Article - Gerald Belanger

Gerald Belanger
By: Jocelyn Dickey

Torontojungle.com cover story Jan. 2002

Songwriter, producer, DJ, record shop proprietor, label manager and radio show host. In the world of electronic music, Gerald Belanger has been all these things and more.

One cold and rainy Wednesday night, I ventured down to the Ryerson student center to meet up with Belanger and talk about his history in the Toronto electronic music scene. He was getting set to hose Unfortunate Sonic Casualties, his weekly radio show on CKLN 88.1 FM (Ryerson’s station), but had a few moments to reminisce about re-rave days, common and the current state of the scene and speculate on the future.

“Grade six, we had this really wacky music teacher who brought in a movie about Moog synthesizers,” he began, describing one of his earliest encounters with electronic music. “I remember watching them play these crazy knobs and buttons and twiddles and things and I thought wow that’s really future music.” From as far back as he could remember Belanger was always interested in the future, so this experience really hit home for him. When this same teacher brought in an actual synthesizer player, Belanger was even more amazed. “This old guy came in and he had something like a sampler, except it ran ,” explained Belanger. “He was playing little tape loops of an airplane taking off on his keyboard, and I was completely blown away [that] you could reproduce reality like that.” After this initial experience, Belanger said he gained wider exposure to all types of early electronic music from early hip hop and electro, to techno by pioneers like Derrick May, by tuning in to CKLN. These days the tables have turned and he is the one broadcasting his music for the masses to hear. But back then, it was shows like “Ron Nelson’s Fantastic Voyage” and “Dave’s Dance Music that caught his ear.

Then came the late ’80s and New Wave Pop. From there Belanger was hooked. “I used to go out to all night parties in the ’80s at a place called Twilight Zone where they’d play electronic music all night . . . and told our parents we were sleeping over at each others’ houses, you know, pre-rave days but essentially the same thing,” he said, describing a scenario many may remember from when they were young once too. After he started college, Belanger began frequenting the legendary 23 Hop. “This was like ‘88/’89 and they were doing weekend parties so I started to go,” said Belanger. At that time jungle was, only beginning its evolution and other sounds were dominating the speakers. “Back then the biggest thing was acid music, right, acid house,” Belanger recalled, recounting with a smile his first meeting with Alex Paterson (of The Orb), brought in for a performance at “The Hop” by the infamous Chris Sheppard. Although he had been attending the warehouse parties down in the Front St. and Spadina Ave. district, only after the first Nitrous event did the word rave figure into the equation. “There’d always been warehouse parties going on,” he said, explaining that these events were predominantly house music. “I think it wasn’t until the rave thing, companies like Nitrous or Kemistry, that I first heard breakbeats.”

With such a strong interest in the future and the evolving forms of electronic music, it is no surprise that Belanger was drawn to producing it. “I went to Sheridan college and took an audio engineering course and started to learn the basics of midi and digital music,” he said. “They had some pieces of gear we could play with, and that really caught my interest.” In 1991 Belanger founded his first record label: Death of Vinyl Entertainment. With his label he didn’t want to limit himself to releasing just one type of music. Instead, the label released some ambient, dub, down tempo, techno, house and even early breakbeat tracks. Belanger was trying to find tracks and release music that crossed a lot of borders. “In terms of music getting out there I think we were really successful,” said Belanger, also explaining some of the problems his label and other independents faced with distribution at the time. “You have to think,” he said “this is before internet and all that went mainstream - before e-mail - so sending out new release information to a couple thousand people was really difficult. You had to send post cards or you had to do a lot more radio. “We used to mail out 500 promos of our records across the world just to get the records heard. Then you’d hope people would mail in catalogue requests. I mean, it was a lot more like having a home mail order thing because that’s where most of the records were selling.” One of the label’s biggest successes came in 1993/1994 with a number of releases in England with Ninja Tune. “People really liked them and Ninja Tune really branched out into the techno world after releasing our records,” explained Belanger.

After this Belanger decided to fold the label and move on to something else, opening his own record shop at the corner of Queen St. and John St. called Modulations, the store was located right next to the renowned Xstatic. For Belanger, running the store was a way of reconnecting with the Toronto electronic music scene. “I had been so immersed in releasing records in Germany and in England, and distributing records all around the world that I sort of completely ignored what was happening in Toronto,” he explained. In the early ’90s Jungle was just starting to gain popularity in Toronto. And although Belanger confessed he did not really understand the music at the time, he was selling a lot of it in his shop. “We were one of the first stores to really carry a lot of jungle, and we were selling more jungle in that store than anything else,” he said, describing how he’d let Slip n’ Slide run through his release sheets and do most of the ordering. “I remember having so many copies of Helicopter just fly through the store . . . and Renegade Snares.” Belanger credits 4Hero for finally opening his eyes to what jungle was about, as well as an invitation to one of the first Syrous events. Just playing the music in my store never did it justice,” he said. “It wasn’t until you heard 10k of sound behind those basslines that it made any sense at all, and when you saw people completely losing their minds to tracks, which you never had seen before at raves.” With a new found appreciation for jungle and a strong interest in making electronic music, it was inevitable Belanger would start producing it.

In 1996, shortly after closing the shop, Belanger set up a new studio with three other friends/business partners, together forming Kinder Atom. To date, Kinder Atom’s biggest achievement was a track called “Illegal” done with Michael Rose from Black Uhuru. The crew released it on a compilation, Metro Breaks ‘99. The remix from Basswerk in Germany did really well for us,” explained Belanger. “It was a huge hit all over in Europe and got our name out there a lot, which was great.” Although Kinder Atom has released many different styles of music from electro to techno, they have done a lot of work with drum and bass. After a couple of years we shared out half the studio with Dave Whalen and Marcus from Visionary, just when they were starting out,” said Belanger, explaining how he learned a lot from them about producing drum and bass. “That’s what got me interested in putting together the first compilations I did on the new label.” The new label shared its name with the new studio: Nice and Smooth.

While sharing the studio with Visionary, Belanger met many Toronto producers making drum and bass who had no outlet for their songs. This was another reason he decided to release the first Metro Breaks compilation. He wanted to represent the diversity of the Toronto scene by showcasing the work of a variety of under-exposed Toronto artists. The first two compilations came out in 1998 and 1999, and were released on both double vinyl and unmixed CDs. However, while Belanger was touring with DJ Freedom in Germany, the two decided it would be a good idea to release the third installment of Metro Breaks as a mixed CD, with tracks by Toronto, German and some American producers Freedom knew from Dallas, Texas. Currently at work on the next two Metro Breaks releases, Belanger has changed the format once again. “One is all German, featuring 30 tracks from different artists in Germany,” he explained. “It’s going to be a double CD mixed by one of my favourite crews in Germany . . . the NME Click.” This crew has not released any material of their own, but Belanger believes any person who has seen their live show would know why they are mixing the CD. “They were just the most (raw), out of control crew I’ve ever played with,” he said, describing his experience seeing them perform live. “It was the first time I’d seen DJs stage diving at a jungle show.” The other Metro Breaks project will be a CD mixed by Belanger himself. Although this CD will definitely have a Toronto focus, Belanger is receiving submissions from around the world. So far, submissions have included a CD from Hungary and a tape from India. In speaking with Belanger, his love for all forms of experimental and electronic music is clear. “When I hear this great music that is under-exposed, that needs better recognition I feel obligated to get out there and work it,” he explained as we sat in the CKLN FM studio finishing up the interview. It’s never been for a financial gain,” he said, admitting they’ve always lost money on music industry projects. ‘It’s totally out of passion for and love of the music, and also it’s love for subculture.” As we were wrapping things up, Belanger showed me some new releases he would be showcasing on the radio that evening. Right away the enthusiasm he had for sharing this music with his listeners became apparent, and one could begin to understood why he is still involved in the electronic music scene so many years after hearing that Moog synthesizer for the first time.

Articles | 10.03.2007 3:55 | Comments Off

Article - Mixed Messages: Enter at Your Own Risk

Mixed Messages: Enter at Your Own Risk
By Jocelyn Dickey

Published in Bassline Magazine, October 2004

Drum‘n bass and other forms of “computer music” would not exist without technology so, logically, tech-savvy fans are quick to embrace new forms of communication like message boards, forums and listservs brought on by technological advances through the Internet. The effects prove both positive and negative … and this has got people talking, err … typing.

During the past 10 years as the Internet has grown from a novelty accessed by only a small percentage of the world’s population to a blow-out phenomenon, numerous online resources have become established for music fans, artists, promoters and others with an interest in the scene. Some like Ravetrash.com; Phillyjunglemassive.com; SceneOhio.com; Lolli.org and Hyperreal’s pb-cle rave list cater specifically to local regional groups, while others like Dogsonacid.com; Drum ’n Bass Arena’s breakbeat.co.uk and Bluelight.nu cater to a global audience. Still others like Breakbeatscience.com out of NYC have grown from catering to a local perspective to a more global one.

Listservs, in which people ‘subscribe’ to a list in order to receive other’s e-mails, such as Hyperreal’s Pittsburgh-Cleveland list, have been a staple of the Ohio and Pennsylvania scenes since the early ‘90s. The e-mail posts are often topic-oriented and allow for debate and discussion.

In most instances, however, the majority of activity takes part on message boards where members (who must register and most often use a pseudonym) post messages in online forums or post their thoughts as a follow-up to another member’s message. In some instances, no registration is required to post, and messages can usually be read by anybody viewing the Web site, even non-members.

“Message boards now days serve good and bad (purposes). They can be used for so many reasons,” says Damian Higgins, known as Dieselboy, one of the leading drum ‘n bass artists in the world. “I have mixed feelings on it personally.”

Overall, I see message boards as a good resource,” explains Stephen Grey another well-respected artist known to the massive as Freaky Flow. “For me, benefits of message boards are that (a) they provide artists, promoters, and others a free forum to post information, which (hopefully) reaches a good number of people, and then continues to spread via word-of-mouth, and (b) the boards give people from all over the globe the chance to discuss issues with each other, an activity that could cost people a lot of money without these boards”

But he also recognizes some of the negative aspects of message boards. “Unfortunately, I find that when many people receive any kind of information, be it from the media, from friends, and even from message boards, they initially accept it as fact without much scrutiny; and, as with in the news, most of what appears on the boards (from what I’ve witnessed) seems to be negative,” he adds. “ Sadly, I’m finding that people are intrigued by negative things and bored by positive things.”

“It’s good for people to build their own community and get to know one another locally and to coordinate and help organize gigs together,” says Higgins, but he is also quick to qualify this in terms of message boards’ negative effects. “You have a lot of people who go on these message boards, and some people just have strong opinions, but other people go on message boards and just straight up say the (most incorrect) shit and just go on there to talk shit. And from that end, I think that they’re bad.”

Simon Kellman of Columbus, Ohio, also known as Catnap, the current owner and operator of the well-known, local message board Ravetrash.com also sees both negative and positive aspects of message boards’ role in the rave scene. Because Ravetrash.com caters to the local Ohio scene, Kellman feels it plays an important role.

“Ravetrash, like its peers Bluelight, SceneOhio, and Lolli.org, is a crucial venue for promoters to advertise electronic music events. They form the number one online resource for event listings and account for more attendance than probably printed flyers or word of mouth,” adds Kellman. “Also, DJs, producers and promoters all network with each other on Ravetrash.com, (and) message boards, email and chat rooms allow them the ability to exchange mixes, songs, flyer designs and other things faster than in-person meetings.”

But Kellman also sees some potential problems that can arise from message boards, particularly from the people who post on them. “Numerous events have been hurt or ruined when people post negative responses to the events, or when some people have purposely posted that events were cancelled when they were in fact not,” he adds. “A very vocal minority of people can set a negative tone about events or music, when there is a much larger, but silent, majority of people who feel like they can’t or shouldn’t say anything for fear of being publicly insulted or made fun of.”

Mike Harrington, an artist with Sunken Records also knows as Structure, helped create and establish Phillyjunglemassive.com. As a producer and performer himself, he also recognizes that message boards play both positive and negative roles in the scene.

Although Phillyjunglemassive.com was taken offline temporarily to regroup, it is now back up because Harrington believes it is a valuable resource for the Philly drum ‘n bass community.

“I think message boards, in some ways, are the best things and worst things to happen to drum and bass,” Harrington explains. “I think it’s a great way for people to connect. I think it’s a great way for labels and event promoters to get right to the fans and directly market to them, and I think it’s a great way for labels to get feedback about releases directly from the fans.

But Harrington sees problems when individuals bring private disputes public by posting about them on message boards. “People are quick to lose their temper in a public forum, and that’s really not the way you should do things,” he says adding that if you have an issue with another person you should call them up or send them a personal email.

“The best rule I’ve always heard (is) if you post something on a public forum, would you say the same thing to the person in front of you?” he adds. “I think in some ways there’s been a loss of respect to drum ‘n bass because of message boards … there needs to be more respect in regards to what we say (about) major talent, incoming talent to your town and local DJs.”

Harrington attributes this lack of decorum on message boards to people being too quick to post comments without really thinking about what statement the post is making or what they are really trying to say.

Carl Collins, A&R Manager of Hard Leaders Recordings and resident dnb specialist of Blackmarket Records Toronto agrees somewhat.

“Like any media, they can be used and abused,” says Collins. “They’re great for promotion, they can also misfire and mislead because not everyone in drum ‘n bass does have access to the Internet, and some countries have more access than others so it can give a misleading opinion.”

Collins cautions that just because something is published on the Internet does not mean it is a fact. “I’ve been around a lot of the DJs at the higher end of it who find it dismissive because it is so easy for someone to get on a board and be extremely negative based on little fact,” he says, noting that one can post information online instantly, and readers will tend to take it seriously because it is a form that looks more legitimate than it is. “We’ve held events where the DJs have read what they’ve seen on the board after they played and just had to laugh because it was so misleading.”

But Collins also recognizes some of the good aspects. “They’re great for the community aspect and the movement of information rapidly, but at the same time they’re not to be taken too seriously,” he cautions.

Due to their very nature, international message boards like Dogsonacid.com tend to be free of the beefs and lack of decorum associated with some of the local boards. Usually discussion focuses more on songs or upcoming albums and there are often stricter codes of conduct pertaining to what can be posted and what can’t. Moderators are usually quick to enforce the codes by censoring or removing posts that aren’t in line with the professional nature of the board.

“I read Dogsonacid.com just to read what people are saying about certain tracks,” says Higgins.

Most tend to agree, however, that despite the negativity sometimes associated with them, local message boards have a definite place and purpose in the electronic music scene and will not be going anywhere soon.

“Their main functions have always been to post information on upcoming events, and allow for networking and discussion among people in the rave scene,” says Kellman.

“They’re the best ways to get (a) people who may not be into drum and bass, into drum and bass on a local level; (b) (they’re) great for local DJs to be able to promote their sound and get their mixed CDs out to a massive audience especially in regards to mp3s and things like that; and (c) I think (they’re) great for local promoters who want to do events with dnb, or whatever style of music, to directly market their music to the masses in addition to street level promotions,” adds Harrington.

“Overall, I see message boards as a good resource. I only wish that the people who use them would make up their own minds rather than just believing everything they read,” says Grey.

Good point taken. Message boards are best viewed with a little bit of thoughtfulness. They help to bring local DJ-oriented communities together, and they are great sources of information, but beware that not all posted online is true. So post … and read … at your own risk.

Articles | 10.03.2007 3:52 | Comments Off