BLM
Saturday, June 13th, 2009
HOUSE has always found a welcoming home in London. The wealth of clubs, venues and party promoters playing host each week to the world’s foremost DJs and artists is testament to that. Fabric, Secretsundaze et al have become bywords for underground, cutting-edge quality. Yet with Berlin and Detroit talent often dominating the column-inches, homegrown labels and producers are sometimes denied the attention they deserve.
And it’s not because they don’t deliver. Far from it. British talent generally, not just from the smoke, cuts it with the best of them when it comes to quality house and techno. A case in point is gifted young producer BLM and his first-rate Fear of Flying label, which he co-owns with long-time pal Jay Massive.
BLM (aka Ben Micklewright) came up through the ranks from bedroom DJ at 15 listening to 2-step and garage [he admits to still dropping the occasional 4/4 garage bomb in his sets even now with Todd Edwards and the Kerri Chandler-produced Kamar particular stalwarts], through to a formative stint at the Midlands’ respected Massive Records, where he met Jay and his love of house took root. A sound engineering degree and a move to Nottingham, where he spun at the city’s then-key clubs, widened his musical education.
Still only 23 and now based in London (he’s originally from Oxford), although BLM’s been making music since 2004 it was the launch of the label and at the same time his own production career proper three years ago that sent out a statement of intent. Tracks such as the techy Believe In Love, the sublime Gyms Are For Pussies and the Balearic-tinged deep house of Oi Pedro, Do You Do Chips have marked him down as a name to watch out for and helped confirm Fear of Flying’s status as a label on the up.
BLM’s idiosyncratic take on deep, minimal house [whether it be the garage influence clearly evident in his work or the irreverent track titles] is a breath of fresh air from the earnest posturing of many a serious producer. And the label’s other artists [Leif to Pawas to Cally] also tread their own individual paths yet nonetheless manage to compliment both BLM and Fear of Flying’s approach. Together they form a well-matched collective, but lazy dance music by numbers it definitely isn’t.
Now with a clutch of outstanding releases to his name, nearly all though not exclusively on Fear of Flying, bringdownthewalls puts BLM on the spot and finds out about plans for the label, the inspiration for his tongue-in-cheek track titles and why Larry Heard is such a genius.
Was a career in music always the aim?
Ever since I can remember, making music and DJing has been something I have wanted to do as a career. I remember my school-teacher telling me I’m wasting my time, but I completely ignored what I was being told in school and spent most of my time listening to music in class. I used to hide my earphones amongst my long hair, so they couldn’t see what I was doing. I’m getting further into my career now, but no way near the stage where I can live off of it. London’s a hard place to live as it is, and money is tight when it comes to music so I think it’s always going to be a struggle. I’m really interested in sound for moving image, so I think I might start looking into that once I finish my degree.
So what kind of music and artists did you grow up listening?
I used to listen to loads of 2-step garage when I was younger. I wasn’t aware of artists, but I used to listen to DJs like EZ, Dreem Team, Karl Brown etc. This then led me to get my own turntables, which is where the passion of music stemmed from. Once I got them turntables I was hooked. I guess my love of music just got deeper and deeper from there onwards. Regarding the music I liked then and the music I like now, they all have one thing in common and that’s the deepness. The music I love the most is really deep, with lots of warm tones. I have always loved music with lots of deep tones, like the Rhodes keyboard, so whether it’s house or garage they both share the same qualities I look for in music.
At what point then and why did you decide to start making your own music?
I started making music around 2004. Not quite sure why I started, I guess I just felt the need. It was when I was working at Massive Records, so I guess hearing music all day just made me want to try it myself. I always thought I started making music way before 2004, but I just checked out my first ever track and it says 2004, so that’s quite nice as I thought I had been doing it a lot longer.
Some of your track titles are quite irreverent: Gyms Are For Pussies, Oi Pedro, Do You Do Chips & In The Cuntry. Was it a deliberate move not to come across as too serious?
It definitely wasn’t a deliberate move; in fact I think I’m one of the most serious people around when it comes to music. I like my music and myself in general to be taken seriously. All my track names have come from something that’s come up in my life at some point. For example, my girlfriend heard someone say to a Spanish man working in a kebab shop in Ibiza “oi Pedro, do you do chips?”. One of my mates is massively into the gym and I used to take the piss out of him saying, “gyms are for pussies”. In The Cuntry has to do with me being from the countryside.
You run the label with long-time friend Jay Massive. Why the name Fear of Flying?
Because Jay gets sweaty palms when he has to fly. He’s alright when the seatbelt sign turns off, but when he’s taking off and landing he gets well sweaty hands.
How did the label come about?
Jay always wanted to start a record label, but couldn’t because of the lack of music. I came along with my music and it grew from there. The only plan we have is to release good quality house and techno music, with a deeper edge. We pretty much have the same tastes in music, so that helps a lot. If I get a demo, and I’m feeling it, I pretty much know that Jay will love it too.
What do you and Jay individually bring to the label?
I would say Jay deals with more of the business side of things. He’s got to be the most efficient person I have ever met. I’m completely the opposite so without him the label would be releasing once a year.
Regarding what I do for the label, for starters I bring my music. If we were ever short of music, we know we always have me to fall back on. I do a lot of liaising with the artists and finding new artists. I spend hours trawling through MySpace and various message-boards trying to find new artists. I love listening to music, so I think I would do this even if I didn’t run a label.
Have you had much success through MySpace?
I have had loads of luck, yeah. All of our artists on Fear of Flying were contacted via MySpace, or they contacted us through it. It really is such a great tool; you can do whatever you like on there. I have all my music, my DJ gigs, videos etc… all up on there for free, so it’s great for promotion. Plus pretty much every single artist new or old has a MySpace, so it’s really easy to contact people. It also tells you when people have read the messages you sent them, so you know who’s ignoring you!
Tell me then a bit about the artists you do have on the label.
The main core of artists is myself, Leif and Pawas. Leif was someone I always had my eye on from when I was working at the shop, so we got into contact with him straight away and Pawas actually sent us a demo after our second release. They are great artists, who deserve a lot more respect. At some point I think Pawas will do very well out of music. He’s one of those people that are naturally gifted when it comes to making music. I think he was only making music for like a year before he started to release.
We have some new artists too just added to the roster. First one is Cally, who just released two vinyl EPs, both of which went down a storm. We also have Jay Bliss and his crew doing an EP for us, as well as a Chris Lattner EP coming soon. London lad Jozif has just done a track for us as well, which I’m really excited about as it’s a great track and totally different from anything we have put out before.
We are really busy at the moment with releases. We have enough releases to last until next year now. The releases schedule includes BLM, Leif, Two Armadillos, Pagal, Mihai Popoviciu, Jay Bliss, Chris Lattner, Martinez and Cally. No long-term plan, other then to keep doing our thing.
What have you got lined-up as BLM?
I have got a remix of a Leif track and a single track coming out on Fear of Flying. Also myself and Jay are starting up a new label so I’m going to have a release on that with Pawas. We also have another limited vinyl-only label called ‘FOF?’, so I’m going to do something for that too.
In an ideal world, which artist would you love to work with?
Larry Heard, because he is a genius. Some people have a real talent for music, and he is one of them. There is so much good music out there, but when you listen to his music it sparks such emotion, which is something a lot of music is lacking in.
Do you have a favourite track by him?
Yeah, Free is my favourite Larry Heard track.
I’ve heard you championing talented young Londoner Wbeeza. Tell me about your relationship.
He’s another one I met through MySpace. We exchanged messages and then met up at his studio. Some people you just click with and I think he is one of these people. I have a lot of friends into dance music, but it’s finally nice to find someone who has the same appreciation of house music as I do. It’s cheesy as fuck, but this music flows through my veins. If I didn’t have music in my life, there really wouldn’t be much point to it. A lot of people say they love music, but when you meet me you know I’m in it for the love and I can see this in Warren [Wbeeza] too. I think this is why we get on so well. All of that adds to why I like his music I guess.
Going back to the label, in general, how difficult is it launching and running your own imprint? Has it been tougher than you expected?
It’s definitely harder then we thought. If we had started the label 10 years ago we would have been laughing, but now with record sales being dreadful it’s a hard business to be in. Digital sales are cool, but it just doesn’t feel the same. There are some labels doing 3000+ units vinyl, so there is a market there it’s just about finding out how to reach that market.
What ways are you exploring to reach that market?
We have tried various things like getting outside companies to look after our PR, getting more DJs involved in the promotion and getting bigger artists involved with the label. It’s strange because none of this is working, so I guess we need to rethink our strategies. Seriously though, I don’t think we will ever be selling 3000 units but we can aim to, you know?
Is there any advice then you would offer to anyone planning on starting his or her own label?
New labels shouldn’t expect too much. I think people still don’t understand that vinyl sales are low, and this affects all labels. I heard there was a 40% decrease last year, which is massive. I think it’s important for labels to have an identity too. You get so many labels that contact every single artist from another label and I have never really understood that. I want our releases to be individual, and to have artists that everyone else has just seems pointless to me. I think in general we’re quite lucky because we haven’t followed any trends, so not a lot of people contact out artists.
What impact, if any, has the economic crisis had on the record/music business in general and your label in particular?
Nothing has changed to be honest. As a whole our record sales have been constant. Digital sales are on the up as well, so in all honesty the recession isn’t affecting us all that much. I have noticed that record prices have increased by £1 due to the pound being weak against the Euro, but I still feel people will pay for quality.
You live in London now and love the nightlife. Anywhere particular?
Well to be honest I always end up down Fabric. I have been visiting that club since I was 18 now, and I’m still not bored of it. The line-ups they have each week are more then enough to satisfy my musical needs. I played at a great party called You Are We recently. It’s a cool party. There is a really friendly vibe in there and the people seem to love house music so I’ll definitely be going there again.
Your dad was a keen clubber too. Have you ever been out with him?
I have been to many club nights with my dad, but I don’t think he could take it anymore. He’s 50 now, so I think he has given it all up. The music’s changed as well, and when things went all minimal I think he just got a bit bored with it. He listens to loads of music at home though, but a bit more jazz orientated, which is where he comes from.
You recently became a father yourself. How are you managing the work/life/parenthood balance?
Well, music’s taken a back seat. I haven’t done anything since becoming a father. My days now are spent in the local park getting fresh air, walking my dog and playing with my daughter. I only live in a small flat, so I can’t really play music because my daughter is always around and I love to listen to and make music at a loud volume.
And your own dad, what does he make of your music?
He loves the housey stuff I do now. When I was starting out I was making minimal stuff, which he wasn’t into at all. It’s hard when you first start out because all my ideas came from other people’s music. I would sit down, listen to a track and then try and copy it as a way of learning. At the time I was listening to lots of minimal, so this was what I was making.
Now if I tried to sit down and make a minimal track, it would end up deep house oriented as that’s where my heart lies.
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June 2009