"If Krust walks into the studio and his head is nodding," Roni Size once said of his collaborator DJ Krust, "that's enough. I know I've got a result there." Clearly, Size and his Bristol-based collective, Reprazent, let intuition guide their musical...
[more]"If Krust walks into the studio and his head is nodding," Roni Size once said of his collaborator DJ Krust, "that's enough. I know I've got a result there." Clearly, Size and his Bristol-based collective, Reprazent, let intuition guide their musical aesthetic. In true Bristol fashion, their sound is all about creating connections: hip-hop, funk, and soul come together to create the group's pioneering drum 'n' bass style.
As a young headphone-wearing wanna-be, Size started hanging out with those wacky kids from the Wild Bunch. In 1991, the same year Massive Attack's seminal album "Blue Lines" hit the racks, Size helped establish Where's the Party, a small label that received little attention. One track, "Muse Box," garnered nary a word in 1991, but when the single was re-released in 1994 it nearly made members of the jungle community pass out. One critic called the track "a stunning example of breakbeat science's rehabilitation of hip-hop."
By the time "Muse Box" was engaging jungle fans around the world, Where's the Party had blossomed into Full Cycle and a subsidiary label called Dope Dragon. In 1995, Size and DJ Die released "11:55," which sampled Lightning Rod's 1973 "Hustler's Convention" and made the most of heavy-handed percussion and aggressive breaks. Size and longtime collaborator DJ Krust used the Dope Dragon label to premiere some of their darker sounds. Under pseudonyms, the two released the club staples "Oh My Gosh!" (1994) and "Tear it Up" (1996).
And then came Reprazent, a collective consisting of Size, Die, Krust, DJ Suv, MC Dynamite, and vocalist Onallee. Reprazent achieved sudden fame when Size won the coveted Mercury Prize, beating out Radiohead and other British heavyweights. According to drum 'n' bass aficionados, the group's 1997 LP, "New Forms," was impeccable. A perfect blend of the smooth, soulful sounds of the '70s and American East Coast hip-hop samples, the album was old and new simultaneously. "New Forms" set a new jazzy standard for drum 'n' bass by bringing live instruments back into the electronic fold.
Size added some groovy emotion to the dark, chaotic world of jungle. However, he wanted this new humanized version of drum 'n' bass to maintain the genre's aggressive roots. Breakbeat Era, a new project with Roni Size, DJ Die, and semi-punk vocalist Leonie Laws, came together to produce "Ultra Obscene" (1999). The album is a tightly woven tapestry of fast breaks, hypnotic bass lines, and alternately harsh and haunting vocals. After years of countless collaborations, Size has found his way home with Breakbeat Era. Laws' punishing vocals, Die's turntable tricks, and Size's honed production skills work together to stage the ultimate drum 'n' bass revolution.
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