This weeks interview and mix comes from Riddim Commission (Marco Del Horno and DJ Swerve).
Introduce yourself and tell us about the part of the UK you’re from?
Riddim Commission is made up of Marco Del Horno and DJ Swerve. We’re both based and grew up in London.
Can you tell us a bit about what you’ve been working on recently?
Last year was a very productive year in the studio. We’ve been grafting hard on both our own stuff and a lot of collaborations as well. Collaborating with people is fun because you learn so much from each other. Recently we’ve been working with everyone from Roger Sanchez, the Crookers, through to newer guys like Petey Clicks out of LA and Tough Love from here in the UK. Vocalist wise we always try to bring a grime influence into our dance music.
At the start of 2016 we released a record with the legendary $tush and we’re back in the studio with D Double E… another original grime OG!
And can you talk us through the mix?
This represents what we would play in a club, for us it’s a very bass-heavy take on house music influenced by garage and grime. The majority of producers we play are from the UK, or people who have a very UK influenced sound (like AC Slater, Petey Clicks and Destructo). We always want to represent and pioneer UK dance music in whatever form that is, it’s important we put our own stamp on it.
Nice, talk us through the British music featured in this mix? Which British artists are you most excited about?
We’ll give you a ton of names; Taiki Nulight, Shift K3Y, Sinden, Chris Lorenzo and Low Steppa. It’s all house music but with very garage and bass influences and we’re all pretty tight as friends as well. Then we play a couple more tracks which you might call ‘straight up’ house records from Hot Since 82 and Bicep. Those guys would never consider themselves in the ‘bass’ scene but their tracks really work in our sets.
Cool, tell us about some of your British musical Heroes and influences in general?
M – For me it was DJ EZ. I grew up through the UK garage scene and he was by far the best performer as a DJ – this was back when DJs were the big draw and not producer DJs. EZ’s style was so innovative, complex and quick, he was always the best thing for me on any line up. Me and my friends would catch him at a show or listen to his KISS radio show and then try to replicate it on our little set-ups we had back home.
S – Westwood for me. Like how Marco grew up in the garage scene, I grew up with hip-hop and RnB. With it being such a US dominated scene, Westwood was the original UK go-to guy for when the stars from the States came over and he would absolutely smash his live shows as well. He set the bar high for me, he was a tough DJ to play after!
Great and what’s on the cards in the immediate future?
Lots of releases lined up for 2016.
And finally, where is the best place in the world you have performed and why?
M – Machine De Moulin Rouge in Paris had such a great vibe and is a really iconic venue and there was a dope photo of me taken stage diving at the show as well. Besides that, making my debut at Fabric for Rinse back in the day was amazing as well, it’s such an iconic London night spot.
S – I DJ’d with Kool Herc in NYC. It’s the spiritual home of hip-hop and to play with a legend like that on my first time in New York was pretty special for me.