THE NO.1 MUSIC PODCAST (ON MARS)

Matt: My guest is aNorth London based DJ, producer and Rinse FM resident who lives and breathesmusic, and who goes by the name of Mr. Redley. He started producing at a youngage of 16 and started practicing DJing in Manchester before moving back toLondon to work in music. There, he dived into radio and hasn't stopped since.Starting his radio show Café au Lait in 2015 , where he focused on club focusedelectronic music with a heavy groove. On his current Rinse FM show, heshowcases black electronic music, a love and passion of his.

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His show, Black Wine Club, shares the same name of anotherproject he runs, where he offers followers guidance on how best to pairelectronic music and fine vintage wine. Although a musical sommelier of sorts,he's a man on the stage and behind the scenes, having worked as an assistantproducer on BBC 6 Music with the likes of Giles Peterson, Mary Anne Hobbs andTom Ravenscroft.

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Alongside working as a label assistant at Apron Records anddabbling in music production for documentaries, he is a man of many talents.Lou, thanks so much for coming on to Cosmic Cassette.

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Lou: Thanks forhaving me.

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Matt: No worries.It's great to have you on. I love the concept behind Black Wine Club, which ispairing two things, which don't go together enough, but which are such anatural pairing.

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You've got a quote on the website, which is, and I love thisquote, 'Wine and music are like a power couple. They're better together andalways make things lit'. What sparked that idea and what, what made you kind ofthink that those should go together in that way?

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Lou: So I started working in wine in about 2016.

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I had a really bad bike crash prior to that I was working in a bicycle shop and I was off work for a really long time. And afterwards I was ,pretty low, couldn't really do much physically. And I kind of needed a change of scene. And so this wine shop opened up across the road from the bike shop.

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And I, left and I went to the wine shop and I said, Oh, do youhave a job? And they said, yeah, sure. I knew a little bit about wine, but Ididn't know anything near what I know today. And I started working in that wineshop it's on Holloway Road.

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I worked there until beginning of 2022 or something like that so I worked there for like about sixyears in total. And I got to learn about wine which was fantastic. However, Iwas one of the only, like, I was one of the only members of staff that were,that was a person of colour.

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And I noticed that lots of people of colour coming into theshop quite timid or, or shy or felt out of the depth. But I could just see itkind of in the, in the way that they were holding themselves in the shop. Ithink that's because they didn't really know necessarily much about wine orthey felt that it was an imposing place and that people would kind of laugh atthem or be a bit judgmental, which is generally the attitude that comes acrossin the wine industry. You know, it's changed slightly, I think over the lastfew years because it's become more accessible, I guess it's become morefashionable is the word that I'm looking for.

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So yeah, I, was like, how can I make things a bit easier andhow can I make people feel not so uncomfortable about wine because, I knowabout wine, so why shouldn't you know about wine and you shouldn't have to feeluncomfortable in, just trying to discover new things.

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And obviously I've been DJing for a really long time and I'vegot a massive affinity for electronic music. And a lot of the time we'd put onmy radio show in the shop because my colleagues, really liked the same kind ofmusic.

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And with the Cafe Au Lait show, they really liked theeclecticism that came with the show a lot of the time. And so a lot of themwould fit really nicely with like, kind of just the vibe of the shop and, andthen it made me think, okay, how can I do something different than just normalwine tastings or, hipsterish natural wine edge or like branding or look that Ithink, you know, become synonymous with that area of wine.

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And I thought, okay, well, how about I pair two, knowledgestogether, use one knowledge to help the other. And so that's kind of where theconcept of Black Wine Club came from. It's like using electronic music steepedin black history, or, primarily black electronic music. But you know, at theend of the day, it's about all fantastic music. I thought, yeah, let's find away to pair those together. And that's, and that's where Black Wine Club wasborn, so to speak.

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Matt: Sick. Yeah. Anddo you run it with another of your mates? Or is it just you?

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‍Lou: I do. I've got abusiness partner. His name is JR. We wanted to move quite quickly, but itbecame apparent, that if you want to do it right and you want it to besuccessful and not just this little thing, then you have to give it some time.

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So it's, it's been a bit slower, getting it off the ground, butI think it's it's going to be successful and hopefully we can change, themindset of the market a bit. And also kind of like society about wine isn'tjust Caucasian. I hate to say it like that, but that is what it is. So I'm justtrying to make a bit of a difference in a unique way. To something that we canall enjoy if that makes sense.

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Matt: Yeah. And sogreat that you're able to channel your, passion into a project hopefully gonnachange lives as you say. And it must just come from a very easy place. Like ,if you can tap into that passion, then it can just I guess flow into theproject really easily rather than feel like you're pushing it uphill.

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Lou: Massively, Ithink when you find something that you like, and then you kind of begin to loveit, and then you work out ways in which that thing can also bring other people,joy, I'm trying to find a fine line because I'm not trying to be like, Oh,glorifying alcohol and being like, it's the best thing in the world because Iknow that it is damaging. But I also find that there's something really uniqueabout wine versus kind of other alcohols and just as, as a creation in thefirst place.

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It's so much better when you, when you share it with otherpeople and you try it together and then you pair it with something like music,you know, and you just sit and you have a conversation or you, you break breadand you have delicious food together and you pair that wine with delicious foodand you've got some fantastic music.

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And it might just be like a Wednesday evening, but even if itdoesn't come across at the time, those moments that you share with your friendsare so important for you as a person, to grow and be yourself and be happy. AndI find that, that's something that runs through a lot of my life is not seekinghappiness, but like being happy amongst other people and the people that areclose to me.

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And and wine, you know, drunk responsibly, but shared with goodwine, shared with good friends, with good music. It's like, there's nothingbetter, you know? And that's what, kind of, that's what I've discovered. Andthat's what I kind of want to share with other people, you know?

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Matt: That's reallyinteresting what you say about the kind of hunger almost to be amongst friendsand to share those experiences.

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You've obviously recognised in yourself that feeling of likereally vibing off a group in which you're in, which I guess is something thatthe DJing is part of.

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In terms of the production, did you have a moment at which youthought like, Oh, I'm going to give this a go and then you just dived intosomething early on.

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Lou: It's funnybecause I first touched Logic when I was about 13. So that would have been likeE- magic 4. 9. It was like on an RM computer.

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That was really weird back when you used to have the Yamahakeyboard and just be hitting like DJ, DJ, you know, and all of the otherdifferent little sounds. But then I guess it was when when I was 14 or 15, whenI did my music GCSE, that's kind of when I started producing a little bit.

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And then I did music tech for Sixth Form and that was where Istarted really trying to experiment and then it kind of just fell by thewayside for a really long time.

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And then I think I got back from university I started to takeit a bit more seriously. But yeah, then the lockdown happened and I just kindof, I didn't really know what to do.

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By this point I wastrying to DJ. You know, and it was slowly getting there and and I wasfreelancing for the BBC and then it kind of hit, you know?

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So all I could do is like carry on doing radio and thentinkering about making tunes and then from there it's slowly been gettingbetter It's funny because actually I look back and I found lots of music that Imade three or four years ago and I said, this is this is alright, but shelvethis and come back to it in three four years when you've got more knowledgeAnd, and I've stumbled across a couple of those tracks and have actually beenable to kind of like finish them off

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Matt: Oh, that mustbe insanely satisfying.

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Lou: Yeah, it reallyis. It really is it's weird. Cause I did what I said to myself, you know, like,Oh. Put this aside and come back to it when you got more skills, I, don't thinkI make enough music like each week to gain more skills, but I somehow still gainmore skills and it's working and I'm finishing these bits of music and there'sa lot more that I finished now and I'm like excited for more

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I played some stuff that We Out Here festival that really wentoff. So then I played some of the tracks again in Germany. And I've beentinkering with a tune that I originally made with Medlar and I've basicallymade it into a I've made a fully new track I played it as well in Germany andit had a really good reception, and it's really heartwarming to know that mymusic isn't bad.

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Maybe this is a confidence thing. I'm always trying to buildmy, my own, my confidence in myself and my productions, but it's nice to see itin reality, like, Oh, I put time and effort into this and now actually peopleare like losing their shit to it, or they're, they're really just going for itand it's like, okay, maybe you should have a little bit more confidence inyourself

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Matt: I wonder if youthink that the social media element of DJing kind of plays into your mindsetthere because whenever you see DJs on social media. You know, they're playing atune and it's absolutely popping off maybe it's one of their things and theremight be a kind of element of comparison that slips in there or thinking like,Oh, there's this track that's going off here, like, and then thinking aboutyour own production. Does that factor in at all?

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Lou: Not to do withmy productions. But wholeheartedly with being a DJ, I think that social mediais extremely unhealthy, at least for me. And it does have a really big effecton my mental health I think I've got considerably better than I used to interms of comparing myself to others, but I think, yes, I would agree thatsocial media has a big impact on like one's confidence.

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And it's really difficult kind of to counter that. But, youknow, if you put certain like processes in place to protect yourself, then,you'll be in a much better position to kind of, Tackle the music industry, soto speak, which is like, you know, guys eat well, people don't like meditation,but working out whatever form of meditation works for you, but doing somemeditation and surrounding yourself with like, with great people

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Matt: for sure, man.Lou, let's have your first track that you're going to send up to space to teachour alien life force about life on earth.

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Lou: Yeah. This firstone is Black Renaissance by Harry Whittaker which is my favourite jazz album.There's only two tracks in the whole album. There's a 23 minute side, which isthis one. And then there's, there's the other side, which is like 16 minuteslong. But this, this, this track, this side yeah, this is the one for me. I wasrecommended it in a record shop in Manchester when I was studying up there and,and I've treasured this record ever since it's, it's just 20 minutes ofemotions, relationships, freedom of expression, and all tied together by thesound of the double bass. And I mentioned that because I, I was classicallytrained in the double bass from like five to 18. And so when I hear, when Ihear the double bass being played, it kind of just, takes over my body and itgets my full attention.

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And a bit of story behind it is that the whole album is anamalgamation of friends, ex- girlfriends. I believe his wife and people thathe'd met along his career and throughout his life. And he got them all togetherto record this incredible piece of music in one take, in one room. And, youknow, it just reminds me of my past, like going to music school every Saturday,but also my friendships and my family and partners that I've had throughout mylife.

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And it's just an incredible piece of music and once you put iton and you sit back and you, and you, and you kind of like submit yourself tothe music it's a truly beautiful piece of work.

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TRACK 1 - Harry Whitaker, The Black Renaissance

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Matt: That's, yeah,that's wicked, man. Just such an amazing kind of swirling track and 20 minuteskind of gives it a sort of hypnotic feel. On the double bass that you played,that sounds like a huge commitment. From five to like the middle of yourteenage years. Do you still pick it up today? And like, what's your connectionto it now?

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Lou: Yeah, it's justa bit sad at the moment that I don't pick it up and. And I really need to, andit's something that's kind of long term goal, but it's a more, when I say likeshorter term, it's in the next year or two, that's my aim to be picking it up again.

But. It, was a massivecommitment. And it was a massive commitment because, you know, that wasbasically my whole childhood was spent playing this instrument. But yeah, everySaturday pretty much without fail.

And so I kind of didn't have weekends like other people did.But it really did make me who I am today. And as much as I kind of missedhaving weekends like other kids, I wouldn't change it. I started off in a pilotscheme for what's now the Junior Academy of Music at the Royal Academy.

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But I think after like three years I had to, I had to leave because there were no more double bass students to teach me. So I moved to theCentre for Young Musicians in North Lambeth. And I met so many incredible people there. That was incredibly influential and on my life. And you know, ,the adults, they're giving up their, their weekends, you know, to, to teach us and stuff. It really, it really kind of gave me a grounding that I didn't knowthat I needed. And it really kind of opened me up to, to other music and meet avant garde kind of like teachers and stuff, you know, never met so manyenthusiastic people in one place, week in, week out for like over 13 years.

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But yeah, the double bass as a result has a big influence and abig drive over my life and and as a result, you know, you kind of see where theother tracks that. Yeah, it kind of really takes over. But yeah, I love it. Ido love it.

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Matt: Nice. Theremust have been days, though, when, I don't know, your mates were like, Oh,like, do you want to come do this thing? And maybe you just had like such aroutine, such a dedication to doing it that, there must have been days when itmust have been really annoying. That you were there, but then other days whenyou just sunk into the craft and you really like a sponge almost were around somany people that kind of nurtured that interest must have been a kind of a realmix of experiences, especially as such a young person.

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Lou: Especially likelater, later on in my in inverted commas studies you know, I was, I wasstarting to rave a lot more and, you know, on a Friday night and couldn'texactly like, Well, I would go sometimes, but sometimes you couldn't hack goingto music school on a Saturday kind of thing. But, you know, I would still gowhen I, when I could, but yeah, there were times when , you like really don'twant to be here right now, you know.

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But I still went like every weekend and I sat in the orchestraand I played like my heart out and then I went to like choir because you had todo choir. It was all compulsory until you got to sixth form,

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I met some, some really amazing people that, you know, changedmy life for the better just by being in my life. and that wouldn't havehappened if I didn't go to musical school every Saturday, so, yeah,

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Matt: definitely not.And it feels like yeah, , that muscle, which you've developed over the years isready and waiting to, I know you're doing it in your production anyway, but itmight feed into your production in the future.

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Lou: Exactly. Yeah, Ihave some things that I need to work on, in myself and then I can create some,some more time for me in the double bass.

I realized fairlyrecently that you know, doing too much at once, you're just going to burn out.And it was, I was like really teetering on the edge and doing so many differentthings. And so I think, you know, you kind of just have to take bit by bit, youknow, you can't do everything at once.

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And I think, that's why I'm like, okay, I want to work towardsbringing it in soon Not right now. But yeah, I think I think you know have ahave a winning attitude and like, you know try and chase your dreams and makingmusic with the double bass is definitely a dream of mine so it's, it'sdefinitely, it's definitely happening, just, just not this second

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Matt: for sure. Youmust've started early. That must've come from your parents who might have likesuggested that you get into it. Was that how it started?

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Lou: No, actually, Ithink it kind of started as a baby clapping class. So like I guess I must'vebeen like three and we'd, we'd all go and we'd sit like in a circle with ourmoms.

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And then, at age 5, we got to pick an instrument and I wantedto play the violin because that's what I knew. And then, I remember this sovividly, I was like playing with my toy cars in this rug in the living room inthe old flat where I grew up with my mum and my dad. And and the woman who ranthe class called and she basically said, Oh yeah, look, we've got two doublebases coming over on a ship from the United States.

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And we can't find anyone to play them. We were wondering ifLouie would be interested. And my mom kind of said, Oh, look, it's Wendy on thephone. She wants to know if you want to. Tried the double bass instead of theviolin and I said, ah, you know smashing the cars together if I don't like itcan I can I switch the violin and my mom made this brilliant executive gentlelie to my face And that was it Base and I couldn't change and and the rest ishistory. Yeah, ripe old age of five.

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It was weird. But actually, you know, it's great when you're,when you're at a concert. And you're a kid and you're not that crap. Maybe youare, but like when you're in an orchestra, , it's a collective, you play asone. And I just remember being like, Really excited for the, some of theconcerts, some of them, I didn't really want to be at, and others, you're justlike, actually, yeah, this is really fun.

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Matt: Yeah, sounds abit like the coming back to the, the wine club and the the kind of the love ofthe group feels like you might've just spotted that kind of love of beingamongst people, creating something special

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Lou: yeah, I mean,it's funny. I was raised as an only child. I've got siblings now, they're likebetween 11 and 16 years younger than me. But I had loads of friends when I wasyoung and stuff, and, and still now, but I felt really kind of like, you know,on my own. And so it's always nice to like be in a group, you know.

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A lot of what I do is quite solitary in terms of being behindthe booth, being in the studio. And, and I just like, I enjoy other people'scompany and you know, at times it's been really difficult. And, and so if I cankind of bring people together and, and bring some joy to a group of friends,then I'll try and do that as much as possible.

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And that kind of like links directly with my DJing. DJing is,it's quite selfish, but it's also selfless because you might turn up somewhereand you know, nobody.

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You turn up at this spot and you don't know anyone, you kind ofhave to play for yourself. And that, that's where the selfishness comes from,but, then that's where the selfishness stops because you're playing tunes thatyou want to play for yourself because you enjoy these tracks and you want tohear them on a system and you want to feel the bass.

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But then you also want to create this vibe so that people canlose themselves and dance and feel free and most importantly, feel happy or atthe very least. help shed some of that, that grief, that sadness, whatever itmay be. You know, I'm no doctor, , I'm no paramedic, but, but providing goodmusic to people is important stuff.

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Matt: Definitely.

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And I mean, just, just thinking about you as a DJ specifically.You bring so much joy and energy on the decks. I've seen just how much you ownthe joy that you want to share in the experience with other people. Like justso much physical energy and with such a big smile on your face that you likepeople around you just can't help, but sharing that energy and joy. I thinkit's good time to come back to the conversation we had on the double bass andto hear your second track that you're going to be sending up to space.

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Lou: Yeah. It is freeyour mind by Black Jazz Consortium which I also got recommended probably backin like, I think it was 2012. Yeah, just an incredible track, probably myfavorite house track.

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There are many other fantastic ones, but for me, for somereason, every time I hear it, it kind of just takes over all of me. And a goodreasoning behind that is probably because of the double bass that's used in it.And, I studied it from such a young age. And at any time that I hear the use ofthe double bass in the track, then it generally... very much captivates me, andI'm hooked instantly.

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I don't play it in too many sets cause I find it. so personalthat I don't want to I don't want to get sick of it and not that I would reallylike play it all the time because it's a very unique track. But, but yeah, itis, it's special to me. And, and, and funny enough, I'd be listed for a while.And then my partner at the time bought me it on record after I showed it toher. And I'll be forever grateful for her buying it for me on record for mybirthday. Yeah, but a fantastic tune. And that is free your mind by black jazzconsortium featuring Monaco.

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Awesome.

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TRACK 2 - Free Your Mind, Black Jazz Consortium

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Matt: Yeah, that ideaof kind of opening up yourself to someone, it's a very evocative thought. It'sgot quite a simple line in it, doesn't it? I think it's just has that repeatingline about freeing yourself up. Was there, was there a moment in your life whenthat line really like hit home?

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Lou: Yeah, in mylatest relationship. I felt that a lot. Didn't listen to this tune too muchthen, because I don't know, I didn't feel like I needed to. It came quitenaturally. But also with friends as well, there's just times where the momentjust feels so right, and you kind of, I just want to listen to it, because Ifind it so calming.

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But yeah, to answer your question in short, my most recentrelationship was where this kind of, this track really lent into itself, youknow. Yeah, it was a special time, definitely. And it's kind of like, thistrack embodies that in many ways.

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Matt: Yeah, nice. AndI guess this one you didn't pick up necessarily in Manchester in the recordshop as well, or maybe this was a different one, was it in Manchester?

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Lou: Yes, it was thesame record shop. Different times of the year. It was Eastern Block Records, Iwas, yeah, so I was studying up in Manchester and, and I was working, but nottoo much. I had some student loan and I would just kind of spend as much moneyas I could that was going spare in that record shop.

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I'd always go digging. There's loads of great record shops inManchester, but that one, I kind of just, I liked the vibe, I liked the peoplethat just seemed super welcoming.

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And became, like I said, became friends with them, but youknow, you don't always you get, you get recommended loads of stuff and then,and then you don't necessarily, you don't, you keep it or you take a picture ofit and you're like, I'm not feeling that today. And then one day you're like, Ineed this track in my life.

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But it's funny how some places some record shops have such akind of pull over your lives, you know, at certain times and Eastern Blockcertainly did still a fantastic record shop.

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Matt: Yeah, I knowthere are some record shops I've feel like have that pull in London.

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And I felt like Yo Yo Records in Hackney had the same, samepull, like just tiny shop and it felt like everyone in there just knew exactly.Every record, every story behind ever a record, but weren't too like pushyabout it. And I think when you have that kind of feeling where it just kind ofis right, you want to spend all your money in it.

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Lou: Totally, youknow, I had that with Sounds of the Universe as well. So yeah, record shops arekey to the culture of music.

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Matt: Yeah, for sure.Wicked. I think that leads us nicely onto your third record. What's the thirdtrack you're going to be sending up to space?

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Lou: This one isdestination unknown. By Sly and Robbie. I believe it's from an album called ADouble Experience.

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Came out in about, I think it's 86, but don't hold me to it.But it's definitely the 80s. A really good friend of mine gave me a copy ofthis for my birthday a couple of years back. And it just seemed like a, such adifferent take on dub, on the dub that I know anyway, and the, and the dub thatI love.

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And you know, throughout, throughout the album, they'retricking the listener at times. So the record is skipping. And there'sincredible use of effects, you know, in the studio, using the mixer, the mixingdesk as an instrument, it just, yeah, incredible scenes. And I would happilyrecommend this record to anyone, like a buy on site kind of album.

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I really luckily got to see Sly and Robbie perform at theBarbican and I went with my parents and it sticks in my head because, you know,like for a moment I could just imagine being by their side as they danced thenight away, like back in the eighties, like different sound systems aroundLondon. And I just really love this album for that. And thank you to Rab forbuying it for me because I wouldn't have stumbled across it otherwise.

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And actually, you know, every time I put it on I just everytime I'm like, this is, this is a wicked album, you know, might not be theirbest piece of work, but for me I love it.

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TRACK 3 – Destination Unknown, Sly & Robbie

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Matt: That's wicked.Yeah, I can imagine yeah, seeing them at the Barbican must have been amazing.And with your parents, that must be, such a like special memory of being in thecrowd and then hearing that kind of in the flesh. So you went with your parentsand then. Did, they kind of speak about them as, as artists that they reallyliked after the gig or was it more just that you dropped in for the gig?

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Lou: My dad is, mydad's massively into into dub and reggae and dancehall and it's always regalingstories about the past at sound systems and dances with my mom and his bestmates and stuff. And so what was really nice is , that they were performing andthey performing in the Barbican.

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And I think it was actually my birthday and we managed to gettickets to it. And so we went as a family and it was really dope. Cause I thinkI was I was in my twenties, so it was like, you know, I was more of an adultand it was just nice to share this kind of past moment, but you know, in thepresent, from stories that they had both told me in the past about going to seeJah Shacker or, or Tubby or, you know, whoever it may be. And so, and so, yeah,I think that was what was unique about it. And then I think afterwards maybe, Idon't know, we went, maybe went told me more stories about the days of soundsystem culture of the eighties and stuff.

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So, yeah, I don't know, it just came, them performing at theBarbican just came at the right moment in my life to see them live and with myparents.

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And it, it just, it worked. And then it kind of like justfitted into this musical narrative of kind of my life and my parents a bit, Iguess. So,

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Matt: so yeah, and Iguess those moments are really special because you just understand your parentsmore because in your younger self, maybe you had an idea about them beingadults as a child. You can't relate to them in the same way, but then as youkind of grow up to be an adult yourself and like loved dub and love the kind ofmusic that. They were into that must have been like absolutely amazing to sortof share that as an adult, but with them.

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Lou: Definitely beingable to kind of, you know, get in their shoes, empathize massively differentfrom when I was a kid.

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And also, I was quite, it's quite angry at my parents becausethey, you know, they split up when I was quite young and I wanted them to betogether and. And that wasn't going to happen and it was like, it was just anice familial moment, you know, even though my parents aren't together,they're, they're best mates and it's just nice to share something like thatwhere they both felt comfortable and in their element because it kind of tookthem back to a time when they were dancing and exploring, you know, the dubscene and yeah.

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Yeah, definitely a unique moment and being able to be older andsee that and see them enjoy themselves and stuff and remember stuff, you know,music is a great healer, but it's also great for, you know, for reminding youabout memories, good memories, bad memories, whatever it may be, it's a specialtool of humankind. That's for sure.

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Matt: Yeah, it isindeed. In terms of the music that's they're listening to now, do you speak tothem today about music and what they're into?

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Lou: A bit. My momdoesn't listen to enough music. I kind of need to go around and like sort itall out. And it's an ongoing battle.

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But my dad is an avid music listener and he's always ready totell me a story about a certain artist or a certain version of a track orrhythm or whatever. And he's always more than happy to kind of regale a storyof a days gone by about a certain, a certain artist here or there. A lot ofstories about Josh Shacker, because I think it was one of my dad's favorite,favorite dub artists.

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But his, his knowledge is pretty mad, to be honest. I'm notgoing to lie. When it comes to dub, reggae and dancehall, so we do talk andboth my parents come to, come to my gigs when they can, you know, sometimesthey're, they're just too, too late, but sometimes they're not. You know, mydad was there for my set at We Out Here and that was a, it was really emotionalmoment for some other reasons.

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But it was really Heartwarming to, you know, have him there andhave my family there and kind of see this, share this moment because I think itended up being the best set that I've played in my career and it was reallynice that they could that they could share that moment with me, you know.

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And with my mom as well,when she can, she, she always tries to come down and like, and check out thegigs and have a chat with my friends and stuff like that. And I, I think for along time, you know, I struggled with making it successful at making money fromit and, and, and showing that it wasn't just a fad and stuff. And my parentswere always like , do what you can, do what makes you happy, but you also needto like earn a living. And I'm, not rich at all, but you know , I earned enoughmoney from DJing to get by and, and that's the consistency and at times whenthey're like, you might have to get a proper job.

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And what they meant by that was, a proper paying job that'spaying each month and, and stuff. And that's probably been the most difficultthing about being a DJ is getting paid on time. That is the singular biggestnegative point of being in this industry, at least for myself, is the kind ofthe financial anxiety and then consequently financial depression that comesfrom like having to chase money and being poor and having to borrow money offof friends because someone isn't paying you on time because they're you know,there's just, they're just not efficient.

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And, and I really don't think people understand the effect thatit has on on people, you know. Not getting paid on time and not being able topay a bill or your rent or be able to take your partner out for a meal or onholiday or whatever it may be because you need to take this gig because Youknow the other person still hasn't paid you and it's two months down the lineand you're like you're struggling to rub two pennies together It's it's hard,but now now it has changed.

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I would say in the last year and a half Finally, I'm gettingsome recognition as a DJ and just someone in the music community. I think I'vebeen known for a while, but now it's kind of coming a bit more together andit's been a really difficult road and it still is, but it's worthwhile chasingthat dream because the dream will come true as long as you believe in yourselfor believe in the dream, even if you don't fully believe in yourself, believein the dream and keep chasing it and it, and it, and it will happen.

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Matt: You're well onyour way, mate. It's it feels like you're, yeah, as you say, just starting toget like proper recognition yeah, I've, I've been following you for about ayear and a half now. And it feels, it has felt like, yeah, each kind of monththat goes by you've kind of stepped up a notch in terms of the bookings andopportunities that you get, which is, which is wicked so fingers crossed itkeeps going that way.

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Lou: Yeah. I thinkCharlie dark gave me this brilliant analogy and he said, look, music career islike a flywheel, right? You get out to speed and then, you know, it's going tohold energy, right? It's going to be spinning really fast. You know, it, itholds that energy and then you just need to hit it every once in a while, youknow, just to keep it, well, you just got to make sure that it's spinningbecause if you don't, if you let it stop spinning, it's really difficult to getit going again.

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Matt: Yeah, it's it'sjust a case of, making stuff work for you, I guess. So that you can movetowards what you want to in the near future. Coming on to your fourth track, Ithink it's a good time to hear the fourth track you're going to be sending upin space, what is that track?

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Lou: Oh, that's agood one. Feeling Kind of Blue by Dave Owen. Brilliant producer from theStates,. It's a lovely little liquid Drum and bass track. Takes me right backto my heydays of, of, of D& B. It's basically all that I listened to for,for years and years and years like across the whole spectrum of the genre. AndDave Earn was one of those producers that knew how to do liquid. Right.

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This is from a label called influence records, and it's alsoreleased stuff from another one of my favorite liquid producers, who's calledbrother. This track just feels so effortless, it just glides along and itreminds me of simpler times, you know, I'm not yet left to go to universityrunning around the city and beyond, you know, having fun with my friends,scheming about what the future entails.

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And and yeah, this is Feeling Kind of Blue by Dave Owen. Mighteven be a little double bass sample in there. Who knows?

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TRACK 4 - Feeling King of Blue by Dave Owen

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Matt: I feel likethere's a little thread running here. Maybe, maybe, who knows? In terms of theD and B scene, were you going out and seeing D and B live, were you going toparties or anything like that? Or was it more in headphones

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Lou: every singleweekend. In the week, the weekend. First started raving when I was about 14. Iused to go to this spot, which is now called the Star of Hackney Wick orsomething like that. But it was called the Lord Napier back in the day by theold entrance to Hackney Wick Station. Yeah, and I was going there for about 14and a half and I was getting out each weekend and we were shucking out to todrum and bass and then starting to like, kind of like sneak into clubs and...

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My favorite was Herbal in Shoreditch, which is now calledHostel plus Bar plus Karaoke, unfortunately. But back then, it was a wicked,wicked little club. And yeah saw many, many, many a good DJ there. Ruffstaff,Crust Red Eyes. In fact, I got one of my first drum and bass records actuallyfrom going to Herbal once.

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They're like, Oh, you're the 20th person in the club. Here yougo. You got a copy of red eyes. And I was like, dope, you know, things likethat. But. Yeah. And then, but I didn't think I was even 18 at the time. Andthen, yeah, and then like, you know, going to fabric at like 17, I think wewent to the chasing status More than a Lot album launch, which was actuallyWicked.

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I actually found out there was Lift in Fabric that night. Youknow, we just got in it

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Matt: there's a lift?

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Lou: There's a liftin fabric, but it's only for staff and stuff. See, since then I've been in itas a dj, but like back then, it was the first time I was there, but no one knewthere was a lift in there.

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Right. And then, and then consequently, like the first coupleof times afterwards, I couldn't find the lift because it was such a maze. Butnow, like I go around fabric, you know, even not having been there for years, Istopped going for a really long time. I'm only, you know, only in the last liketwo years or something like that.

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Have I been going again? And and now I know that it's reallyweird, the club and I know exactly where everything is, but back then I, forsome reason, thought it was a complete maze, but but yeah, I mean,

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Matt: it is acomplete maze. It is a complete labyrinth. I don't know how anyone actuallygets around.‍

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Lou: There is, onebit that is is really weird. It takes you from like, I don't know, room two toroom three through some back way. And I've never been able to find it again butit's legit. You can go just as normal, like people revelers. But yeah, lots ofdrum and bass over the years used to go to a rain like.

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Obviously rain dance andmoon dance at SE One and, and V recordings, takeovers at cable and used to goto like light box and area and South London and some mates at college throughsome parties and in like an oval and places like that. And then when I went,when I went to university, and Ed's there one of my best mates and me being meimmediately sought out like, what are the drum and bass nights in Manchester.So we started going regularly to the jump up night, and then we found the technight as well. And we go to that and then the people running the parties, likerecognized us, you know, because we were going all the time and they were like,yeah, nice. Well, that's like, like every, every month without fail. So you'relike, you know, and so that was nice, but yeah, all over the shop traveled fordrum and bass. Good times.

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Matt: Yeah, man.Yeah, that sounds like real dedication to, to find the best nights. I didn'tactually know Manchester had a big DMV scene, but I guess it's always likebubbling away. And that there must be a few promoters that are justconsistently putting it on. Wicked. I think that actually brings us onto thefifth and final track that you want to send up in space. What is your fifthtrack?

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Lou: My fifth trackis Harlem River Drive by Bobby Humphrey.

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This bit of a sentimental one here, but this, this one willalways remind me of like when my parents were still together. And I alwaysremember them telling me the story of them going to see Bobby Humphrey at somesmall joint in the top of chapel market, which was just. Down the road from theflat that that we lived in and and it just brings a smile to my face And itmakes me see this incredible relationship that my parents had together, youknow bound by this love of beautiful music and the track itself is is Iswonderful and the flute just, just glides over the rolling bass guitar and thenyou had just have the ever so tight drums and it immediately transports you tothe streets of seventies Harlem such a wicked tune. So yeah, Harlem river driveby Bobby Humphrey is my fifth and final track to put in the capsule and send upinto space.

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TRACK 5 - Harlem River Drive, Bobbi Humphrey

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Matt: Yeah, andthat's, so you heard about that track growing up kind of around chapel market,which is around angel

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Lou: in and offLondon and one

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Matt: N 1 exactly.And yeah, I can imagine like, yeah, that rolling bass guitar. Again, another,another little base base note running through your tracks. The tune that youpicked on the last, last one, you said, brings a, brings a smile to your faceand the relationship your, your parents had together.

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I mean, was that a track that you kind of heard with them andyeah, why does it kind of bring back such fond memories for you?

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Lou: Yes, heard itover the years because they're always playing it. They, they shared this, theyshared this love of jazz and this love of dub and reggae. And my dad kind of,my dad provided a lot of that, but then my mom kind of did her own, you know,research and stuff and buying records and tapes and all of that.

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And yeah, we would listen to music on the Hi-fi. All the time.And it's, it reminds me of that because, well, you know, to be honest, music isso important, was so important between my mom and my dad, and it's so importantin my life. And it's the thing that kind of binds us together, other than thefact that they are my parents and they birthed me, but, you know something thatwe can connect these days in my adult years And, and yeah, it just, it justbrings a moment of joy.

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In my head, my parentsgot up younger than they might have actually done, or, but I think it startedwhen I was fairly young and I, and I like, you know, I like having somethingthat can remind me in my head, as a kid, the good times, and this tune isdefinitely kind of one of those ones. It just reminds me of a good time. And,and you need that, you need that sometimes. You need to just have somethingthat's gonna put a smile on your face. And and that, that track is definitely,definitely one of them.

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Matt: Nice one. Ithink that brings us to the end of the end of our chat and time to send thetracks up to space on your cassette tape to this alien life force. And Iwondered how you thought the aliens were going to receive your tracks, likewhat they were going to make of them and what they might learn.

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Lou: What they'lllearn is music, it has a power of healing in it and it can help you rememberthings, it can help you feel things it can help you convey messages or wordsthat maybe you can't always say yourself at the time, but at some point, youknow, maybe you find the words, but in the moment you can put whatever you needto say across through, through music. I think they'll find that bass in anyform is is a very special thing. Be it the double bass, the bass guitar, orjust the base of like an 808. That's a special sound frequencies, you know?

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And I think they'll findthat music is, is beautiful and it's unique and, and it's a brilliant way toexpress oneself, be it human or not.

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Matt: Amen to that.Completely agree. Wicked. Well, yeah. Thanks for so much for coming on. I'vejust really appreciated like your, honest and open approach and just leaninginto the tracks and, and how they've influenced you, because I just really gota proper sense of how the music is shaped in how you are today and I'm justcan't wait to see what's what's next, really. It really does feel like thatwhen you're stepping into a space that's a next step up from where you areright now which is already great. So, yeah, I'll be, be watching and watchingand cheering you on from the sidelines.

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And, and just from, from yourself, I mean, is there anythingthat's coming up that you particularly want to shout out at the moment?

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Lou: Yeah, I gotblack wine club. Also got some music coming out, I've got another track comingout on Paloma recordings, a track for a compilation, but other than that, just,you know, if you want, if you're interested in Black Wine Club, just go onblackwineclub. com and we're running events to kind of, to inform people ofcolour about wine. And and also we throw some great parties and you can listenTo the radio show every monday from five to six on rinse fm But that's the plugover.

Yeah

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Matt: Cheering inguys wicked. Well, yeah, thanks so much for coming on the podcast and yeah,catch you then.

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Lou: No problem, manThanks for having me. Thanks for the opportunity.

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Matt: No problem,mate. Thanks so much