In our new blog series we’re chatting to some crews around the world about their favourite tracks, events and what they’re all about.
It’s time for some NZ Junglisms! Next up we’re chatting to a few Jungle Drum & Bass heads from Aotearoa New Zealand, Read on for the full Kiwi JD&B lowdown..
De La Haye
How has your DJing evolved from when you first started up to now?
My tastes (Reggae/Dub, Funk/Soul, Hiphop vibe influences) and approach to playing a set has remained fairly consistent somehow over 22 years of DJing Jungle Drum & Bass! Meanwhile the technology and production side of making tunes has obviously changed dramatically through this time, so I’ve evolved as an artist more on that side of things. Like no longer having the visual cue of a vinyl sleeve anymore, when using the less tactile digital options these days. Also mixing quicker than I would ideally like too, when zoning into the therapeutic-ness of being in the mix (as now you blink and suddenly there’s a breakdown already! Bring back five min tunes + ridiculous 2nd drops!)
Tell our readers what your favourite moment behind the decks..
Unbelievably grateful to have had SO many – and after this long, ahhh, it is quite difficult to pick one! However, a major highlight has always been the Sun & Bass Festival in Italy, which I’ve somehow been blessed to have played ten times now. My first set was in 2009 when DJ Storm invited me to join her Feline stage lineup outside at Ambra Night. That was such a huge and mind-blowing honour! As it started filling up, aside from having five of my best friends from Australia there too, which was amazingly epic in itself, all these big Jungle Drum & Bass artists are just rolling past me nodding their heads & smiling and I’m just tripping out that I’m mixing in ITALY. It was a completely surreal and wicked experience.
Take us through your process for building a set to play out at an event or guest slot..
Pre gig ritual: My brain and style has a lot of divergence and colour so am always naturally inspired to construct as so. Often my prepping for this consists of an arbitrary long pre-sorting process, selecting a couple of hundred (too many) relevant tunes (lol) in an easy-ish to locate, ‘light-to-hard’ type order that makes sense for that gig. Then I roll with the vibe when playing. I throw in some extra nerves, which seems to be how I function best it seems haha, although I find it wise to plan the first 2-3 tunes to keep grounded during the takeover, then flow from there!
Find De La Haye on Instagram, Soundcloud
Paige Julia
You recently finished up a three month tour, tell us all about it..
I released a four track EP of modern Jungle with 1985 music, called Anathema. To celebrate, I reached out to my friends across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand to see where they would like to hear the music and I ended up with fifteen stops in thirteen cities! There was an incredible range, from a festival stage of thousands, sold out events in Wellington, Auckland and Christchurch and more intimate parties in small towns too. I loved every moment.
Tell our readers about your process of producing tunes..
I’d say I have three phases. First I focus on living a life full of whimsy and adventure and gather up soundscapes and ideas that represent my time and energy, it’s important to me that my music tells the stories from my culture and experiences. Then, my second phase I focus on writing a lot of tracks, as I have a pretty large failure rate, as in it takes a lot of dud tunes in order to filter through to a final EP or project I’m happy with. My third phase is playing those tunes out, and sending to labels and friends to get an idea with what we can work up too and which tunes are not working on the dancefloor.
Do you enjoy DJing or producing more, and why?
It really depends on my mood. I love to be around people and be in the moments of culture, showcasing my favourite sounds when I am feeling high energy, and in the studio when I want to be alone. I don’t always get the balance right, I think I tour a little bit more than my natural tendencies want me to and I often yearn for the comfort of a studio and my ideas. So if I had to choose, making music would win out.
Find Paige Julia on Instagram, Soundcloud
Ohimesama Breaks
You travel quite a bit and catch Jungle Drum & Bass shows in other countries, where was the most memorable spot you’ve been able to experience Jungle Drum & Bass and why?
I’ve been very lucky on this trip, connecting with new and old friends from all corners of the world.
I feel like this might be a cop out, but going to Outlook Festival was probably the most memorable, for numerous reasons. Being around so many heads where we all spoke the same language felt like being on another planet. People had made the mission to immerse themselves in something we all love, that to me was really special. We were very lucky to be able to go. Being able to see the motherload of acts all in one week made it one to remember, I think my knees will never be the same.
Give our readers your top three, all-time favourite Jungle Drum & Bass tunes..
Haha, the most impossible of questions. This one’s hard, but here are my current top three:
“Force Field” – Total Sciencem “Reflections” – DJ Trax, “Above and Beyond” – PHD and the Funky Technicians and last but not least,”The Western” – PFM [Conrad Remix].
What were some key moments and experiences that led you to becoming a DJ?
Growing up, my dad played a lot of music, including old-skool (well, at the time, new!) Jungle through the home system. Growing up with these sounds and rhythms has definitely shaped who I am today, and I can now not only see that but also be proud of it, as the love of this sound has become the foundation of many relationships that I hold dear to my heart. I’m very grateful to have such a loving and supportive family, who all love Jungle. Big up to Uncle Bing.
It was a profound experience the first time I saw a female on stage at a drum and bass gig. It made me rethink everything and realize this isn’t only for dudes—there’s space for anyone. Shout out to Aotearoa’s finest, Tali (@mctaliofficial); she’s done the mahi and so much for women in Aotearoa New Zealand. I’m so grateful for people like her who have come before us and continue to support the scene, the ones like Dylan C (@dylanc_c) and Paige Julia. I have a lot of respect for them and am lucky to be able to call them friends.
In more recent times, I would be sitting on the couch or dancing while the boys were battling on decks. This was great since I’m a skanker first. However, seeing how much fun they were having made me want to get involved, which meant learning a new thing (very scary stuff). With some encouragement, I prepared my first USB and joined in on the sessions.
I was helping run the 2023 winter season at Silent Studios, a warehouse throwing some of the best parties in Auckland, with my partner, sound boy, and best friend Liam, and our good friend Logan (@shipwreckednz). Usually, after a whole weekend being on the bar listening to the local talent, I would have a little play here and there. We did a Jungle Drum & Bass night where I played my first official gig! It was accompanied by a live aerial performance by Julia (@yuliainflow). Pretty buzzy playing out for the first time, looking up and seeing an angel spinning to your selections. Would love to do that again! I’m very grateful for having found myself amongst a beautiful, talented, and kind community.
Find Ohiesama Breaks on Instagram, Soundcloud
Mantis
Tell our All Crews readers about some of the producers whose tracks you play out consistently?
I find myself continuously searching deep for new artists and new music, I will listen to hundreds of new tunes each week to delve deeper into what and who’s out there so I find that the artists that I play out are always changing and adapting. However, if I had to narrow it down to a couple, my stand out artists that always seem to slip into my sets would be Amoss, Operate, Visages and Wingz with their deep, rolling, minimal dark style tunes. So sick!
Which DJs in your area do you love playing with at events?
There is such an amazing crew of super sick DJs around where I am from, which is Dunedin in New Zealand. Some of my closest mates who I started on this journey with are Inertia, whose production and DJing skills are just flying through the roof. Every single set I hear them play just gets better and better. I am absolutely rooting for them! It is such an epic feeling to see your mates flourish in doing what they love, and to be able to do that alongside them is even cooler.
There is also an unbelievable group of wahine DJs here who are all so unique and unreal at what they do. I love nothing more than the energy that is created when we all come together and are all sharing the love and passion for what we all do. To name just a few of these epic females would be Ruinz, Evo, Sarahtonen, Li.na, VLVT, Blinky, Jordi and Dodgi, and there are so many more!!
You can only choose one, who has been the most significant inspiration musically, and why?
It is so hard to narrow it down to just one as there are so so many! If I had to choose one, I would probably have to go with Alix Perez. I have always been so drawn to his underground, deep, dark Drum and Bass sound. He was one of the first artists I ever discovered when diving into the drum and bass world and I was instantly hooked. The way he also incorporates different genres into his production and sets has also been one of the biggest inspirations for me to dive deeper, explore different genres outside of Jungle Drum & Bass and feel confident to start incorporating diversity into my own sets too. His style, presence, music, everything about him is just so gangsta, and he’s a lovely, humble dude in the times I’ve been lucky enough to chat with him.
Find Mantis on Instagram, Soundcloud
Worldwide Epidemic
How has your production evolved throughout the years?
I’ve obviously evolved, although in my own perspective it feels like I haven’t that much. I’m quite critical of myself in that regard. I’ve had the same setup for a number of years which has helped me really understand the tools I have to create music in a slightly more complex way.
What advice would you offer young producers starting out?
I’d probably say the best thing you can do is select a small amount of Synths, Effects and a Sampler and persevere learning the ins and outs of those, don’t go chasing the next shiny toy on the market, that can really stifle creativity. I still work on Cubase 5 which is a 2009 DAW to give some perspective.
Do you have a favourite moniker you produce under, Worldwide Epidemic, Liquid Silk, Dandalf, Silkenator and why?
My most successful moniker has been Worldwide Epidemic, so I’m naturally attracted to say that would be my favourite. I decided to have different aliases due to the Worldwide Epidemic name only really suiting a darker style of music and I wanted to be able to showcase lots of different styles within the old skool umbrella.
Find Worldwide Epidemic on Soundcloud, Youtube, Discogs
Fluid Haunts
Screenshot
You’re a great producer, tell our All Crews readers which one of your tracks is the best you’ve produced.
Thank you for the kind words. Personally, I love the forthcoming collab tracks between myself and Submerse which will be out later this year. We started with one collab track and our workflow seemed to gel really well, so we ended up with 3 tracks done which have been snapped up by a great label which we are really excited about (details to follow soon). I have been a fan of Submerse for many years so it was an honor to work with him. TOASTY is a heavy duty one which I am very proud of and I’m sure the fans will love too.
A lot of DJs and producers have a backstory for a moniker that they go by, tell us how your moniker, Fluid Haunts came to be.
Dark one this! Fluid Haunts is basically a play on words for Alcohol Demons. I had a pretty dark period where I was hitting the drink and other substances hard and I managed to get myself out of it and it’s a gentle reminder to knock it on the head when it gets too much. I started Fluid Haunts when I sorted myself out and it’s going pretty well if I do say so myself haha! I previously released under Gammy for many years making basslines and breaks, but always been a Junglist at heart.
What are some other things that are important in your life, outside of music?
My beautiful girlfriend Emer, my three-legged cat Mushroom, travelling and a good cold beer in the sun. I am actually about to set off home for a month to Ireland to see family and friends so I’m pretty excited about that.
Find Fluid Haunts on Instagram, Soundcloud
Third Eye Hi-fi
Please tell our All Crews readers about the events Third Eye Hi-fi promotes.
Third Eye Hi-Fi is a Wellington-based soundsystem crew and crash-landed alien machine intelligence entity, we mostly put on events in the capital, but have also provided sound and DJ takeovers for The Dojo at Twisted frequency festival for three years as well as other setups at Kiwiburn (NZ burning man) We probably average 8-10 events in Wellington per year between our own and collabs with other crews. Our members come from a variety of countries and musical backgrounds and we all have equal say in proposing nights to organise but I’d say the main cultures we promote are traditional Dub & steppas reggae, a strong affinity for weighty deep Dubstep & 140s through to plenty of choppy Jungle & Breaks, technical DnB & Neurofunk with a bit of Hardtek, Breakcore and other more Ravey sounds every now and then 😉
Tell us about the Third Eye Hifi Radio Show.
We have a 2 hour slot every 5 weeks as part of the HomeBass show on Wellington independent radio station RadioActive 88.6FM and we’ve been doing that for two years now. We have used this space between our DJ roster to explore a wider variety of sounds outside the dancefloor while hosting other local producers, promoters and Djs, strengthening links in the local community and racking up an impressive backlog of shows which are all available to listen to in full on our Soundcloud.
What do you think is the best event that Third Eye Hifi has thrown, give us the details.
That’s a hard one, for the crew having people who are our musical idols smash out a set through a system we built by hand is always an incredible feeling, especially when they come all the way out to Aotearoa, New Zealand. I know for the Dubstep heads having Goth-Trad was definitely pretty special, for the Junglists we were blessed with hosting both CoCo Bryce and Sully within 6 months of each other but I think the one that really stands out so far was putting on The Mad Professor in April 2023. It was possibly our second or third time hosting an international touring artist and it really pulled an amazing crowd, we had the full system out in a venue called the Hotel Bristol just off Cuba street in central Wellington and I’m sure I don’t need to explain to any of your readers why heavyweight Dub needs a weighty powerful system to be fully appreciated. Long time dub heads, newcomers to the scene and the professor himself had nothing but positive things to say about the fruits of our efforts, and to top it off we had sneakily been told it was Mad Professors birthday and we presented him with a surprise cake after his set.
Find Third Eye Hfi on Instagram, Soundcloud
