D/R/U/G/S
Manchester’s own D/R/U/G/S; press photo courtesy of the artist.
Manchester prince of the nu-sophisti beat Callum Wright, oka D/R/U/G/S just dropped the big-mental dance floor destroyer “New Born Love” featuring rich vocals courtesy of Akiine. Released via Wright’s own Code Silence label, the DJ/producer/artist/and so forth continues to create designer sound narcotics that have grown in greater pop distinctions like the subterranean basement rave sounds emanating to the concrete FM radio surface levels of main street. With an upcoming busy schedule playing Start The Bus in Bristol August 28, The Waiting Room in London September 1, and DJing Shoreditch’s 1234 Festival September 3; D/R/U/G/S sets out to channel our own chemical compositions that comprise feeling, moods, motivations, & more through pastiches of house beat revelations.
“New Born Love” moves with an assured sense of found affections where Akiine’s candid vocals provide a warm sense of perpetual endearment in recitations of “I always want to sing for you.” The joy & bliss brought by a realized love or new special addition to one’s family is celebrated with an intimate piano key hooks adorned by exorbitant rhythms that shine bright like clusters of bright beaming diamonds & crystals. Callum & Akiine comprise a synergistic team where the the understated aspects of Wrights keys are elaborated upon by Akiine’s earnest delivery that brings infinite sense of care & comfort. Read our following interview with Manchester’s own Callum Wright.
Tell us about the processes and pragmatism at work on the new EP.
It’s a continuation of where I’ve been heading the past couple of releases, moving the sounds of the live show, club releases and
full band tracks closer together into one whole project. Taking parts of all these different styles, based around dance music/electronica and trying to form something new.
Interested in hearing about how the live show has evolved as well.
We’re just about to launch our first full live show in a couple of months, super excited about it. I’ve done live electronic shows before but there’s a limit to what can be achieved there, especially with only one person, you’re kind of limited to playing around with samples and loops etc, which while fun isn’t particularly engaging as a performance. Now with a vocalist on board, it’s given us so many options. The best live shows I’ve ever seen have all been from the legendary older names in dance music, Underworld, Chemical Brothers, Orbital, I’d love to build towards something like what they put across.
Give us the story about the birth of “New Born Love” and working with vocalist Akiine. How did her contributions breathe new sorts of life into the song?
She released a few EPs on Bad Life Records same as ourselves and her vocal stood out immediately as something that fits in perfectly with our sound. Lyrically it’s so rare to find club or club-influenced tracks that have any intelligence to them, they are usually horrendous, I was delighted with what she put together.
What prompted the formation of Code Silence Records?
It’s something I’ve wanted to do for the past four years, ever since I started D/R/U/G/S. The majority of labels in dance music are run by artists and the scene is far healthier because of it. I’d love to see that concept spread across music, it’s hard because without knowing how to set things up or the kind of help you need its impossible to get something off the ground, we’ve had help from some great people who genuinely care about getting good music out there and supporting artists, those people are thin on the ground.
Other artists and releases we should also be hip to?
Mhairi, Akiine, Kotelett & Zadak, Sirens of Lesbos, HQFU, Winter Son, The White Shadow. All newish, all electronic of some form. All amazing. Also, here’s a shameless plug, look out for Darkline, a new club collaboration gonna be putting out their first singles on Code Silence.
Future predictions and hopes from D/R/U/G/S?
I can’t wait to get this live show up and running, the songs are so much fun to play, Candi (our singer) is great to work with and there’s just so much to play around with sound-wise, there’s a lot of possibilities. And just to survive the next few years before the UK Conservative party ban music.
