DJ Die

Music Box by Roni Size and DJ Die from 1996. How bad is this tune? Rare groove meets rolling breakbeat. DJ Die's one of my favouritest producers EVER. It's A Jazz Thing, with Roni Size also is a seminal jungle cut, while track such as Autumn and Jittabug are stone cold classics too. Die's has been working on his new label and producing Ben Westbeech's gorgeous soul and rinsing d&b with Clipz. Here's an interview I did with Die that appeared in Newcastle Metro on Friday.

5 Questions for DJ Die

Producer/DJ Die (Daniel Kausman), pioneered jungle/d'n'b with Bristol's Full Cycle crew (Roni Size, Krust) and was an integral member of Mercury Prize-winning Reprazent before forming punk-d'n'b band Breakbeat Era (XL). In recent times he's produced Ben Westbeech (signed to Gilles Peterson's Brownswood Recordings) and this year started his own label, Clear Skyz

Did you take a break from producing d'n'b?
I've not put out as much music as i did a few years back but I'm always producing beats: hip hop, funk, soul, house, disco and off key stuff. You can get stuck in a rut but if you make different types of music it keeps it interesting and helps with my inspiration for d'n'b. I worked with Ben Westbeech on his album and we've also done a few hip hop tracks that we're looking to put out.

How's the release schedule looking for Clear Skyz?
Things are looking good. The next release is a Die/Clipz collaboration Indian Summer, then there are tracks I've done with Break, another with Lenny Laws from Breakbeat Era, and my own tracks are going to make an appearance too. My initial aim is to put out four singles a year and keep the quality control high. There are also going to be exclusives available on www.clearskyz.co.uk

Are you surprised there haven't been more d'n'b bands after Reprazent, and Breakbeat Era?
I don't know why there aren't more live acts in d'n'b. Maybe because you need to have a big budget to go on tour as so many people are involved: band, tour manager, mixing engineer, monitor man, lighting man, roadies. D'n'b's mainly independently run and hasn't got the resources.

Rave is currently enjoying a renaissance. Will the same happen with jungle?
It already is, let's not forget that a lot of old school jungle is rave/old school hardcore. I recently played a old school jungle set at a Hospitality gig in Bristol and it was a new school crowd. You could tell that they had never heard alot of what I was playing but they were loving it.

You were a keen skateboarder do you still indulge?
Yeah I live two minutes from a skate park and I'm friends with Danny Wainright and the 50/50 crew in Bristol. I'm not out as much as i was when i was 25 but I'll be out come summer time. I will always have a skateboard state of mind just these days i have a record label to run too.