December 2015

me and Dee Dee

Now then! November well its been a good month leading upto xmas, with some top events. Special mention to Sopranos and its main mon Cheeze, the videos from the event look banging and its great to see everybody going for it in Burnley, where it has been more of less dead for years! I was at Bowlers for Exxposure early in the month and was headlining in the bounce room with Micky B & Rob Cain. The event was being hosted by Katie Price (Jordan) of all people, unfortunately I didnt spot her in the crowd, rumour has it she wanted my autograph but thats not my kind of thing.

The following week was the trip over to Amsterdam with the BTID gang. Was great to be there again and sample the delights, if you no what i mean...thats right windmills & clogs! The boat party on the Friday was unreal, the atmosphere was electric and the DJ's where on point. Was great to see Klubfiller do hes thing iv been a huge fan for years. Unfortunately i woke up with a upset stomach which made me spend the duration of the trip on the toilet from there on so was bitterly dissapointed to miss Saturdays event, which i heard again was off the chain!

in action at Hyperactive

Following that i had my first hardcore gig in years at Hyperactive in Nantwich, Chesire. If you aint ever been a hardcore rave id highly advise you attend one, the atmosphere is second to none and the energy is unreal. It was surprising how well the crowd was reacting to me and knew alot of material and i had nothing but positive reviews from both ravers and other artists. Questions have been asked am I wanting to give hardcore a go etc. & the honest answer is YES. Iv been a big fan of hardcore since i was a teenager but my path took me into bounce. Iv have the had booking throughout the years but in all honesty couldnt fit in around my bounce & house (DJ) gigs. However iv set the foundations early this year to push myself in that scene next year and have already reached out with some key players which will all be announced in due course.

Id like to also thank everybody for liking my page on facebook. When i set this up in February I was not expecting it to give me the exposure it has & to reach 10k is a huge milestone and iv been overwhelmed by all the positive comments. The last video i posted up 'Wigan Town' has racked up 240k+ views - madness!

Its great to experiment with different music and get a wider audience viewing my stuff. Hopefully they can see all the great stuff happening in UK Bounce at the moment and attend some nights and see that this is such a great scene we should all be proud of.

Speaking of talented iv fired across a few questions to who I believe is the most talented producer we have in bounce and has been responsible for many big bounce anthems as one half of KB Project, Kenny Hayes (Starman, Left Eye, Doctor B). Here is what he had to say…

Hi Kenny although you may be new to a lot of people in the bounce scene this year, you have been around years doing different bits can you give us a brief description of what you have done musically from the start up to now?

MY FIRST STEP INTO THE INDUSTRY WAS WAY BACK IN 1993 WHEN I JOINED 2FUNKY2 AND REMIXED THE B-SIDE OF THE 7'' SINGLE TO 'BROTHERS & SISTERS'.
IN 1997 I WROTE & CO-PRODUCED 'AMOUR' BY THE PORN KINGS (UK Chart No.17) AND IN 1998 I WROTE 'CLEOPATRA'S THEME' FOR CLEOPATRA (UK Chart No.3). I STARTED WORKING ALONGSIDE AATW FROM THEN AND STILL WORK FOR THEM NOW 17 YEARS LATER! I'VE REMIXED AS KENNY HAYES, CLUBSTAR, FUGITIVE, SUNSHINE FUNK, BLUE SPHERE, SUNWALKERZ, LOCKOUT, SUPASOUND & EIGHTH DAY TO NAME A FEW AND HAVE DONE COLLAB REMIXES AS KB PROJECT (WITH BEN TRENGOVE), WAVESHAPERS (WITH LEE S) AND NORTHERN ALLSTARS (WITH STEVE COCKY & LEE BUTLER).

Kenny & Poomstyles

Taking it back to when you started who was your inspirations then? And who inspires you these days?

I GREW UP BUYING 12'' SINGLES THROUGH THE 80S & 90S SO A LOT OF MY INFLUENCES COME FROM THEN. I'M A HUGE FAN OF THE HOUSE AND RAVE ERA WHICH I EXPERIENCED FIRST TIME ROUND. CLASSIC 80S REMIXERS LIKE JELLYBEAN, ARTHUR BAKER, SHEP PETTIBONE AND PWL'S PHIL HARDING & PETE HAMMOND LED ME TO WANT TO BE A REMIXER. I PRIDE MYSELF ON BEING A LOVER OF ALL TYPES OF MUSIC WHETHER IT BE ROCK, POP, HOUSE, CHILLOUT, INDIE, DANCE AND EVEN CLASSICAL MUSIC. I LISTEN TO MUSIC FOR ABOUT 3 HOURS A DAY, 5 DAYS A WEEK SO PRETTY MUCH EVERYTHING I LISTEN TO INSPIRES ME NOWADAYS.

What artists are doing it for you in the bounce scene?

BOUNCE HAS EVOLVED SO MUCH FROM WHEN I STARTED MAKING IT BACK AROUND 2003. THE SUB GENRES LIKE BUMPING, HARD BASS AND POKEY ARE ALL INTERESTING AND EXPAND THE BOUNCE GENRE TO A WIDER AUDIENCE. I LIKE A LOT OF ARTISTS, BUT THE ONES THAT TEND TO STAND OUT FOR ME ARE DAZ INMAN (POOMSTYLES), ACCELERATION DJS (HUDSON, KENTY, ETC), DJB, MOVIN (NATH BELTON), PHIL CRITCHLEY (GROOVE CONTROL) AND PHIL MAC. THOUGH FROM A DJ STANDPOINT THE BEST I'VE SEEN THAT MADE ME GO 'WOW' WOULD BE JOHN NEAL AND ROB CAIN.
INTERESTINGLY I'VE NEVER BEEN A HUGE FAN OF MCs, BUT THIS YEAR I'VE MADE A CONSCIOUS EFFORT TO LISTEN TO A FEW AND EVEN MADE A CD CALLED 'REMEDY' WITH MC LUKEY P & MC RAGE (Link on my Soundcloud).

You have been very busy in the studio churning out so many tracks. Which has been your personal favourite release this year?


OVER A HUNDRED TRACKS ON MY SOUNDCLOUD THIS YEAR (https://soundcloud.com/starmanmusicproduction). MY STARMAN FAV IS 'COME BACK TO ME' WHICH CAME OUT ON DNZ. MY DOCTOR B FAV IS FROM MY ATTACK THE TRACK EP 'TRI-HARD' OUT ON CHEEKY TRACKS. MY FAV LEFT EYE TRACK IS 'THE BEAT' WHICH CAME OUT LAST WEEK ON MY REBOUND UK LABEL AS PART OF EP#2.

You have done so many collabs also. Who have you found it easiest to work with in the studio?

Kenny & Ben Trengove (KB Project)

OBVIOUSLY THE EASIEST HAS BEEN MY LONG TERM WORKING RELATIONSHIP WITH BEN TRENGOVE AS THE KB PROJECT. THIS YEARS NEW COLLABS HAVE BEEN WITH DJS AND FELLOW PRODUCERS AND EACH WORK DIFFERENTLY. I'D SAY THE MOST PRODUCTIVE WOULD BE WITH MATT CHEEZE AND IN ADDITION COLLABS WITH GLYNN FERRIS, DAZ INMAN & PHIL MAC ARE ALSO QUITE NOTABLE. THOUGH I'VE ENJOYED WORKING WITH EVERYONE THIS YEAR!

Going forward what can we expect from you heading into 2016? 

OBVIOUSLY I'VE HAD TO WORK HARDER THAN MOST DURING 2015 TO MAKE MY MARK AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE WHICH MEANT LOADS OF COLLABS AND REMIXES AS WELL AS RELEASES THROUGH VARIOUS BOUNCE & HARD HOUSE LABELS.
IN 2016 I'M GOING TO CONCENTRATE MORE ON MY DJ WORK AS WELL AS TRYING TO PUSH MY OWN LABEL (http://www.rebounduk.com) WHICH IS CURRENTLY ON IT'S EIGHTH RELEASE, AS WELL AS COLLABS WITH A SELECT FEW FROM THIS YEAR.
MY LATEST RELEASE IS THE KB PROJECT ANTHEM 'COLOURS' THE REMIX EP AND COMING ON 7TH TILL 18TH IS MY '12 DAYS OF REBOUND'S CHRISTMAS' WERE I'LL HAVE A TRACK A DAY GOING OUT VIA THE WEBSITE RANGING FROM FULL RELEASES, FREE DOWNLOADS AND CD MIXES. DEFINITELY NOT TO BE MISSED!


I know this is hard to choose but what have been your favourite gigs ever and also favourite gig this year?

HARD TO REMEMBER GIGS OF OLD AS THERE HAS BEEN SO MANY SINCE I STARTED DJING (WAY BACK IN 1992!).
GOING OFF THE PAST 12 MONTHS I WOULD SAY THE HIGHLIGHTS HAVE BEEN BTID IN THE MAGALUF SUN (KBP), DESTINY IN NEWCASTELE (A B2B WITH GLYNN 'SEMTEX' FERRIS), BTID ZOMBIE NATION AT BOWLERS (AS I DID A P.A. WITH CHEEZE, MC G & NIKKI AS WELL AS A KBP DJ SET), REMINISCE 'SCREAMFEST' IN SOUTHPORT (A B2B WITH POOMSTYLES) AND MY B2B WITH GROOVE CONTROL FOR DO IT FOR DODGER 2 IN BLACKBURN.

And last can you tell us a funny story that you have heard?

I GET TOLD STORIES ALL THE TIME BUT I HAVE AN AWFUL MEMORY SO TEND TO NOT REMEMBER MOST!

I THINK MY OBSESSION WITH WINE IS A RUNNING JOKE WITH PEOPLE WHO KNOW ME. THE GLASS PASSING FROM LEFT TO RIGHT IN THE FEW VIDEOS I'VE POSTED ON FACEBOOK HAVE HAD THEIR FAIR SHARE OF FANS AND COPIED BY OTHERS!

https://soundcloud.com/starmanmusicproduction

thanks for that kenny!

Myself and MC Skatty

So next month im busy with Throwback event at Pure in Wigan on the 5th the Pure again for Acceleration on mad Friday. We also have the Medicine Reunion in Warrington at the original venue with all the original DJ & MC's Followed by the huge BTID event at Park Hall feat one of my favorite MC's Whizzkid. Also shout out to Luke Hudson getting a gig on BTID, this guy has been one of, if not the best producers i have heard for a while- im looking forward to hooking up soon for a project. Im also back in cumbria at Barrow with Ultrabeat & Scott Rez with my old pal Zunie. Then finish the year in Glasgow's 02 Academy with Darren Styles, Scott Brown, George Bowie amongst others and my good pals in Glasgow Sparkos & Macca. Im sure ill be entering 2016 with style.

For this month there are many events to choose from so make sure you get out there in numbers and show your support

Finchy

p.s look out for my little jam I had with a good friend of mine Jake Kelly who is the front man of a great band called Marcadia