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L DOUBLE INTERVIEW
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If there was an award for any label that has been rushed off their feet this year, then it would have to go to Flex records. Numerous projects underway, many releases and a host of club nights and tours, the kru certainly have been busy little bees. After being rushed off his feet for the last few months, and fresh from an exciting trip in Brazil, L Double was ready to spill the beans on a memorable year....
Taking the familiar route of house music, through to Hip Hop, L Double exploded into the scene by setting up his own label "Flex" records. Strongly influenced by musically styles like Reggae, Hip Hop, Soul and House, L Double wanted to create music that would represent him and what he stood for, a talented music lover who wanted to share his passion for the music he adored. Not only has he done this via his label, he has become a djing legend, smashing up clubs left right and center all around the world. It was of no surprise then, to many of the bassheadz on the scene, that he was asked by Greenpeace to front and star in their Ecosystem 1.0 event in the Amazon, Brazil, to play alongside the likes of Afrika Bambaata, Soulslinger, TC Izlam, Jumping Jack Frost, Bryan Gee, Randall, Kenny Ken, AK 1200, MC Navigator, & Z-MC (Jonny Z) a line up to make the mouth water to say the least, but the question is did it blow up?
"It was special, very interesting. It was there to create an awareness of the deforestation going on, and it really was a brand new experience for me. I’ve never been involved in anything like this before, so it was definitely something new to me, and working with Greenpeace was great. The diversity there was amazing, the Brazilian producers had all sorts of angles and aspects to the event, and when people weren’t djing, they were standing listening to the Brazilians because they were so creative, and were really good with live instruments, I mean there were so many good sets being played, it is impossible to say which ones really kicked off the most, there were like 3-4 sets, that quite literally blew us away. You know, everyone was there having a good time, no-body was paid , but that didn’t matter, it was about the music and raising awareness, which I think we did."
L Double's time in Brazil, and the US has brought a massive following to his attention, but probably the best outcome of his time over there, is a deal which he managed to struck with Hip Hop's Rawkus records. The label responsible for many top names in american rap wanted L Double to provide some tunes for their new sister label 'Rawkuts'. Something which Lee was all to willing to do.
'Yeh the Rawkuts thing, it is basically purely a marriage to create a sense of knowledge between the labels. Their hip hop label Rawkus, quite obviously is massive, releasing tunes from artists like Mos Def, Pharoahe Monch, Talib Kweli and so on, and so the new drum and bass label set up by them, gives us an opportunity to put out new tracks, certainly, we are looking to put out Stranjah’s double pack and there will be various remixes of flex tracks that will go out on the label too, so lots of different stuff incorporating the US – UK sound.'
Touching down back in England with companion Aphrodite, questions were being raised as what is happening on the Urban Takeover front, a Da Product project last year saw L Double & Mickey Finn smash up the drum and bass scene, the LP sold out within days of being released, and with the duo spending a lot of time together recently, does this mean we can expect more releases from this partnership?
' ‘When the morning comes’ is a tune done by Mickey Finn and myself, and it kinda contains a lot of sampled bits taken from some older 80’s tunes. We did a lot of stuff together for the Da Product LP, and so this is sort of a follow on from that really. Mickey is a cool man, and when we work together, we work towards our strengths, and we think that it really comes out in ‘When the morning comes’, which is set to be released in September on Urban Takeover. Mickey and myself, are also off on tour in October in the US, so that is gonna be fun too.'
This leads us to the inevitable question of how Flex have become so god damn big? With their tunes being in such a high demand, how have they managed to become so successful?
'Love of the music is what keeps you going, you get drawn into the music, and you know, it keeps you on ya toes, you wanna be ahead and at the forefront of the scene, so it is always a constant battle to stay on top, and this is what drives you forward.'
One thing that has always interested many other labels, is their ability to pull out young producers from the Flex magic hat. Stranjah & Steppa have fastly become recognised players in the drum and bass scene, and Flex have a host of new talent bursting at the seams, ready to unload and unleash their material onto the dancefloors of the nation. It is obvious that Flex are looking and see a bright future for d&b, something which L Double says needs to be endorsed.
'Young artists are what it is about. I think that a lot of labels should be embracing that, cos they are gonna be there in the future. At Flex, we don’t try to find them, we just listen to all the material that is sent to us, and if the tunes grab our attention, then we give em the break into the label, you’ve just got to give everyone a chance. As the for the future of the scene, well we’ve had our ups and downs, nobody can argue with that, its time to develop the sound, moving it forward, it is either we evolve or we die! '
Tours, Gigs, up and coming stars on their way, you would think that would be enough to please the bassheadz, but there is still one thing they are missing out on. A follow up to Flex's smash hit 'Da Product LP', rumours have been turning for a while now, its time for L Double to put those rumours straight...
'Ha ha, yeh , well it’s not gonna happen this year that’s for sure! There is so much happening at the moment and so much has happened over the year, that we haven’t the time to think about that right now, we’ve been touring, doing various gigs here and there so we have been bogged down. But no doubt, there will probably be a number two in the not so near distant future.'
So what can we expect?
'Stranjah 'Natty EP' double pack, Phobia & Piper 'Still want your touch', Visionary are back with a double pack, ermmmm there’s gonna be a Basic Unit EP and some stuff on the way from Revolver, so there’s lots happening.
First hearing L Double debut on popular dance music station Galaxy 105 FM, the best part of yorkshire was able to hear Flex's top tunes, of which include killers like "The Cobra", "Pyramids" and "The Matrix", we were also able to hear many guests, of which included Mickey Finn, Sappo, A Sides and Accidental Heroes. Last year, however, a cut down on underground shows was needed, and inevitably meant the loss of L Double's slot, after hearing him play on Pyrotechnic, one of the biggest questions on the minds of the Bombsounds kru was, are ya ever gonna grace the radio waves ever again?
'Yeh man, I have been approached by Radio 1 to maybe do a show on their new digital station. It’ll be broadcasted on the digital band and also probably through the internet, so its gonna have a worldwide interest, which is why I wanna make sure it’ll be done proper and for the right reasons before I decide what to do. It needs to be right, I want it to take the show from a constructive angle, so we are still in negotiations with that one. The Pyrotechnic guys were great. It was the best show I’d done for ages, and it definitely has to be one of the best stations on the net, it was mind blowing and we received so many emails from so many people from around the world. '
Great news, definitely something to look forward to. And so it looks like the next year for Flex records is going to be just as big as the last, and with the radio thing going on and more tours on their way, Flex are set to take the scene by storm!
L Double would also like to big up: All the regular supporters, Natasha, Mickey Finn and Aphrodite, everybody at Flex and everybody in Lincoln.... respect.
We would like to thank Flex and L Double,
for giving us the chance to do the interview.
For more info on L Double check out:
http://www.flexrecords.co.uk
