Marchmellow & Riskotheque
For our next addition to insideSub we've got an exclusive interview with local residents Riskotheque (Audio Freaks) and Marchmellow, two of Brighton's dubstep elite. We get an insight into their music and what they think of their city's booming scene.
The Interview
For those readers that might not have heard of you guys, how would you describe your sound?
M: It's very eclectic. We both bring different sounds to the table; I bring more catchy upfront sounds, more for the younger audience, while Risko brings the deeper techy vibes for the more discerning audience maybe! But, this isn't set in stone; we switch it up all the time: we're both fans for all sub genres' of dubstep and other musical genres.
R: Exactly what Marchy said.... we're both very much into music and tend to draw influences from many different genres so I guess our sound is a mish-mash of all of this.
The labels you've both worked with are very impressive, including Audio Freaks, Wicky Lindows and Boka to name a few. How much does working with a big label help get exposure to your tracks?
M: I would say Risko knows more about this then me, but from my experience, it helps you get gigs, which in turn helps you get exposure. I think having vinyl releases is still a very important part of the scene, but doesn't guarantee anything in terms of exposure or 'fame'. I think working with large labels helps you get exposure to other labels, and promoters for definite, but in terms of exposure for listeners, I think its just as easy to 'expose' yourself to a wide audience, especially with the internet these days.
R: I think it helped me a lot, especially the first Audio Freaks release.... sharing the roster with undoubtedly great artists like TRG, Emalkay, Nero and Bar9 meant people took notice. But, as March said its perfectly possible to gain as much, if not more, exposure through a bit of graft on portals like Youtube.
You've worked together a number of times, including original productions and remixes. Are there any preferences to working individually or working with other artists?
M: I've always enjoyed working with Risko on tracks, I think it can be quite hard to find people that you click with in the studio sometimes, it can be hard to feel comfortable in a creative environment - for me, coming up with idea's for tracks, or loops, or anything is quite a personal thing - most original productions me and Risko have worked on have stemmed from an idea that one of us has bought to the table individually. Like I said for the first question-Risko and I bring different vibes to the production table, so it benefits us to work together, but it's also crucial to work alone. We recently went through a spell of having one set up in out house, which creatively didn't work as well as hoped I guess, I don't think there's any harm in saying this either - we have our own set ups now (program wise are identical) so the idea's will be flowing strong from now on, individually and collectively.
R: I think working with other artists is important in order to gain different perspectives on music making and production. I've learnt a lot of techniques through working with other producers. I do, however, find I will go deeper into tunes if I work on my own.
What have you guys got planned for the rest of the year in terms of releases and shows?
M: Well we got outlook festival coming up, which we are seriously looking forward too, I've been the last two years as a spectator, so to play there this year is a dream come true. In terms of releases, I think Risko has more lined up then me actually! I've slowed the pace down a bit, trying to work on overall quality of tracks rather then just idea's, I've always been an idea's man, but there comes a point where its good to take a step back and work on overall sound of tracks. We have a remix on Platter Records coming through, Mike Lennon's new label, Olly at Wicky Lindow's is patiently waiting for an EP from me and Dismantle (Gangoon Dubz). Me and Risko hopefully have a release on Luticia Dubs, which Von D has been loving recently. We also are planning our own label too, but I don't want to say too much on that just yet, all i will say is watch this space!
R: Yes, Outlook is going to be Huge! I've got a slew of releases forthcoming. A collab with Von Dizzle called 'Like a Bird' on Skreams Disfigured Dubs, a collab with Matt U on Boka called 'Guillotine Growl', another collab with Wachs Lyrical (watch this guy ;) called 'What I Feel Like Doing' on Subdepth as well as some solo stuff on 3.5 and Sequence.
Both of you guys are in the elite of dubstep producer's in Brighton. What do you think of the local scene at the moment? Do you feel that the city is a hotspot for producer's and DJ's in terms of the dubstep movement?
M: In terms of producers, I personally feel Brighton isn't flooded at all, and there's a lot of talent! We got Southbound Hangers, Gangoon Dubz, Sleepz, Leon, and many more all bringing their own flavour to the local scene and beyond in fact. I think in terms of DJ's and nights, then yeah 'Hotspot' is one word... I can think of others! Its just a little too crowded in terms of nights, don't get me wrong, there's some wikid nights in Brighton, but not enough of the dubstep spectrum is allowed to shine in Brighton, and if it is, its unlikely to be successful, which obviously will put promoters off holding these types of nights - I don't blame this on the promoters at all, it's a business at the end of the day.
R: There aren't a lot of dubstep producers here in comparison to somewhere like Bristol but the talent levels are definitely just as high. I think Brighton will start to make more of a name for its self in the coming year...
Do you feel that the genre has enough exposure in the city in terms of the club nights and promotion? How would you feel if Brighton had its own electronic music festival?
M: There's a hell of a lot of festivals already in my opinion, I wouldn't say Brighton having its own festival would be a bad thing, but whether it would be a success is another matter... my views on club nights are pretty much answered in the last question. There's a select few promoters really putting in the work in Brighton, People Like Shane at Subsplash, Sarah at supercharged and Joe and Steve at filthy Media - I have a lot of respect for the guys, as promotion is not an easy thing to get your head round!
R: Yeah, bring it on.... a Brighton electronic music festival sounds ace!
You've both played with some top artists, any standout nights?
M: We've had some wikid gigs and some bad gigs like every DJ! I'd say the supercharged with Caspa, maybe 2 years ago, was real fun, hard to explain why, just a real nice Vibe. I always like playing in Manchester and Leeds too; any gigs there are always hyped.
R: Playing in Poland is a favourite of mine, those people go crazy! plus there's loads of Vodka of course! I particularly enjoyed a recent set on a boat in Lyon in the South of France. the crowd were really responsive and Vulgatron from Foreign Beggars turned up half way through my set and took the Mic... I was honoured!
Some of the first stuff I heard from you guys was on the Innocent Until Proven Filthy mixes by Skrewface. Do you feel exposure like this has increased your global appeal?
M: Having your tunes played in Mix's in extremely valuable exposure, Skrewface and many others put a lot of time and effort into these mix's and when they are promoted right, can reach a really wide audience. I still do a lot of stuff with skrewface now, I help run a label with him, BassPunch records, and we are currently planning the 2nd compilation, Future Klassiks 2. Me and Risko probably don't spend enough time recording mix's for promotion, I'm sure it'd help us gain further exposure if we did, its just finding the time and effort I guess!
Are there any producers that we should be listening out for both in the local and global scene?
M: There's sooooo many. I do believe we've reached a point where new artists are gonna be able to break through. Gotta big up all my Brighton producers that I mentioned above, I'm sure there's some I've missed, sorry if I have, nothing personal! We get sent interesting stuff on a daily basis, I'd say check the mix with this interview for producers to look out for.
R: Listen out for Triage, Subreachers, Vandera, Depone, Droid Sector, Boot, Sook, Bukkha, Mr Boogie, Twist & Torqux, TKR, Audio Sleaze, Klic, Niveau Zero, Nibe, Alexis K and Paranoise.... I'm sure there's plenty I've forgotten... we get sent so much great music!
You can check out Risko & Marchy's free Subsplash mix available to download on the right.
Text and Interview by Lee Brockett
The Tracklisting
Subreachers-Sunshine (Dub)
Marchy&Risko-i need ya (Forthcoming Luticia Dubz)
Lecs-Just how i like it-Marchmellow Remix (Dub)
Vista&Will Blaze-Glo Worm (Forthcoming Boka)
Von D & Riskotheque-Like a bird (forthcoming Disfigured Dubz)
Marchmellow-Hate2LuvU VIP (Dub)
Broke DJ's-Personal -Marchy &Risko Remix (Forthcoming Platter Records)
Matt-U &Riskotheque-Gullotine Growl (Forthcoming Boka)
Marchmellow&Twist-Misfit (Forthcoming...?)
Vandera-India Joya (Dub)
Droid Sector & Draft Portal ft Kira Annillies-Following you (Sequence008)
Riskotheque&Wachs Lyrical-What i feel like doing (Forthcoming Subdepth)
Riskotheque-Bodbwoy (Forthcoming XSDUBZ)
Dismantle-Meow Fiends-MArchmellow Remix (Dub)
Depone&Boot-Ghost in the shell (Dub)
Mr Foul-Jah Inside (Dub)
Von D&Niveau Zero-The Lair (forthcoming Hench)
Marchmellow-Reel Simple-Crux Remix (Dub)
Hizzle Guy-Drunk Dub (Clandestine)
Marchmellow-Major Lazer Dub (Dub)
Babylon System&Nibe-Raclette (Terminal Dusk Dub)
Phaeleh-Tachi (Wheel &Deal records)
Mr Boogie-Nice And Easy (sequence)
Triage ft Mc Messinian-Smash The Set (Dub)
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Connect
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Bookings
For bookings please contact bookings@twuagency.co.uk
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Downloads
Marchy/Risko Mix
