‘ALL THE JAZZ CATS WERE GIVING US RESPECT '
ing
Sandra
#s’.
of the decks
arron talks to the house, jazz, techno and hip hop
head King Britt as he gears up for a slot at Subculture.
here's a bit of the ‘David Holmes‘ about King I Britt. He‘s just finished scoring the soundtrack to the new Miami Vice film. he‘s a world class DJ who has remixed and produced some of the world‘s finest artists, and he has an unwavering love of techno and huge respect from the jazz world. As Holmes’ story began in Belfast, Philadelphia was Britt’s musical alma mater. While working at Tower records. Britt met Butterfly from Digable Planets. ‘He used to come to my parties and we bonded instantly. Music brings us all together. It was just natural. just awesome; he said he was working on this demo, he brought it over. and l was floored. We made copies. he disappeared for six months and reappeared with a deal.‘ he says.
Along with the record deal came a US tour for Digable and Butterfly invited his musical muse and friend Britt along to D]. ‘l was just in it from the beginning as an advisor. he jokes before adding in his Philly draw]. ‘I assisted in the vibe.’ The vibe was a landmark one. Digable Planets were part of the new bunch of pioneers in their field that were basically turning the hip hop genre on its head. ‘We knew something was going down because of how all the jazz cats were giving us respect. These were traditional jazz cats so we knew we were on a musical level higher than most hip hop bands.‘ says Britt.
‘It was like that combination of band and DJ and
MIDr'PJ.
that sound was going on in the underground. but I
think Digable took it to the mainstream.‘ After Digable. through a mutual friend. Britt met. and started to work with. Josh Wink. The result of their tinkering about was the infamous early 90s international dance hit ‘Tribal Confusion‘ by E- Culture, not to mention the founding of the duo's
label. Ovum Recordings. Another post-Digable
project was also on the cards at this time. Britt got together a collective of Philadelphia based musicians and friends to make music to accompany the lyrics he‘d written for an entire album while previously on the road. Enter Sylkl30 and their historical record
When the Funk Hits the Fun. Britt recalls that ‘this was before the neo-soul movement: it was basically
the blueprint for it, but Sony didn’t really know what
to do with it.‘ Sylk130 were a landmark act that still
tour today.
Britt has just released The Nova [)ream Sequence. a move back to his house and techno roots. ‘l’ve always wanted to do a techno record, I love Detroit and all things techno and I wanted to do a purely electronic record. no live stuff. so it was just time. Sometimes you gotta go back and get grounded and then start over.‘ says the King.
King Britt guests at Subculture, the Sub Club, Glasgow, Sat 5 Aug.
:i: Dlskobox So, you don't want to leave the West End to hear some decent music. And why should you? Fear not as Diskobox come to the rescue. A new night of electro, punk. indie and alternative beats. Oran Mor, Glasgow, Thu 3 Aug. =l: Numbers, Polnt.0ne a. WIreblock A brilliant line up all round, but a particular ‘big up' for Errorsmith. Remember the club smash in the early 903 ‘Donna"? Well this guy was responsible. A night of jackin' house to disco via grime. Unmissable. Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, Fri 4 Aug.
=2: Subculture King Britt. the muse of Digable Planets' Butterfly, the head honcho of the Sylk300 collective, label co- owner with Josh Wink. The Sub Club, Glasgow, Sat 5 Aug.
ti: Colours You may think it impossible to feel all summery dancing in a railway tunnel. Bollocks to that. Hed Kandi's Les Clarke and Paul Wilkins beg to differ. A slice of house infused sunshine. The Arches, Glasgow, Sat 5 Aug.
>l< Fractured Anybody who calls themselves. The Flying Jalapenos Breakdancing Crew are worth a look. They are on hand to serve and provide the accompaniment to Data Panik (pictured), Alcopop and Dirty Hospital DJs at this new night. OMU, Glasgow, Sat 5 Aug.
=i= XPress XFM's Huggy is special guest this time around at this fine night. Expect pure unadulterated house music like your mother used to make, no bandwagons. November, Glasgow, Sat 5 Aug.
MIDOP ..
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