Confessions of A “Drum ‘n’ Bass Producer “

TALES OF A DRUM+BASS PRODUCERS LEAP OF FAITH .

I usually do not publicly share personal details about what takes place at my home and studio. With having a family I try to keep as much privacy as possible, so as to have a private life that remains private. But I feel I have to disclose something wonderful that happened last week. A new friend, who I was just starting to build a relationship with, who is a fellow drum and bass producer happened to have a gig four hours south of my home in the United States. When I learned this, we discussed the possibility of our schedules coinciding in such a way that we could join together for a week of drum and bass band camp. After confirming the dates, we made it happen. Upon his arrival I felt a synergy between us that was based on a mutual love of the production & creation of drum and bass. That alone was a great place to start. It would not be long before I realized that he is an awesome human being as well. Eating meals together, followed by sharing philosophies of life, art and the evolution of drum and bass...our immediate connection stimulated the coproducing of a drum and bass mix. After completing the incredible audio recording and sending it off to our mastering house for unbiased ears, Jonathan a/k/a Invalid pulled out his video software and editing equipment. It was one of those moments of serendipity where we let the mix roll, and he recorded the video live and on the fly like the pro that he is. No preplanned and preset loops or samples, just live mixing via a video trackpad/controller. After a great day in the studio, we retired to the dining area to break bread together, including my fiancé and editor of DNB United, Xtene. After dinner we threw in Neil Gaiman’s American Gods on STARZ network. Watching this amazing British authors novel come to the screen, and done so well, was an added bonus for my new friend and fellow artist. We enjoyed cocktails, smoke and a mutual appreciation for the cinematography and storyline together before calling it a night. We would make each day end with another episode of American Gods, often talking about which parts of the dialogue we would sample, because in real time we were discovering that we were literally getting the same ideas at the same time and laughing out loud that our new artistic connection was allowing us to finish each other sentences... I remember at one point screaming, “get out of my brain!” LOL. Each day started with making pots of hot coffee and streaming some of my favorite liquid drum and bass to start the day, and set the mood for the studio session. Once in the studio, everything just fit together flawlessly.

I would write off the days schedule in the morning, and by the end of the day, we would cross off the list all of our tasks, successfully completed. I have to say it was no struggle at all to complete them. If anything, I felt so grateful and understood how much easier, and how much more pleasant, it is to have a coproducer to work with. Some of our greatest moments as producers are never seen by others, rather, they are experienced alone, late at night, in a room by ourselves. This time, that was not the case at all. We were doing drops in between songs on the mixand nailing it followed by high fives and fuck yeahs!!! I had admitted to him with no hesitation what a great experience it was to be working side-by-side with him. Jonathan had responded feeling the same. Only a real producer can appreciate what I’m talking about.By the end of the week we had formed a foundation for a great friendship that went beyond the studio. This was only possible because of our connection that started at the place where we celebrate the art, culture and evolving sound of drum and bass “dnbunited.com ” I was honored and grateful for the opportunity last year we promote Invalids drum and bass release on the website. What I love about Jonathan amongst many things is the fact that he took a leap of faith in contacting me and letting me know that he was performing just four hours south of my home in the states and asked if it was possible if he rented a car and drove north if I could carve the time out of my studio schedule to get together for a week of band camp .where we could share our current projects of drum and bass. Share tips technology and production methods and so forth.Finally allowing us to come together and produce something brand new that was not on the schedule the week before. The result was the latest audiovisual Neurofunk United state of drum and bass coproduced mix featuring invalid and BC9. The results to date has been over 32k plays over the last five days! The most successful mix to date since I launched our monthly podcast the united state of drum and bass two years ago. To say it was an honor and a pleasure to drop out and tune in to a producers workshop and make a true new friend that had the balls to take a leap of faith and head north for no other reason than to create some new drum and bass with a producer who he only knew from doing a promotion for his last release over a year ago. The point of this whole story is if you want to create something brand new and challenge yourself -you have to take risks roll the dice! Because Jonathan and I decided to do this together the result was something bigger than both of us that shared across the globe has reached tens of thousands of listeners and lit a creative fire 🔥 in both of us that has sustained new projects currently now in progress that we’re not there before. I just wanted to take a moment to reflect and say thanks Jonathan it was a great week and I really look forward to what the future brings. Just like we said on the podcast bro - Stay Raw, stand tall drum and bass takes all. Best ,your friend Jason a.k.a. BC9.

https://www.instagram.com/invalidproductions/

Invalid-Website // https://invalidproductions.com

BC#9-Instagram / DNB◉UNITED RECORDS // Instagram

dnbunited.com // DNBUNITED.COM

The United State Of DNB Podcast // https://soundcloud.com/jason-bakes

DNB UNITED RECORDS Facebook // DNB◉UNITED RECORDS

DNB UNITED RECORDS Twitter // Twitter