Dirty, hardstyle, and gosh darn sexy. And their music's not too bad, either. Pulse caught up with the lads from Damage Inc, talking everything music, the industry, and some light banter about absolute nonsense for good measure. Read further to check out what DnB dancefloor destroyers had to say.
I would like to know about the history of DAMAGE INC? What’s with the name, and what does it mean to you guys? A few years back, the two of us met up; with a similar sound in mind, after numerous talks we decided to merge our ideas into one track “Pziezzo Electric & Multicrisis – Observation”. The track was a hit amongst DnB peers alike. That fired up a whole new cause, Damage Inc. The name was an idea from our MC, Heavy G; which derived from, yes you guessed it…Metallica. There’s a meaning in the lyrics, of brothers and their parallel ideologies. For us, it means Art through Music driven by Passion.
Hardstyle DnB is a boisterous affair. Have you always been a hard basshead? What brought you two over to the dark side? Yes. We’ve always been influenced by the ‘underground’ sound. We know underground is a broad term. But let’s add some energy, an ominous flare and some diversity through Drum and Bass. End result? Damage Inc!
You’ve brought the bass to cities across the country. Any thoughts on the fast-growing South African Drum ‘n Bass scene, and the future of Drum ‘n Bass in Africa? Drum and Bass has always been a growing Genre, world-wide. In South Africa, the legendary Homegrown is to thank for a thriving industry. Once we graced Homegrown, we soon saw the likes of Science Frikshun and ‘It Came from the Jungle’ booking us for their nights and of course, our own label, Devastation Records Event Nights.
The world of bass is constantly evolving, with technology, styles, and techniques. Do you follow international trends? NO! We still believe in the Old Skool, ‘put it in, take it out’ type of mixing style. CDJ is what we prefer, but we are definitely open to new forms of Mixing. In studio, yes; we embrace EVERY piece of Technology we can get our hands on. On stage, we let the music do the talking.
You’ve been in the game for over a decade. What would you say makes you stand out from other producers in the industry? Too stand out is a vague term. Being different is more on point. We always try to go for something different, still within our signature sound. Pink Floyd is Pink Floyd because they were different. Likeable, but unique.
Electronic music relies on a fair amount of gadgets and technology. How kitted out is your studio and what equipment do you use to record your sounds? We use Cubase as our choice of DAW. MIDI controllers, 3 Way monitoring and a helluva lot of tools which we use to shape our sound. Oh, and our good friend...Coffee!
Where do you draw inspiration from before you get back in the studio? Would you say that before you start you’ve already decided how the track/mix will map out? We always have an idea of the style we want per track, and a basic idea or theme, and use that to grow into a track once we’re in studio.
What songs are you enjoying at the moment, and what are your favourite tracks to blast in a set? So many, but currently, our hot picks for the last two or three sets are Gancher & Ruin, Counterstrike, Khatarsys, Donny, Fragz, Freqax and C.A.2.K. to name a few. They’re right on the money, gunz blazing!
What do you see for the future of Drum ‘n Bass? And what can we expect to hear from you in the near future? It will grow, more and more. More Artists alike, more sounds emerging from the depths, and it will always breed into a different style. From us, we have a 4 track EP out soon which we can’t say much about now. We feel it pushes a new boundary fro us. Also, some collabs in the works with international Artists. 2014 is set to be a great Damage Inc year.
What does the public not know about you (good or bad) that you would like to share with us? Lips are sealed. Come have a dop with us and we’ll chat.
Drum ‘n Bass has evolved. From the Melville days to the dirty underground scene, some people say that DnB has gone commercial, what are your thoughts? It’s fine to be ‘commercial’, as long as you don’t spit out cheese. Whatever you do, take your time to craft it. Don’t rush it just because you’re chasing the trendy train. That’s not what Drum and Bass is about. Kapish.
Kapish. Would you rather smash a guitar or smash a computer with a baseball bat? We’ll smash a Computer with a Guitar, whilst someone plays the banjo…slowly..moody..dark and deep!
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