Ahead of the release of their brand new LP ‘From One End Of The Spectrum’ this Friday (October 14th), Manchester duo System2 stop by to chat. Not only have the respected pair of producers taken the time to answer our most pressing questions, they’ve also provided a fresh sixty minute mix to soundtrack your week!
WWD: Having started out 15 years ago in Manchester, you’re both no strangers to the house scene. Can you tell us a little bit about how you got your start in the club circuit, and when you started producing and releasing?
We started in 2002 under the name H2! We both got a pair of belt drive decks and started going record shopping twice a week. It was only months later we were playing wherever we could for free. Bars in Manchester, Oldham and the surrounding areas! It was another 2-3 years after when we first made our first track. Can’t even remember what it was now! Think it was on our own vinyl label at the time. Still got about 200 copies of it in the loft.
WWD: Can you share some of your most memorable moments from growing up in Manchester? Were there any stand out venues, DJs or even specific tunes, that had a big impact on either of you growing up?
We are 5 years apart so we grew into the Manchester music scene at different stages. Danny says Higher State Of Consciousness made a massive impact on him when he heard it at the Hacienda. I think for me getting into the scene and going down to the smaller house venue at the time like Hangar, The Old Monk and North had a massive effect on me and led me into where I am today!
WWD: ‘From One End Of The Spectrum’ LP is your latest release. It’s out on Skint records, which has a glowing reputation for eclectic scene leaders – ranging from Fatboy Slim, to Alter Ego and Dave Clarke. Can you tell us a little bit about your relationship with the label, and what makes it a good home for the music you’re currently making?
Skint Records was a label we earmarked for the album when we finished it last year. It took no longer than an hour for their A&R to come back to us on the demos and here we are today awaiting its release on October 14th. We are already working on a second album and it’s sounding amazing already. Skint have given us an opportunity to present our music to the world and we are really grateful. They’ve had a big hand in our live show which begins in December with a full live video production with vdmx.
WWD: The album sounds hugely diverse, referencing hip-hop to acid and everything in between. What kinds of music were you guys listening to during and leading up to the writing process of ‘From One End Of The Spectrum’?
Our musical influences come from all genres of music. Pink Floyd, The Doors, Led Zeppelin, The Chemical Brothers, The Beastoe Boys, Fatboy Slim. Just a few of so many. We always try and be original with our music but we’d be lying if we say artists like those mentioned don’t inspire us.
WWD: Today, anybody can pick up a laptop and produce music or DJ. On the one hand, this can be seen as a positive kind of democratisation of music. On the other, it could be seen to devalue Vinyl, mixing and traditional recording methods. What do you prefer to DJ with, and why? What sort of creative methods have you employed to write and records ‘From One End Of The Spectrum’?
We absolutely love vinyl. Our label has a lot of vinyl releases and we’ve stuck with vinyl since we learnt to play on it 14 years ago. When we should we switch between vinyl and USB. But we are really starting to enjoy the live stuff so much more now. Maybe we will go 90% live if people want it! We want it to be more than 2 guys playing records. Live music and visual production has always been a goal of ours and now it’s so close to becoming a part of our set up we want the world to know about it!
“From One End of the Spectrum” is out this Friday. Pre-Order your copy on Vinyl / CD / Digital here: https://skint.lnk.to/FOEotS
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