Frantic Brings You More preview with Skwosh! promoter Rob Kane
Reported by benz
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Submitted 07-02-05 11:15
Not so long ago, bouncy hard house was almost completely absent from the London hard dance scene. The music was labelled as 'immautre', 'brainless', and stuck in the past. Fair enough, you have to move on sometimes for music to stay fresh. But deep down inside a vast number of us remained that latent love of the bounce. I for one didn't really think about it too much in its absence, apart from the the few bouncy tracks that I would occasionally play out. People like Ingo and Lisa Pin-Up who were once so popular for their bouncy sound saw their popularity decline. 2004 however saw the sound beginning to re-emerge in London. One factor would be Andy Whitby's rapid ascent onto the scene, pushing the bouncy sound in every set he played. Another factor would have to be the conception of a small party from the Afterlife crew that started in April 2004, namely Skwosh!.
Rob Kane is the promoter of the aformentioned night. It takes place at 3rd Base, part of Brixton's legendary Mass (a converted church no less). Alongside the more upfront sounds of hard house, they have always championed the sound of bounce at their parties, and although many doubted that such a party would succeed, they were proven wrong. An enthusiastic and supportive fanbase combined with carefully selected DJ line-ups have combined to create one of the most exciting new parties in London, and it looks like things are steadily getting bigger and better for the Skwosh! crew.
Rob hasn't been mixing very long at all but has already earned himself plaudits from across the hard dance board, with sets at Party Proactive, HDL and Wired to name but a few. He will be playing back to back with rising star Paul Divine at Frantic Brings You More on February 12th, in the Pure Bounce room of course! I caught up with Senor Kane to find out some more about him and his hotly-tipped party.
Hi Rob! Whereabouts are you from and where and when did you first get into dance music?
Hi Benz. Well, I’m originally from North Yorkshire and still have family there, but I moved to West London at an early age, since then I’ve moved around quite a bit, but I’ve always stayed close to London and its clubs, I couldn’t really imagine living anywhere else! When I was 6 or 7, my parents bought me my first Hi-Fi and I discovered the joys of Pirate Radio. From that moment I was hooked on dance music and although I’ve been into other styles like most teenagers did, I’ve always had underground dance music as my main love. From House to Hardcore to D&B to Happy Hardcore, Garage, Trance and all the bits in between. From about 1998 though Hard House has been my passion and it still remains that way.
How did you progress into the harder stuff? On the whole do you think that people start off at the softer end of dance music and progress from there, or are there others that start hard and get softer?!
I think it’s a real individual thing. I love the Hard Stuff and I love the more mellow melodic side aswell. For me personally, as a clubber I got into Trance first at Peach and the Hard House came from wandering into Lisa Pin-Up’s room at Freedom. I suppose it depends where you come into the scene for what you get into first, and then as you find your way around you tend to settle with a more personal taste. I think it also depends on what you want at the time from your music. If you want to leap around like a nutter all night, then the likes of Hard House & Hardcore are where you’ll fit in and if you want to sit back, appreciate the music & socialise then Trance and House are the obvious choice.
What was the first hard dance club that really captured your imagination?
Well, Peach was the first proper club I went to and from the moment I walked in, I knew I wanted to be a promoter. I used to go there every week and loved it! But I think the first really inspiring club was Freedom @ Bagleys. The atmosphere was just electrifying and even though you spent the night being dripped on and covered in sweat, or making a run for it through the dodgy garage room, it still has never been beaten for me as a party. I went there religiously for a long time and was really gutted when it closed. As time went on though that missing place was filled by XLR8, which was my first taste of London promoting. Many of the people I met there, I’m still friends with now and are involved in the parties I run.
Tell us about Skwosh, the party you promote. What is was the ethos behind the party? It’s almost a year old I take it?
That’s right, it’ll be a year old in April. Doesn’t time fly when you’re having fun!
Skwosh started as a way of trying to put some of the fun back into London clubbing. I’d slowly watched some of the sillyness that I loved about Hard House events drip away as the music got more intelligent and DJ-orientated. We’ve always had bouncy music along side the filthy stuff at Afterlife, but I wanted to get something that was similar to the kind of vibe of parties like XLR8 & SunnySide up, but with my own preference of music. People thought I was mad when I said I wanted to do a bouncy night, but there is a method to the madness!
It’s always been about the party itself rather than booking big name DJs. We want people to come and know what they’re going to be getting. We have a very strict music policy and I’m very tight with the sets because it doesn’t matter how well-known the DJs are, if they don’t understand what we’re trying to do, they won’t fit in. This means it’s taken a while for people to come and try us out, but people are now starting to catch on and the future is looking good. The residents we have at Skwosh are simply the best at what they do. I’ve know them for years and they understand what I’m trying to achieve as they were at the same parties that inspired Skwosh.
What have you got planned for Skwosh this year?
Ah, well that would be telling! Let’s just say that having got the music exactly how we want it, we’ll be concentrating on making the whole experience the best there is. You’ll just have to come along and find out. We won’t be publicizing all the additions to the party as it’s the little things that make all the difference between a good night out and a great party. When these things are unexpected, it makes it even better!
What was your most memorable event so far?
I think the launch party was probably my favorite because it proved that there was a place in clubland for the sort of party we wanted. Watching the place go off with an energy that I hadn’t seen in London for a long time was truly amazing!
You are playing in the Pure Bounce room at Frantic Brings You More at The SeOne on February 12th. How excited are you about this event? Have you played a main room set here before?
I’m extremely excited! This will be my biggest crowd so far. I’ve only been mixing for just over a year and playing out for 8 months, so this is a real milestone in my DJing career. It’s going to be a real honour playing alongside the likes of Lisa Pin-Up. I had my first ever Hard House stomp to one of her set’s back in ’98 so to playing in the same room is amazing for me. The whole line up in the bounce room is superb and I can’t wait to get both sides of the decks! It’s also going to be interesting to see how me and Paul Divine work as a team. We’ve know each other for a while but haven’t played back to back yet. We have slightly different styles and I think it’ll work well.
The bounce revival - do you think it’s fair to say that Skwosh played some part in helping bringing it back to the London scene?
I think so. Before we started Skwosh, the only other places you could hear any bounce was Afterlife & Ricochet. As I said, many people though I was mad to try a full night of it, but it seems to have worked. Lots of people thought the same when we started playing Hardcore at Afterlife a couple of years ago & now Hardcore line ups are a regular feature at Hard Dance events. There’s more and more bouncy parties starting and I think it’s great! Providing that the London scene doesn’t become saturated then I reckon we’re set to get back to a similar vibe that made Hard House so amazing in the first place. I think it’s important to remember that there’s a place for all the different styles of Hard Dance, be it hard as nails, Trancey or Bouncy. No one wants to hear the same tunes all the time.
Who else do you plan on checking out at The SeOne?
In all honesty, this has to be one of the best overall line ups at an event I’ve seen in a VERY long time. I really don’t know where I’m going to be. Obviously I’ll be spending a big chunk in the bouncy room, but I reckon it’s going to be tough to decide about the other rooms. I think you’ll probably find me running backward & forwards all night!
Where do you get your tunes from? Are you part of the download generation yet?
I buy my tunes from different places, mainly online because I don’t really have much time to go record shopping. I live outside London and it would mean giving up at least a day each time. I am a vinyl fan though. I think that the MP3 revolution is kind of inevitable, but for me you just can’t beat a nice slab of vinyl!
What’s the most bizarre tune in your collection? Could you ever get away with playing it?
Haha! That would be ‘Stand & Deliver’ on Storm Trax. One of those tunes that’s just the wrong side of comedy to play out. I might one day though for a laugh!
Do you spend a lot of time in non hard dance clubs? What are your favourite places to ‘hang out’ in London?
I wish I had the time to hang out. When I do get a chance to relax, I’ll go and chill with my friends, or have a quiet night in with my girlfriend. I’m not really into pubs & bars anymore. I’m looking forward to the sun coming out and getting some ‘park hours’ in though. One of the things I want to do this year aswell is get out to more non-Hard Dance clubs because I like lot’s of different styles of dance music, I just don’t get the chance to party to it.
Are there any styles of dance music that you wish got more coverage in London?
Not really, most scenes that are out there are doing fine, you just need to know where to look. I think it’s important for a dance music scene to grow naturally and not be jumped on too much by people looking for the next big thing. I think that’s what caused Hard House to go a bit stale. Now it’s not so ‘cool’ again it’s getting better and better. The people who really love it are still here and those who were just along for the ride have moved on.
And finally, can you remember the worst mix you ever did in a club?
Why, are you going to tell me? Hehe! I’ve been quite lucky really, I haven’t clanged too many whilst playing out, except when records jump about. Actually, the first time I played at 414 was really hard work and a few mixes got a bit slippy, but apart from that, (to my knowledge) there hasn’t been anything major.
Thanks very much Benz and see you on the 12th!
Frantic Brings You MORE
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On:
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Saturday 12th February 2005
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At:
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S.E.One [map]
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From:
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20:00 - 06:00
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Cost:
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£14 + B.F. Limited Early Bird Tickest
£16 + B.F. Saver Tickets
£19 + B.F. Standard Tickets
More On The Door
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Website:
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www.franticuk.com
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Ticket Info:
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Ticketweb 08700 600 100 / www.ticketweb.co.uk
Frantic HQ 07949 618 035 / amanda@franticuk.com
Never Enough 07813 684 399 / neverenoughmaria@hotmail.com
E-List www.e-listlondon.com
Club Tickets 0870 246 1840 / www.clubtickets.co.uk
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Buy Online:
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Click here to buy tickets
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More:
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Frantic proudly present their first event of 2005 with an emphasis on excess! That means More Filth, More Bounce, More Hardcore, More House & Breaks, More Lasers, More Free CDs, More Friends, More Funktion One, More Live PAs, More Decor, and More Fun than ever before!
We've got 5 rooms of exhilarating dance music for the clubbing connoisseur, and some very special appearances in store. The might of the Frantic Main Room brings you an exclusive Paul Maddox live PA - never before seen in London, and only performed once before - as well as 2 more breathtaking live performances from The Nu Energy Collective and the god of Hard House, Captain Tinrib. And at long last, The Funktion One soundsystem will be present in the main arena!
Room 2 sees the launch of our brand new promotion, Pure Bounce – dedicated 100% to the unbeatable sounds of bouncy Hard House! We’ve got some absolute legends of bounce for you, including Lisa Pin-Up, The Tidy Boys, Lee Haslam, and one of the most important people in the history of bounce – Ingo! The bounce is most definitely back.
Room 3 sees the return of hardcore to Frantic, with the most respected crew in the whole scene hosting this arena – Freeformation. The guys behind the mighty Nu Energy Collective don’t often put on parties, but when they do, they are nothing short of spectacular. A second 100% hardcore N.E.C. Live PA heads the incredibly strong line-up, with the country’s two most popular hardcore DJs Scott Brown and Sy alongside some of the most innovative and fresh sounding hardcore DJs on the planet.
For those of you with a passion for the slower, funkier sounds of dance music, Room 4 is House & Breaks forever. It does exactly what it says on the tin! House sets from Phil Reynolds and Eduardo Herrera as well as tasty breakbeats from the likes of the in-demand Steelo.
Oh and if you thought that this event wasn’t hard enough already, Room 5 will host our tough little sister night, Convergence! Illogik, Karim, Lucy Fur, Type 1, *Ting*…just some of the immensely popular hard DJs we’ve got lined-up for you in this no-holds-barred arena.
This event will be our showcase for 2005 – lashings of hard music, the best new talent alongside established scene leaders, groundbreaking live PAs, and the high production standards that you have come to expect from Frantic events. This is our last SeOne event for 6 months! If you want MORE than the average club night out, you know what to do…
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