dubstep, especially when DMZ came around. But things aren’t like what they were in the past, they aren’t as rare and underground, so we kind of have to draw a line under them eras, while remembering them at the same time if that makes sense.”
Double Helix: “It’s almost impossible to avoid the impact of its sonic lineage when you’re exposed to those sounds and ethics from a young age – the way that they interact and resonate with London as a multicultural society becomes clearer the more you look, and it’s a really powerful thing . I don’t think that grass roots familiarity with the continuum is essential to experiencing our music fully, but there will naturally be far more reference points in tracks for people that grew up with the continuum.”
Low Density Matter: “I think it’s inescapable really: if you lived anywhere near the M25 corridor once it was built, no matter how old you were, the continuum would almost definitely have affected your life in one way or another – be it through friends giving you tapes, record shops opening, people talking about the convoys, picking up rogue pirate stations in the car or even the bad press about raves. We’re no exception. The FM dial was rammed full of pirates and a ridiculous cross section of music was on tap, so you naturally develop an affinity with those sounds over the years.”
Solar Man: “We take a lot of influence from styles that have a direct connection to the continuum, and some that have influenced aspects of it without being so obvious, so it’s open to listeners of all backgrounds really. If you check beats by Amen, Helix or LDM for example, elements of garage, jungle and house are all clearly present in the sound they produce, but they’re all fused and punctuated by bursts of Bollywood, jazz, hip-hop, soul and a variety of samples from many genres.”
No Fixed Abode: “You don’t have to be familiar with the continuum to understand our sound, but it helps: there’s definitely a certain understanding of the continuum required to truly get it, I think. I twist the traditional format and bring in other influences that other heads might find too risky, as it goes too far from “UK” shit. I don’t care, this is no time to play it safe and this ain’t the time for those who just stick to what is comfortable and keeps them “in the team”.”
^^^^^^^^
The fact that LHF's music is ruddy excellent is just maple syrup and whipped cream on the Belgian waffle that is their splendid fidelity to the Way, the Light and the Truth.
the next instalment of the series "And They Say There's No Such Thing As the Hardcore Continuum!"
instalment #6 and instalment #7
# 6
from
Dan Hancox Guardian piece on Hyperdub October 2009
Steve Goodman aka Kode9: "Hyperdub is a mutation of British electronic music, infected by Jamaican soundsystem culture. From dub and reggae, through jungle, right up to grime, dubstep and funky. It's a way of thinking about how musical change and evolution takes place."
#7
from
Dan Hancox Guardian piece on Hyperdub May 2010
Steve Goodman aka Kode9: "Hyperdub is a mutation of British electronic music, infected by Jamaican soundsystem culture. From dub and reggae, through jungle, right up to grime, dubstep and funky. It's a way of thinking about how musical change and evolution takes place."
("Hyperdub", in this quote-so-good-Danman-used-it-twice, = exceedingly bleedin rather quite close to "hardcore continuum", innit yeah? But Kode sez it, so it's okay)
instalment #6 and instalment #7
# 6
from
Dan Hancox Guardian piece on Hyperdub October 2009
Steve Goodman aka Kode9: "Hyperdub is a mutation of British electronic music, infected by Jamaican soundsystem culture. From dub and reggae, through jungle, right up to grime, dubstep and funky. It's a way of thinking about how musical change and evolution takes place."
#7
from
Dan Hancox Guardian piece on Hyperdub May 2010
Steve Goodman aka Kode9: "Hyperdub is a mutation of British electronic music, infected by Jamaican soundsystem culture. From dub and reggae, through jungle, right up to grime, dubstep and funky. It's a way of thinking about how musical change and evolution takes place."
("Hyperdub", in this quote-so-good-Danman-used-it-twice, = exceedingly bleedin rather quite close to "hardcore continuum", innit yeah? But Kode sez it, so it's okay)
the next instalment of the series "And They Say There's No Such Thing As the Hardcore Continuum!"
instalment #5
from
Joe Muggs profile of Terror Danjah, in the Wire, August 2010
"The music you first have sex to stays with you for life. And for me that's Jungle. Wherever I go, I always heave that in the back of my head, some Roni Size or V Recordings-style tune, fast and furious"--Terror Danjah.... He is now in demand as a founder of Grime and inspiration for dubstep, but from his very first sexual explorations and DJ gigs to the "Mentasm" and "Amen" sounds in his new Planet Mu EP, Power Grid, that Junglist impulse has indeed always been with him. A bashment fan from primary school age, Terror Danjah was 12 when Jungle began to emerge in 1992. He became hooked, and started DJing the following year as the sound found its footing... he felt at home among the constantly shifting and overlapping crews, cliques and radio stations of the Jungle scene. "in 1995, me and D Double landed a show on Future FM through a mate of mine, Tempo, who at the time had an MC called Footsie, so you can see the connection [D Double and Footside would later form Newham Generals]. "
instalment #5
from
Joe Muggs profile of Terror Danjah, in the Wire, August 2010
"The music you first have sex to stays with you for life. And for me that's Jungle. Wherever I go, I always heave that in the back of my head, some Roni Size or V Recordings-style tune, fast and furious"--Terror Danjah.... He is now in demand as a founder of Grime and inspiration for dubstep, but from his very first sexual explorations and DJ gigs to the "Mentasm" and "Amen" sounds in his new Planet Mu EP, Power Grid, that Junglist impulse has indeed always been with him. A bashment fan from primary school age, Terror Danjah was 12 when Jungle began to emerge in 1992. He became hooked, and started DJing the following year as the sound found its footing... he felt at home among the constantly shifting and overlapping crews, cliques and radio stations of the Jungle scene. "in 1995, me and D Double landed a show on Future FM through a mate of mine, Tempo, who at the time had an MC called Footsie, so you can see the connection [D Double and Footside would later form Newham Generals]. "
the next instalment of the series "And They Say There's No Such Thing As the Hardcore Continuum!"
instalment # 4
from Dan Hancox's piece on "sodcasting" in the Guardian
"Dexplicit moved on from making grime hits in the early part of the noughties to the more melodically-inclined bassline, a northern English twist on UK garage that still dominates clubs in cities such as Sheffield and Leeds. Like many British dance producers, he is grounded in a bass-orientated music culture born of the Jamaican influence on UK dance music; a bass culture that underscores dubstep, grime, and its current descendants."
instalment # 4
from Dan Hancox's piece on "sodcasting" in the Guardian
"Dexplicit moved on from making grime hits in the early part of the noughties to the more melodically-inclined bassline, a northern English twist on UK garage that still dominates clubs in cities such as Sheffield and Leeds. Like many British dance producers, he is grounded in a bass-orientated music culture born of the Jamaican influence on UK dance music; a bass culture that underscores dubstep, grime, and its current descendants."
next instalment of the series "And They Say There's No Such Thing As the Hardcore Continuum!"
instalment #3
from Dan Hancox's review of Ikonika's debut album in the National, April 2010
"The world of late-period electronic music is a diffuse and diverse place. Predominantly based in London, but with satellite centres in such multicultural provincial cities as Bristol and Manchester, Britain is, however, its fastest-moving and most influential outpost. From breakbeat hardcore through drum and bass, UK garage, grime and dubstep, its changing genre names, fluctuating tempos, and associated cultural tropes are endless, not to mention endlessly fascinating. One thing all these forms share, though, is a gift for absorbing sonic ideas from far afield, incubating them, and eventually exporting them back to the rest of the globe."
instalment #3
from Dan Hancox's review of Ikonika's debut album in the National, April 2010
"The world of late-period electronic music is a diffuse and diverse place. Predominantly based in London, but with satellite centres in such multicultural provincial cities as Bristol and Manchester, Britain is, however, its fastest-moving and most influential outpost. From breakbeat hardcore through drum and bass, UK garage, grime and dubstep, its changing genre names, fluctuating tempos, and associated cultural tropes are endless, not to mention endlessly fascinating. One thing all these forms share, though, is a gift for absorbing sonic ideas from far afield, incubating them, and eventually exporting them back to the rest of the globe."
a brand new instalment of the series "And They Say There's No Such Thing As the Hardcore Continuum!"
instalment #2
Geeneus, quoted in XLR8R magazine's feature on "funkstep"
“Things come back around, and even though funky is called funky, really you could say it's not that much different from garage. It's just another full circle. With America, hip-hop is hip-hop, and even though the music changes and new sounds and people come into it, the flow remains hip-hop. But in the U.K., as soon as something new comes along, it’s like, “Oh, that's new music—let's call it a new name!” when really, it's all the same thing. We just progress along. So I'm doing funky, Skream's doing dubstep, Wiley's doing grime, but we're all together. We're all on the same radio station, we all come from the same place, and we've all got the same influences. It's really all part of the same continual flow.”
instalment #1 here
instalment # 0 here
instalment #2
Geeneus, quoted in XLR8R magazine's feature on "funkstep"
“Things come back around, and even though funky is called funky, really you could say it's not that much different from garage. It's just another full circle. With America, hip-hop is hip-hop, and even though the music changes and new sounds and people come into it, the flow remains hip-hop. But in the U.K., as soon as something new comes along, it’s like, “Oh, that's new music—let's call it a new name!” when really, it's all the same thing. We just progress along. So I'm doing funky, Skream's doing dubstep, Wiley's doing grime, but we're all together. We're all on the same radio station, we all come from the same place, and we've all got the same influences. It's really all part of the same continual flow.”
instalment #1 here
instalment # 0 here
Friday, September 3, 2010
"We R Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee"
now am I right in thinking this rai song, released on Factory Records wouldyabelieve it, in 1987, is the source for the sample in "We Are I.E." by Lennie D. Underground?
I remember watching something on TV-- years and years ago this was -- or it might have been one of Joy's old videocassettes collating MTV bits and bobs and cable music shows and such she'd taped back in the Eighties, when YouTube didn't exist and left field music video was sporadic and hen's teeth scarce... and in fact now I think about it I'm increasingly certain it would have been some imported-to-US, belated showing of episodes of Snub TV* (this indie-and-esoteric music show of the late Eighties, linked to The Catalogue and Rough Trade Distribution if I recall correctly).... at any rate Factory's video for "N'Sel Fik" came on and well it was quite the sample epiphany rush indeed, doubled by memor-E rush of those eadstrong ardcore days....
now am I right in thinking this rai song, released on Factory Records wouldyabelieve it, in 1987, is the source for the sample in "We Are I.E." by Lennie D. Underground?
I remember watching something on TV-- years and years ago this was -- or it might have been one of Joy's old videocassettes collating MTV bits and bobs and cable music shows and such she'd taped back in the Eighties, when YouTube didn't exist and left field music video was sporadic and hen's teeth scarce... and in fact now I think about it I'm increasingly certain it would have been some imported-to-US, belated showing of episodes of Snub TV* (this indie-and-esoteric music show of the late Eighties, linked to The Catalogue and Rough Trade Distribution if I recall correctly).... at any rate Factory's video for "N'Sel Fik" came on and well it was quite the sample epiphany rush indeed, doubled by memor-E rush of those eadstrong ardcore days....
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