'Gutter Music' is the finest Grime track ever written outside the UK - Blackdown (2009)

It was also one of my favourite tracks of 2009, and it seemed well overdue that I interviewed Starkey. He recently remixed Terror Danjah's Air Bubble which you can listen to here and he his second album 'Ear Drums & Black Holes' is out April 19th on Planet Mu.

It is not a Grime album, but it is definitely worth checking if you like similar sounds to the stuff we play on Rinse.

Even though we have been in contact for over a year, this was the first time we spoke at length.. nearly 3 hours via Skype.

I thought it would be best to start at the beginning of the album, Ok Luv, which features Badness on the single, but not on the album, what was the reason behind picking him to vocal it, and why did that version not make the album?

I got in touch with Robin from No Hats No Hoods who I've spoken to a bunch in the past and done remixes for... and said that I wanted to do a tune with Badness he basically sorted it out. I'm a huge fan of his vocal work, he's all over the place, but its still him all the time.

So that tune was built with him in mind or did you send them a few and he pick?

I sent him that tune straight away it didn't make the album because they didn't know where to put it I kind of wanted it on there to be honest but I also wanted Millennia on the CD and that made the B-side to Stars we had a lot of tracks in the running for the album. Some just didn't make it. There's only so much space on the album and Mike at Mu really goes after a cohesive sound. I think he does a good job with it as well. We cut a couple things. just didn't work for whatever reason we also had a few things that never panned out.

Stars (feat. Anneka) by Starkey from Ben Curzon on Vimeo.

Tell us about Cerebral Vortex, where is he from and why did you decide to use him on murderous words?

Cerebral Vortex was down in Texas, i believe, when he did the tune or he could have been in San Francisco. He moves around a bit. he's in NYC now he hit me up on Myspace and said something along the lines of... people say we need to do a tune together and I agree.so, I sent him 'club games', which had the hook in it. I told him the concept and he was feeling it.

If an MC messaged a producer saying we need to work together over here they would probably just ignore it!

With vortex... he wanted to do another tune as well. so I always thought that Murderous Words would work with a vocal. I sent that to him as well... and we were really happy with how that turned out as well. I don't ignore anything everything could be the next best person to work with... or the next best producer....it takes a lot of time though.

Ive noticed, even in terms of the new producers I've been sending you have been really receptive, how do you balance the DJ role finding new tracks, alongside producing

I wait for things to come to me now DJ-wise I get so much music, it's difficult to listen to all of it
but I do. If even for 15 seconds to see if it has that initial 'wow' factor.

Can you put us on to some people, or some tracks you have come across recently that you have been feeling?

There's a lot! DNAEBEATS, Nasty Nasty, Halp, SDUK, Kaiser, BD1982, Eprom, Slugabed those are some of my favorites.. but there's others as well.Zeno has been doing it big lately... as well as Stagga and Monkey. The people whose music I really like, I tend to get them involved with what I'm doing like Seclusiasis or Slit Jockey, or remixes for my Planet Mu stuff.

So the balance between your productions and all these other names in the set, how does the balance take place, as people are paying to hear 'Starkey' when they book you right?

I'm like 50/50 right now 50% my own tunes... 50% friends and label-mates. I plan to get back into live sets again in the near future... it just has to be interesting. it can't be me behind a laptop with a mouse and some knobs for me... that's boring



Yea, they are visually lame, but sometimes you hear some crazy stuff, how could you expand on that?

Vocals, videos... I'm not quite sure yet that's why i haven't done it. but, I'd like it to be kind of a spectacle like over the top.

Your still based out of Philly, how has that effected the creative process in making the album? Do you think if you were in London you would have had a totally different sound?

Well I'm not sure if now... if i picked up and moved... it would impact me immediately. I mean, I'm in London enough now that it definitely is an influence on me. but Philly is my home... and that's where i draw most of my experiences from. If i grew up in London... that would be a different story. Maybe I would be making funky! I moved my studio last year... so a lot of this album was done in a different place that Ephemeral Exhibits. So that might have influenced me a bit, my new studio is pretty comfortable.

Comfortable studio, more comfortable music?

I don't know. Maybe, that's why there's a lot of chill tunes on this album

I would say for someone that plays out as much as you do, your album isnt filled up with obvious dance floor material? Would you agree?

My old studio was always so hot.... like in the summer, it was ridiculous. Sweaty as shit I think my DJ sets aren't as immediate either though. It's a bit more challenging, and I don't say that trying to sound snobby at all. but, I don't really play sets filled with "big" tunes. Anyone can do that unless you're the person who made the big tune, or released the big tune... cool.


Ha, yea I'm like that as well, im the stubborn guy playing Grime still in 2010 remember

We were playing Grime in Philly in 2004/2005. I mean.... no one knew what it was we were outcasts and we didn't care that's the music that inspired us it was so refreshing. A lot of the music they call Dubstep in 2010 is actually grime though if we're gonna pigeon-hole stuff.

Did you get into Dubstep after that 2005 era then, what music kept you going until you you released your first album?

I kind of got into Dubstep when I heard Vex'd and Loefah stuff. The music that was darker and had more hip hop in it, I guess I wasn't into the 2steppy early stuff back then. I listened to a lot of Grime as well as, Electronica, for lack of better words. Stuff like Aphex Twin, Venetian Snares, Bjork.. then like Trip Hop stuff... Old Tricky, Portishead, Alpha.

What you think of the new Vex'd stuff then, would you consider that Grime? I assume most of the Dubstep you consider Grime you are referring to Joker, Gemmy, Guido etc?

Yeah... Mensah's tune Pulse 80's. It's like Pulse X for 2010. Lots of the Bristol stuff plus people in the US as well.

Who in the us? I dont know many producers

SDUK, who is on slit jockey, most of what he's doing I would call Grime but he's in London. The US the hip hop crossover stuff is where it's at right now, like i said... Dnaebeats, Nasty Nasty, Eprom, Lazer sword even lots of good music going on in San Francisco.


Numb, my favourite tune on the album, whats yours? How did the link up with P Money come about, and would you do more stuff with him in the future? I think MCs have always tended to go to a 'hip hop' beat for a 'deep' track but this was a really exciting beat all the way through.

Yeah it's one of my favorites as well. Top 3 definitely. I also got in touch with him through Robin as well. He's been one of my favorite MC's in grime for the past couple years. I'd be all about doing more tracks with him... I think he's got such a good flow. The tune was for the most part in the version it ended up in when I sent it to him. I did add the stabby section toward the end though, where the bassline changes, for some more variety at the end. It's got an odd feel as well... but he smashed it.

How has the the file sharing thing effected you? Would you say its done more harm overall then help? With Grime its so obscure File sharing has helped it reach far and wide but tore the heart out of it, Rhythm division in Bow closed on the weekend.

I didn't know that crazy well Wiley ain't making white label Grime tunes anymore... so... not much to stock I guess! I think it helps overall. but I really wish that people could experience this album on release day.I know some people that refuse to download it and are waiting to listen to it on April 19th. That's refreshing and means a lot. I want it to be an experience... and you won't get that if you just grab it off a site with 10 other things in one day but... if that means people will come out when you play their town... then I guess it helps. it gets people familiar with your music. This album will be sick though... we didn't skimp on artwork and packaging.

Who did the artwork?

Ben Curzon, who did the whole campaign... Ok Luv, Knob twiddler, stars and the album. Plus he did the Stars video as well. The cd is in a black jewel case... with the printing of the cover directly on the outside of the case. I've never seen that before and the text is on a sticker that wraps around from the front to the back it's sick.


What are the difference between the parties in US and in Europe? Are you doing more US stuff now that 'Dubstep' is getting bigger over there?

It's pretty much split. like this month I'm in the US and Canada... then most of May and June I'm in Europe. The parties in the UK are becoming a bit more diverse which is nice to see in the US... it's always been quite diverse.... because people come at Dubstep from such different places
like there are people in the US who are "big" in the US Dubstep scene who no one in UK even knows about I think it's kind of weird there's this whole other community of people that have embraced the sound.

So are you kind of considered as part of that scene, or you like alternative dubstep? Sometimes I see line ups for American nights with like 3 DJs from England and that shocks me when guys like you are close by.

Well the UK stuff definitely gets embraced a lot here. I mean... there's a lot of people who listen to Dubstep who know Skream, Benga, Caspa.... and that's their frame of reference. A lot of them may have been into Drum & Bass which I wasn't, and they come at it from people moving from DNB to Dubstep.

Yea I thought as much, but then I see Joker, Roska, Kode 9 doing U.S tours as well, so it isn't just a wobble thing.

I guess I'm the opposite though. I've been embraced by the people in the UK and Europe a lot which is obviously great. oh yeah... it's not just one particular sound I play a decent amount in the US as well and Canada has a vibrant scene too, the US is so spread out. It's such a big place.... that there are people that gravitate to certain sounds in different parts of the country even. People don't realize how big this place is.


Starkey Australia/NZ Tour - March 2009

Starkey | MySpace Music Videos

What about the other side Australia and New Zealand do you get out there?

I played out there last March a little over a year ago some of the shows were good... others not so. I think if I went out there now I'd have a better reception. It's so far to travel though. I was miserable on the plane. it would have to be some seriously good shows to get me back out there.

The traveling must takes its toll, do you tend to have long periods without gigs and use that time to build or do you just make whenever you can?

Yeah. I also currently teach full time so that makes touring even more difficult. It's got to be packed into these short trips like earlier this month i played 10 shows in 9 days in the UK and Europe that was intense.

And then went back to school?

Yeah, the next morning, I got home at midnight... then was up at 7am for the train to work!

Thought bout going part time?

Possibly. it all depends on how things are going really.I get off most of December and January... then May until the end of August so that's a lot of time to play shows. Plus I've done weekend trips to the UK before. They're marathons... but it's do able.

What have you got lined up for the summer?
Gonna be in the UK and Europe most of May and June, a festival in the US in May... other than that... just trying to get some festival dates and working on more music.

You heard this dream mclean "woo riddem freestyle"? I love it beat's sick as well!

*We both discuss our favourite versions of 'Woo Riddim'*


Swindle said you sent him over some bits to work on right?

Yeah... but I don't think he could figure out what to do with it I was having problems with the drop... That's why I sent it to him I still want to do a tune with him though, and terror. Would be sick. Every time I try that though... it never works out. Joker and I tried something... even sitting in his studio... and it was kind of shit.

Would definitely be amazing, I have been really pushing the co production and remix thing with this batch of producers lately, to keep them on their toes. Have you done any other co productions?

It's funny because I'm all about remixes just the whole co-produce thing just doesn't work for me for some reason, I'm hoping to break the trend though.

Thanks for doing the Air Bubble Remix as well, have you heard many of the others, if so what are you feeling?

Yeah I listened to the links from the Grime Forum. None of them are as good as the original even mine the original works so well.

Yours, Royal-Ts, Swindles, Mr Mitch's were among the highly rated but the reason why I released the parts is because I felt the original was slept on. What would you say was your slept on track?

Oh man... that's a difficult one, I mean... I don't think I've ever had a big tune. Gutter music is probably the closest I'm surprised Creature didn't get people going as much as I thought it would. At that point I think it was one of the best tunes I had made, since the Gutter VIP but on the last tour I had people request it twice... I'm actually really surpised the Armand Van Helden remix I did wasn't well received "illin n Fillin It". That tune was my favorite for a while.

What would you say you still want to achieve as a DJ & producer? Have you exceeded your expectations from when you first started releasing music?

I'm extremely grateful that people enjoy my music enough to buy records and come out to hear me play, it's amazing. I couldn't have imagined this even 5 years ago but I believe if what you're doing is genuine, then people will take notice.



Watch out for 'Ear Drums & Black Holes' April 19th on Planet Mu and his remix of 'Air Bubble' coming soon 'fingers crossed' on Butterz.