NEWS
EVENTS
We spoke to one of D&B's biggest duos, the mighty DC Breaks
Drum and Bass | Wednesday 31st August 2016 | Arren
When it comes to duos in the drum & bass scene, few are as respected and followed as DC Breaks. Over the years, Dan and Chris have marked themselves out as one of the most consistent names on the scene and have been dropping huge releases on Ram Records for over 5 years now.
The pair have once again had a mad summer, so we thought we'd check in with them and see what's up.
Hey, how are you doing?
Good thank you, busy as always!
So what were your first thoughts this morning?
Do I have to get up?! Yes, there’s a load of tracks to finish!
So DC Breaks is a DJ/production duo, where are you guys based?
Dan lives in London and Chris in Bristol. We don’t work so much in the studio together, but the system seems to work okay.
Label head of Restless Natives, DJ Kid, who originally signed records from the two DC Breaks members
So how did the DC Breaks project begin?
We met at the University in Edinburgh. A bit of studying but mostly making music and DJing / partying! We had both signed records to DJ Kid’s label Restless Natives as individual artists, Krpytik & Samurai. That kind of acted as our initial portal into the D&B / music world. We were both making tunes but didn’t know each other too well at first. We were really impressed by the other persons' sound that we thought we should try collab. Soon after, we formed DC Breaks and began to take things a bit more seriously.
Why the name, DC Breaks?
The secret is out now! Dan, Chris, Breaks.
Well before long you joined the ranks of Ram, how did that come about?
Through Restless Natives and DJ Kid. in about 2007 Andy C had heard the records we had put out and DJ Kid was sending him some of our new music. He was interested in releasing a few things on Frequency Recordings, their sister label at the time. Andy was doing a show in Edinburgh so we went down to meet him, have a chat and we took it from there. 3 years later Ram offered us a formal record deal and we made the step up.
DC Breaks' big festival tune, get your copy here.
Six years on and you're still going strong! You've dropped a huge summer slammer 'Never Stop' - how's that been going down this summer?
Well actually we made the initial track last summer, so it’s been going down great for 2 summers now! Its got lots of energy, a catchy vocal and good vibes all round, so it’s an integral part of the sets we play now. Great festival tune.
It perfectly treads the line between being club ready and radio friendly. Was that what you were aiming for?
Kind of, but not massively. Radio is always a bonus but we held back on the vocals for this one as we wanted to keep it vibey and not too commercial, more simple and more for the dancefloor.
We won't get it twisted though, you've been huge on the underground with tracks like 'Sidewinder' and 'Bad Flow'. Do you think it's important in drum & bass to keep yourselves on both sides?
For us absolutely, don’t forget your roots! We’ve always made musical D&B as well as the heavier, darker stuff. When we play out we probably play more hard stuff, but we enjoy making that kind of sound as well. But in general I think artists tend to have a certain sound and stick to it, which is great as a DJ as you have lots of different styles to play out.
The summer is nearly over. How has summer 2016 been for you?
Great, we've been all over the place and still plenty of festivals to play yet. Our new single 'Never Stop' was also recently used on the Rio Olympics coverage on the BBC which was awesome!
Saw you were at Glastonbury, how did that go down?
Very messy, literally, so much mud! But it was great as always and the weather never stops anyone from raving. I literally bombed in and bombed out this year - until my car got stuck in the mud at 4am trying to leave the site after my set. Luckily a tractor came and pulled me out!
Anything else this summer that you're looking forward to?
Yep, plenty of good shows left including Utrecht with a naughty little B2B with Mind Vortex, Field Trip festival, Boombox Fest. Couple of dates in Austria and Tokyo World as well which should be great. Oh and a holiday, looking forward to that!
What's planned for when summer does finish, any new material to hit us with?
We're working on some VIPs of some older DC stuff to come out around the end of October.
Are we right in thinking that there is an album coming up?
Yes! Next year, should be worth the wait hopefully - it'll be a mixture of different styles from us as we always do.Some songs, some bangers and everything in between.
What made you decide to make an album?
It's the natural thing to do as an artist, it's the perfect way to put your flag in the sand and say this is who we are as artists and what we do.
What is the worst job you have ever done?
I once worked in a fabric warehouse picking and packing orders to save up money to go to Ayia Napa when I was a teenager.
What are you most in love with right now?
Well we both got married last year so I think we'd both say our wives!
What's the worst trouble you have been in?
I couldn't possibly say!
What would you fill a swimming pool with if it could be anything?
Money?
What is your shittest moment?
When it starts raining and all the money in the pool gets wet.
What's the worst thing you have a reputation for?
Shit ideas for stuff to fill swimming pools with!
What Ideas changed your life?
That you could actually make a living from doing what you love.
DC Breaks - Facebook - Twitter - SoundCloud
