#BOSH HELLO. AM ALIVE

[gumjester]

Two moments of quiet.

[alexwallacecv]

Sammy B-Side Exclusive Interview and High Focus x Deal Real In-Store Cypher

Walking into Deal Real on a Wednesday afternoon you wouldn't be far wrong if you thought it was closed, a couple of employees chatting behind the counter and a small selection of hip hop vinyl on the wall is what makes up the top floor of the legendary Carnaby record store. Walk downstairs and you'll see Sammy B-Side stretching tangled wires around decks, laptops, speakers and mixers - trying to get some sort of sound from the setup in this basement venue.

45 minutes, some casual chit chat, a new extension lead and numerous cans of Red Stripe later, we finally have lift-off. The speakers are working and a host of UK hip hop stars enter: Dirty Dike, Fliptrix, Leaf Dog and more. Passing this group on the street you wouldn’t think they were anymore than a normal group of geezers going out after a day at work, they don’t drape themselves in chains and expensive designer labels like American rappers, they encompass the charm of UK rap in their subdued and gritty style.

A wooden pallet is laid down next to the decks as a stage, Sammy puts a beat on and the room begins to fill up. Performances from Jam Baxter, Ronnie Bosh, Onoe Caponoe, Lee Scott  and the rest of the High Focus gang make the small room come alive with such a simple set up. The entire operation epitomizes UK Hip Hop for me, the room was far from a concert hall, the wiring for the decks looked like something the back of my TV and the sweaty intimacy of the 8x14 foot room all came together to create one of the most exciting live performances I've seen. The artists were fairly buzzed off Jack Daniels, Red Stripe or anything else they had in their pockets yet still gave everything as they delivered new material, old crowd favorites and shout-outs to their crew.

After the gig I contacted Sammy B-Sides the High Focus DJ on the night and asked him about UK hip hop, vinyl and his influences.

What's your name and where are you from?

Hello, hi, safe and good day. DJ Sammy B-Side, born in London, raised in Cambridge

Why did you start DJing and how did you meet the guys from High Focu?

I guess the DJ seeds were sown after being fully bitten by the Hip Hop bug at a young age. I was obsessed with the music and everything to do with it, I still am. The thought of getting turntables and embarking on the Disk Jockey aspect I think first came about after seeing an old VHS of the DMC’s and it literally blowing my tiny child mind to pieces. I was like, “WHAT THE FLYING FUCK IS THIS?? I NEED TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THIS, I NEED TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THIS RIGHT NOW”.  It was massively inspiring. I think it was that, along with really rating the vibe that cuts and scratches created on the choruses and skits of tunes I liked, were the two main things that really pushed me to get turntables and start the DJing.

High Focus wise, we were all just friends messing about with music before the label ever even existed. I went to school with Edward Scissortongue and grew up in the same city as Dike and Mr Key, I guess the universe of music and rinse then gradually pushed everyone else together somehow and it just kinda happened. Natural. Fun. Vibe.

HF is like a big family of jokes and good noise. A family where all the members and relations smack it stupidity hard. Even the weird sunken-eyed uncle who is always too mashed to eat his Christmas dinner (Baxter) and the oddly tall sister who is constantly changing her hair and debating new moisturisers (Scissor).

What got you into vinyl mixing?

When I stated DJing there was no Serato or controllers, so mixing with vinyl was really the only way. I mean, CDJs were kinda about, but I never considered them as an option. Everyone who I looked up to used turntables and vinyl. Plus, having learnt the role vinyl played in Hip Hop history and fallen in love with the potential creative possibilities of turntables, it was obvious to me. I do use Serato now, but I am glad it was not about when I was first getting into the whole thing. There is something unique and special about the vinyl experience that you simply cannot beat.

What's your favourite Vinyl you own to play out and what's the one you most personally value?

Fuck man, that’s a tough one. I got a bunch that hold a great deal of personal value, but I guess the first one that springs to mind right now is my copy of “100 MPH Backsliding Turkey Kutz” which the ultra-legendary DJ QBert was kind enough to sign for me when I warmed up for him one time. I like that one.

For playing out I'm going to go with Million Dan - “Dogz N Sledgez”. Fully credible UK power murker. I must have dropped that tune about 23 thousand times over the years.

What kind of music did you listen to growing up and what are you listening to now?

When I was growing up I listened to everything from The Deftones to DJ Hype, but once I found Hip Hop, I knew I had stumbled across something I wasn’t going to let go of.

A lot of people in the scene tell me they don’t really listen to much UK Hip Hop now that they do it full time themselves, but I still listen to a shit tonne. I do think it’s important not to be tunnel visioned about these things though. I mean fuck, music is a massive multi-faceted universe, and I enjoy travelling to as many of its far flung regions as my mood chooses to take me too. Currently I seem to be going through a garage phase, but I will give anything a go.

What's the biggest misconception about UK Hip Hop and what's actually true?

I guess a misconception that some people might have, or maybe used to have a lot more, is that it’s really just a London centric thing. I hear fully heavy UK Hip Hop from all corners, all the time, the levels are there. I mean, I think they always have been, but it’s now slowly becoming more apparent to more people. UK Stand up. Bang bang.

What can we expect to see in the future from you and the label?

From High Focus you can expect to see a lot more of the unadulterated heavy music mega smack that has always been brought to the table by the team. I have heard a bunch of the new projects coming and trust, they are nothing short of molten fire crack.

You can catch my cuts on the new Dirty Dike album and the new Ocean Wisdom album, as well as the new Skuff album, the new Moreone album n the new Black Josh n Pete Cannon EP, which are all about to drop on various labels. I also got a website that is nearly ready, maybe it will be ready by the time this interview goes out. Why not click the link right now and find out, (http://www.djsammybside.com/) probably a good shout to make it your homepage and forward it to your mum and all her friends while you're at it too.  

And finally, any other comments?

Maximum and unmitigated shouts to my HF/CP/SMB teams, and big up each and every person doing their damn thing out thurrrr. Salute.

DJ Sammy B-Side Social Media links: https://www.facebook.com/DJSammyBSide https://twitter.com/DJSammyBSide http://djsammybside.bandcamp.com/ https://instagram.com/djsammybside/ https://soundcloud.com/djsammybside