Ben Jones is a guy who radiates an infectious passion and energy for House music. He has something that is lost within a lot of modern music, true love for what he does. I have worked with Ben on a few occasions to produce EPs such as Lost Memories on YAYA, and he is honestly an amazing person to work with. When Ben has an idea for a track, he is relentless in his pursuit of an energised finished product. In the time since our last release together, Ben has been working hard behind the scenes to make a real name for himself.
He has since gone on to release some amazing EP’s on New Violence and Roush, to name a couple and has even set up his own label and event Before Records. With the return of his event coming up on the 26th April in Liverpool’s North Shore Troubadour, featuring the House maestro Seb Zito, David Glass, Kylin Tyce and the main man Ben himself; we had the pleasure of catching up with Ben and finding out his inspirations and what his vision for the future is.
Mix of the Week - Space 92
Mix of the Week - Max CooperBen’s sound reflects a wide range of retro influences mixed with a modern twist. His groovy and energetic tracks have a nostalgic vibe to them, so we asked where Ben’s inspirations came from. “From a young age, I’ve always listened to different genres and artists, such as Prince, The Streets, Hip Hop, Jungle, garage and house and more” Ben replied. This eclectic mixture of sounds is really reflected well in Ben’s records; a modern blend of garage and House.
As an individual who knows how to network, to build support and develop real connections within the music industry, we asked what Ben’s main piece of advice for up comers would be. “Have some direction into where you want your music to go, networking at venues and other nights helps to build support”, Ben stated. I couldn’t agree more, especially in relation to having some direction. An issue that seems to plague many artists is not really knowing what they want out of a production.
In terms of Ben’s production process, he seems to prefer to go into the studio with a more creative mindset, than a formulaic one. “I like to keep an open mind in the studio and just jam out and feel for a groove”. Being absolutely fascinated by the warmth of Ben’s tracks, we had to ask what kind of equipment he preferred to use. “I use quite a lot of analogue equipment and also digital; Korg Volcas, Maschine Studio, MPC’s, Junos. Whatever I can get my hands on! With using hardware it’s pretty much unique what your creating, I don’t think there’s a right or wrong way of making music.” Ben clearly has a well-developed sense of experimentation.
Ben released music on some of the most outstanding labels in the underground industry, such as Roush, New Violence and more. He has worked with the likes of Hector Couto on these labels, so we had to ask what advice Ben could give to those wanting to work with their dream labels. ‘Network with the label you’re interested in releasing on, make a back catalogue of your tracks and support others music on the labels you like in your sets or mixes’, Ben replied.
Naturally, with his consistent releases and support, Ben eventually decided to set up his record label, Before Records, which also runs a sublime monthly podcast. Ben told us about the thought process behind the label. “We set the label as a platform for us to release on and to play with other artists that we want to play alongside. Sometimes it can be tough releasing so our idea with the label is to help newcomers and put them with other artists who have been in the industry for some years.”
The label eventually led to the establishment of the Before Records live event, which is back on 26th April in Liverpool’s North Shore Troubadour. “The launch went really well we had Jamie Trench owner of Roots For Bloom Records play for us. Our next label night we have Seb Zito from FUSE London at North Shore Troubadour which we are all gunning for, April 26th.”
Ben’s experience in the club circuit across the UK has also been massively beneficial in giving him the experience to run his own night. We asked where his favourite venue to play is. “One of them has to be Gonzo’s Tea Room home of YAYA Records, I walked in and the atmosphere was unreal and the venue reminded of somewhere in Amsterdam. There is one venue I’m working towards maybe playing this year, Village Underground.”
To conclude the interview, we asked Ben about his plans for 2019 and what we could expect to see from his label this year. “I have a number of releases set for this year, Easy yeh EP dropped first. I have forthcoming EP releases with Before Records, Roots For Blooms Records, Ladeep plus remix duties for Outstrip and other artists. With the label, we have just taken on ‘Koord’ as a resident who has been plugging away and stacking original material in the studio and networking alongside myself ready for releasing.”
Ben is clearly a passionate and talented individual who is keen to help others develop. He is one of the industries good guys and has certainly been carving his own path. The future is bright for Ben and we were absolutely delighted to be able to sit down and hear his thoughts. Make sure you keep your eyes peeled for this future star.
Tracklist:
01. Seb Zito – Why (EDIT)
02. Djoko – Spank the Wurli (Original Mix)
03. The Willers Brothers – Just Us (Rich Nxt Remix)
04. Kylin Tyce – Gridlock (Original Mix)
05. Paulo Rocco – This Life
06. F&Z – F&Z.3
07. Kepler – Last (Original Mix)
08. Ben Jones- Elvanse (Original Mix)
09. Ben Jones – Vision (Original Mix)
10. Fabe – Kim on gin ( Enzo Siragusa & Seb Zito Remix)
