After instantly being picked up by house legend Roger Sanchez, Ben Prock and James Fitch have, undoubtedly, been catapulted into the ever-growing house music scene limelight. With a collection of big releases on acclaimed labels such as Stealth and Ministry and working with the likes of Kraak & Smaak, Freemasons and Filthy Rich, it’s evident how this duo from Brighton have been making a name for themselves. Towards the end of their busiest year to date, playing a host of events and festivals all around the world, Prok & Fitch have worked their magic with Toolroom Records yet again, returning to the label to release their anticipated ‘Toolroom Knights mixed by Prok & Fitch’ album. Containing 30 tracks, including 5 exclusives from the duo themselves, from artists such as Ruben Mandolini and My Digital Enemy this album ranges from a variety of genres and is a showcase of the producers’ true mixing talent. Not forgetting a full length DJ mix and classics from the renowned label as well.
Here’s what they had to say:
Soundplate: How did you get into dance music?
P&F: We both got hooked into the music Industry in our mid teens and through the same way going out getting stuck in & partying, in the 90’s House Music was booming in the UK we were lucky enough to be a part of it. Introduced and inspired by the likes of Carl Cox & Jeremy Healy.
Who would you say your biggest influence(s) is/are?
Daft Punk without a doubt paved the way for electronic music as we know it, amazing producers & a huge inspiration to both of us.
James – DJ wise, Carl Cox got me into clubbing back in the 90’s, an absolute legend that always sticks to his guns musically, and consistently smashes it.
How did you two meet?
We met in a record shop in our home town Brighton in 2006.
Ben – I used to work in BPM, Brighton, James used to be in there a lot buying tracks. I knew he was producing music as his track ‘Pass the Funk’ was doing the business in the shop. I’d always wanted to get into production, so had a chat with him to see if he fancied redoing ‘Outro Lugar’ – he was also a big fan of the track, so the next step was the studio.
What’s your proudest achievement to date?
Would have to be signing our debut track (Outro Lugar) to Stealth Records, remember the day very clearly and still smile to this day when thinking about it. Ben was Dj’ing after Roger Sanchez at the Honeyclub, he handed him a demo version of the track with his phone no. scribbled on. The day after Roger called saying he loved the track & the rest is history.
Describe your new album; Toolroom Knights mixed by Prok & Fitch
We’re very excited about this one, it was really important to us that the album flowed and was a true reflection of our sound. Our aim was to get as many quality exclusive tracks as possible, whilst trying to avoid recycling old material. It was a great excuse to lock ourselves in the studio and get loads of new tracks finished. There’s five exclusives from us including collaborations with My Digital Enemy, Filthy Rich & Simon Doty, a Stella remix from Marco Lys of one of our first Toolroom releases “Freak Show”. Dope Drop, is a brand new one of us, seems to be quite a bit of hype around this one, getting some wicked reactions on the dance floor too. And also plenty of exclusive tracks from the likes of Mario Ochoa, Ruben Mandolini, Vlada Assasin, Koen Groenvel, Ed Brumwell and Heath Holme.
Are there any artists on the album that you are excited for in the future?
Simon Doty, his profiles been steadily rising over the past year, releasing on key labels like 1605 and Deeperfect a very talented producer/DJ and would definitely be our pick for the future…
Would you say this compilation album reflects your own original sound?
Yeah, the albums’ definitely a true reflection of our sound, from the slightly deeper groovy tracks like Alvaro Smart – Rolling Hearts through to the more pumping stuff we play like the Tom Staar remix of Paper Aeroplane. This coupled with the diversity of our productions on the compilation, we were very happy with the final result.
How did the album come about?
It’s been a long-term target for both of us ever since our very first release on Toolroom. Over the past two years, we’ve been working much closer with the guys, releasing more records & playing at their Club Nights, and Festivals around the world from Goa to Miami. So the next step had to be the album.
Do you have any plans of releasing an album of your own material?
Not at the moment, but certainly something we’d love to-do in the future.
Do you have any collaborations lined up for the future?
Generally always have a couple of collaborations on the go, currently we’re working on something pretty special with Mark Knight, and also expect a hot new collab with NO ID, its not quite finished we’ve already been working on it for well over a year, hopefully you’ll think it will be well worth the wait.
Thanks for speaking to Soundplate!
Words By: Rosie Allen