kaesharp Posted February 15 Report Share Posted February 15 QUALITY OF LIFE'SPRESIDENT'S DAY SHINDIGSUNDAY FEB 19TH 2006NO WORRIES ON MONDAYMAMPI SWIFTCHARGE RECORDINGS, UKMampi Swift a colossus in ever sense of the word, recalls in the early days how he used his height to his advantage. “When I was 13 I was able to get into raves like Energy to hear Fabio, Grooverider & Randall which is where it all started for him’In 1990 Swift starting Djing himself and he eventually found himself behind the counter of the now defunct Lucky Spin record shop. Access to the studio next door with in house engineer Pete Parsons (AKA Voyager) at the controls was probably the best thing about the job and Swift jumped at the valuable opportunity to learn new skills. “ Pete helped us a lot. There were a few of us going in there, like Trace & Tonic. It was around this time that I really started to take a liking to the production side of things.’’On the Djing side, 1992 saw the start of an 8 year residency on Kool FM. Clubwise at this time Swift was a regular at events such as One Nation and True Playaz at The End.Before setting up Charge Recordings, for a few years Swift was releasing tunes on other labels such as True Playaz, Frontline, Suburban Base, SOUR & K Power.Mampi Swift launched Charge Recordings with the release of ‘Twisted followed by ‘Feel Good’ in 1997. The track that really announced the arrival of Charge was the third release, ‘The One’, “definitely’’ he agrees, “it’s was one of the biggest rave tunes at that time, and still to this day remains a huge dance floor anthem. ‘The One’ stamped a huge sign of authority for Charge, in the scene ’’.Despite this success Swift did not get carried away: “The most important thing is consistency with what I put out. I have got to make sure the stuff after is as good if not better.’’Swift describes his style as ‘plain rolling’ and while simple, catchy beats are a key element to his overall sound, it ’s the unique distorted basslines people notice.Adjectives like ’nasty’, ‘dirty’, ‘raw’, ‘twisted’ and even gut rumbling have been used to describe them in reviews. “When I make music I find it hard to get a vibe from just a straight 808 bassline,’’ he explains, “so I get noises, fuck them up and turn them into basslines.’’ Another trademark effect comes at the mixing down stage. “The way my stuff gets mastered, there’s not so much bass in the track, so the engineer can get it sounding very loud, and that brings out everything.’’Swifts productions are dark and also have enough energy and power to rock a dance floor but this isn’t by accident “Its called balanced music. It’s always important to have a balance but it’s also good to be natural. I remember around ’95 a lot of people were knocking up big tunes quickly using a few hip-hop samples. A lot of producers have now faded because they got caught in that trap of what’s running at the time. If you check people like Andy C, Roni Size and Krust, who have been smashing it for years now, their music is balanced.’’Charge Recordings achieved a quick level of notoriety gaining an identity in the Drum & Bass scene at a time when labels such as Ram, V & Trouble on Vinyl largely dominated. A further 9 quality releases followed up to the year 2000 earning Charge a solid reputation for releasing a consistent high standard of production. Swifts focus on building this reputation was to achieve a rapport between Charge and the consumer. “I want people to know they can buy a Charge record with out having to listen to it, and not doubt their purchase, and this still remains Charge’s philosophyâ€2001 saw the release of the Resurrection EP featuring the dance floor destroying Anthem ‘Trippin’. The impact the 4 tunes made during their dubplate life left clubbers mouth watering for the release. This and the sales reflected Swift had accomplished being a dj/producer who is capable of damaging dance floors. The Feedback EP & the release of Swifts debut Album ‘Mainframe’, followed, and with Charge now approaching it’s 25th release in May 2004. Along the way Swift has worked with talented producers such as Friction, Sine, Warped Science and more recently the introduction of the highly acclaimed DJ/Producer Blame – Charge has and will remain to be, an established and consistent contender for accolades. There will also be an exciting, Charge quality EP by the end of the year, to coincide with the Charge Label Tour that is taking place worldwide in 2004. What else can we expect from Charge ?Well one things for sure Mampi Swift djing and double dropping worldwide will continue, as Charge gathers more momentum this year, with Charge being managed in house from label management to tour management everything we can do to consistently maintain the exceptional levels of quality that Charge is all about !I-CUEINGENIOUS MUSIC"Look out for the upcoming Ingenious Music cd release "The Snip SnapSampler EP" containing new music from T.R.A.C. & I-Cue. Bringing youthat pure hip-hop and hipstep flava."KAE SHARPQUALITY OF LIFEJUNGLEZQUALITY OF LIFESULLIVAN ROOM218 SULLIVAN STREET, NYC10PM / 21+ TO ENTER$8 BEFORE 12AM / $15 AFTER2 FOR 1 DRINK SPECIALS BEFORE MIDNIGHTWWW.QUALITYOFLIFE.TVWWW.INGENIOUSMUSIC.COMWWW.SULLIVANROOM.COMWWW.QUALITYOFLIFE.TV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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