Jocelyn Dee is an established electronic music artist and journalist focused on drum and bass
I have a bunch of gigs coming up in October and November:
Saturday October 20 - Tek-now @ Touch Supper (Club Cleveland, OH)
Satuday October 27 - Switzer’s Halloween Bash @ undisclosed warehouse space (Bowmanville, ON)
Saturday November 10 - Torontojungle.com 10 Year Anniversayr @ Footwork (Toronto, ON)
Thursday November 8 - Chronic Camp @ Down One Lounge (Toronto, ON)
Wednesday November 14- Clear’s Birthday Bash @ Blue Moon (Toronto, ON)
For your listening pleasure I have posted our latest podcast. Please follow the link
After a summer filled with fun, vacations and cottages, we at DBE are once again ready to focus on drum and bass! And what better way to do so then having a party?
This event will be held at the Blue Moon (Queen and Broadview), a venue which is dnb-friendly, close to 24hr TTC, and also has dancefloor area + pool tables/fooseball if that is more your thing.The bar has also recently upgraded its soundsystem.
Featuring:
Back by popular demand, we have the dangerous duo of
DJ Red Lion + Elle Be MC
These guys really need no introduction. Red Lion has been in the scene since forever and is known for his fun, dancefloor rockin’ sets. Elle Be has a sweet set of vocal chords and she is not afraid to use them.
Also back for another DBE performance
Inotreb
A toronto up and comer that knows how to get grimey. Due to unfortunate events at his last DBE show we just had to have him back for round 2!
+ more TBA
And don’t forget the DBE regulars
SP
This guy has so many good tunes ready to drop that he recently sold a crate of records for $10 and it doesn’t even matter (he was just too lazy to move them to his new place).
Jocelyn Dee (that’s me)
A girl who has been rockin’ the decks in Toronto and beyond for ages and who knows how to bring the funk!
MC Dexy G
Back from his trip to England and ready to rock the mic.
Due to the need for hiring a licensed security guard for this event (all bouncers/security guards etc. now in Ontario have to be licensed by the government) we will be charging $3 at the door.
Saturday October 13, 2007
Doors open @ 10pm
19+
Blue Moon - 725 Queen Street E (@ Broadview), Toronto - (416) 463-8868
(This is an article I did with the EZ Rollers a few weeks back. It should soon be published in Bassline Magzine. Since it hasn’t yet been published , I thought I would share it here for the time being.)
In the world of drum and bass, the E-Z Rollers have come to be known for crafting smooth-sounding, infectiously-groovy beats with a healthy dose of jazzy funk thrown in for good measure.
But the E-Z Rollers sound as it is now has been built upon years of hard work and studio collaboration with each other and other artists. And nowhere is this hard work more evident than on the group’s most recent album, “Conductor.”
In the early days, the group consisted of the duo of Jay Hurren and Alex Ban. They released their first 12” together as the E-Z Rollers, Rolled into One b/w Believe, on the legendary Moving Shadow record label in 1994. (Vocalist Kelly Richards joined the group a little later after meeting the duo at one of their gigs.)
Prior to this, the two had known each other and even dabbled in making music, but had not released anything. “I’d known Jay from school,” Alex explains. “We were part of a crew that went to all the underground parties and the soul weekenders.”
Both had also released singles with other musical projects prior to forming the E-Z Rollers. “I started making music with Danny Flytronix as Hyper-On Experience and Jay was making tunes with Richie as JMJ and Richie,” Alex says. “It was just natural for me and Jay to make tunes–we had done this before in 1991.”
Building on their initial success, the E-Z Rollers continued to grow as artists and released their first artist album on Moving Shadow in 1996. It was called “Dimensions of Sound,” and would be the first of three albums for Moving Shadow, the other two being “Weekend World” and “Titles of the Unexpected.”
“When Rob heard our first single as E-Z Rollers he straight-away asked for an album!” says Alex. “I think at that time Moving Shadow was looking for something different and always investing in new things.”
After amassing an impressive catalogue of tunes on Moving Shadow, the E-Z Rollers started their own label, Intercom Recordings, in 1998. “The idea behind Intercom was to take new talent and produce it,” Alex explains.
And although he says they enjoy the hands-on aspect of running a label and being involved in a project from start to finish, it can take up valuable time that might otherwise be spent in the studio making tunes.
But that doesn’t seem to stop them. Over the past few years the E-Z Rollers have enjoyed success both in the dnb world and beyond. Their song Walk this Land made it into the UK Top-20 charts and was also featured in Guy Ritchie’s hit movie Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. In addition, they have successfully licensed music to TV, advertisements and video games.
Although some dnb fans might object to the music being used in ads, Alex explains the group has not experienced any backlash because of it. But he also contents that there are limits for it and that he “won’t let [the EZ Rollers’] name or music be associated with cigarette advertising.”
In spite of these previous successes, the group continues to toil in the studio and bring new music to the ears of fans around the world. The group’s recently-released fourth album, “Conductor,” is a showcase of these efforts.
In comparison to the group’s previous albums, Alex says that in his mind Conductor has better direction behind it. “When we did ‘Titles’ there were ideas that with hindsight might not have been fully achieved,” he explains. “Conductor started with a game plan, me and Jay discussed our plans for it all the way through the project. At all times we were aware of what the other wanted from the album.”
As far as what Conductor sounds like (besides good!), it is distinctly E-Z Rollers.
“E-Z Rollers have always had a ‘sound’ and I think we’ve continued to develop this idea through the use of musicians and abstract concepts,” Alex says. “Most Drum and Bass nowadays is almost boiled down to its constituent grime! That’s not to say there is anything wrong with that, but we offer something different.”
And this will be evident if you are fortunate enough to catch the group at one of their tour dates in support of the album. In addition to the standard DJ performances the group will be doing live PAs.
“The live thing is so immediate, so inspiring and so fresh. It would always be my preference to perform live rather than DJ and the crowds really appreciate it,” Alex explains. “I think there will be more and more call for this sort of thing in the future, and I’m just glad to be a part of it!”
Check out http://www.myspace.com/EZrollers for more information.
Conductor is available now at all the usual locations and on iTunes.
I’ve been a little lazy and haven’t been promoting my past few performances, but I have finally got my act together to let you all know about this one.
I will be dropping by Blue Moon on Wednesday August 8, 2007 to make a guest appearance at the Sweet Sensi monthly.
This time around I will be playing a little bit of dub, some liquid funk, and some dub-inspired dnb. (Depending on the crowd, at the end we might kick it up a notch and drop some heavier stuff).
Since it is a Wednesday there is no cover, there is free pool and affordable drinks. There is also a jitoni (foosball) table if you are up for the challenge.
The Blue Moon is located at 725 Queen Street East, Toronto.
It’s WEMF time again. This year, I will be playing on the TorontoRaves.com stage in the vendor area Saturday @ 9 pm and I will be playing on the DCM stage Saturday @ 10:15 pm. Since the two sets are basically back-to-back with eachother I will be playing a typical Jocelyn Dee set @ the TR stage followed by a 97-2000 classic jump-up tear-out at the DCM stage.
I will be playing this Saturday @ OPM Nightclub. Now is your chance to see me live if you are one of the folks who has been asking…
Details
MAD SATURDAYS @ OPIUM HOSTS: SOUL IN MOTION SPECIAL
REBEL SOUL MUSIC
featuring
DJ SPINZ
SUDDEN DEF / SOUL IN MOTION / CROSSTOWN
SCOTT.FREE
SOUL IN MOTION / DAMAGE
APOCALYPSE
MAD DNB / CHRONIC SOUNDSYSTEM / OPIUM
JOCELYN DEE
DBE /CHRONIC SOUNDSYSTEM / RINSE
LOCATION:
OPIUM NIGHTCLUB
222 RICHMOND ST. W.
19+
It’s official - we are podcasters. The second episode is already up and there will be many more to come. Visit the DBE News Page for details.
DBE will be starting a weekly podcast discussing all things dnb. Dexy G will be coming by my studio tommorrow to record our fist episode, so it should available for download this weekend. Expect something a little different as this will be a talkshow format and we plan to fully explore all that this medium has to offer!
Mathematics: Mathematics equals a soulful equation
Words by: Jocelyn Dickey
Published in Bassline Magazine August 2006
Photo by: Brian Bucher
In the academic world, mathematics is akin to torture for some students. But in the world of drum ’n bass, Mathematics simply means good music.
The New York City-based production duo — dnb producer/DJ James Ronaghan and musician/producer Mike Genato — have been working together under the Mathematics guise since the late ’90s.
According to James, he and Mike first ventured into the studio together in ’99. “I think around that time … drum ’n bass went through a really dark period. It was kind of missing where I had come from,†he says. “When I met Mike, we kind of bonded over that — that musicality sort of thing. We wanted to bring a little bit more [of] that back to drum ’n bass, and that’s basically when we started making tunes together.â€
But before Mathematics was known for its studio productions, it was known for DJing and promoting events including the respected Physics weekly in NYC. During those earlier years, there was also another member of the Mathematics crew — Roy Dank. Although he has moved on to pursue other projects, Mathematics has continued and so has its brand of dnb music.
Mike and James each bring a different set of talents to the table. James has been DJing since 1992, and has witnessed the evolution of the dnb music first hand. Mike, who opted not to dip into the DJing realm, is a knowledgeable engineer and talented instrumentalist who’s been playing piano since the age of 9.
These differences have lead both men to pursue various projects, some of which are separate from the Mathematics guise. “We’re doing a lot of experimentation individually at the moment,†James explains. “I’ve just been on a tour of Europe for two months. Mike has been writing all sorts of music.
“We do drum ’n bass together, but we write individually as well since we don’t always have the time to sit in the studio together,†says James. “Mike is involved in making hip-hop and R and B apart from Mathematics. We’ve also both written music for commercials and short films and video games.â€
And the list of international A-list DJs playing Mathematics’ tunes is long and growing with every release, with people like Calibre, Andy C, Hype, Marcus Intalex, Pendulum, Klute, LTJ Bukem and more supporting the Mathematics sound.
“There’s not many of us U.S. drum ’n bass producers that have their own label and have world-wide recognition,†says James, adding that although the international support is strong, sometimes the hometown support seems to be lacking. “I feel like I should get a little more respect of where I’m from,†he says.
Switching subjects, Mathematics’ record label, Social Studies, released its first 12†in November 2003 — “Here and Now†b/w “Backdraft.†They are now on to their ninth release with “Treasonâ€/â€Rooted Part 1†featuring Tactile while their 10th, “Esprit†(with Tactile) and “Thrill of the Hunt†with Tactile and new Hungarian producers Spinline — is being mastered.
“Our idea was always to have our own label and do our own thing, and that’s a very hard task,†James explains. “Originally we had lots of support … [and] when you have support from bigger labels, it kind of puts you in your own light.â€
As a born and bred New Yorker, James feels that the city has had some influence on the music he creates. “I’ve lived in N.Y. my whole life,†he says. “I feel like N.Y. is my favorite place to travel to. When I’ve been away from it for a long time I love to come back to New York … there’s just some sort of energy that I feed off of when I’m here.
“I like a lot of East Coast/R and B/hip-hop stuff. Mike and I are both influenced by that, and our production is sort of fusing that sort of sound and bringing song structure to drum ’n bass and more vocals,†he says.
The interest in these sorts of sounds and using them in dnb helped drive Mathematics’ early musical creations. “That’s really where we started,†James says, adding that when they started making tracks it was during the rise of liquid funk, when selected producers like Mathematics were aspiring to make dnb tunes with some of the musicality, melody and lush sounds that seemed to be lacking in the big tunes of the time.
“But just like everything, [liquid funk] got copied to death and there was no quality control … everyone was making liquid tunes and they were like a dime a dozen,†he says. “So, I think we’re trying to step it up and do something different but something sort of along those lines.â€
Although Mathematics has become known for incorporating the liquid funk vibe into its music, James thinks that from the very beginning Mathematics has tried to be diverse.
“When we were three [members], I think that really helped keep the energy diverse … we’ve always been able to make more dark tunes and more fun, musical tracks. I think the backbone of our music is funky,†he says. “All of our music has some sort of funkiness to it. And funky can translate into dark and funky, it can be bouncy and funky.â€
So far, Mathematics has only released singles and hasn’t done a full length CD, although the guys are toying with the idea of doing an album.
“We’re just making music at the moment,†James says. “Mike has been involved with doing R and B as I said before, and he’s been working with Peter Hadar. I’m excited to be working with a male vocalist. Basically, they did an R and B album together, and we did a remix of one of the tracks they had done together called ‘Fire.’ Right now it’s getting heavy play from Calibre and Fabio.â€
Add up all these elements — including working with original vocalists — and divide by these two personalities, and you get the equation for the Mathematics sound.
“We’re really trying to focus on bringing the song structure to drum ’n bass,†says James, “trying to take it a little bit further than just in the club … really trying to break that barrier … to do something that will [be] radio friendly but also work on the dancefloor.â€