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The Evolution of Phil Reynolds
Reported by Ben Gomori
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Submitted 09-07-07 22:58
A true legend of London's hard dance scene if ever there was one, Phil Reynolds has been an integral part of the capital's two biggest hard parties (HeatUK and Frantic) since they both began, proving to be one of the most popular and enduring DJs around. His closing sets at Camden Palace were nothing short of awe-inspiring, and his numerous productions and remixes over the years with the likes of James Lawson, Steve Blake and Nick Sentience have assured that his fame has spread far and wide. Now the time has come for him to unleash his debut album, The Digital Revolution which will be released this July on his new label Digital Creation, with a rather tasty looking launch party in the form of HeatUK's The Evolution of Phil Reynolds on July 14th at KOKO.
Friends and colleagues Kevin Energy, Ian Betts, Technikal, Andy Farley and Steve Blake will join him on the night on the main stage, plus he'll also be performing a live PA as the icing on the cake. It's been a fair while since he's had the chance to blast it out in his "second home", so you can be rest assured he's going to give it his all to ensure that it's an unforgettable event.
What was the first track you ever made? Do you think it’s any good now?
My first track was ‘See No Evil’, which I did with DJ Amethyst. It still goes down really well and people still ask me where they can get it from. I still really like it and would say it was one of my best tunes.
At what point did you start becoming really confident in the studio?
I’m still not 100% confident in the studio. I still struggle to mix tracks down right and get them sounding as good as they should. Producing is such a big learning curve and you are always learning new things. I think my stuff sounds OK, but it’s nowhere near as good as someone like BK or Nick Sentience. I’ll get there one day hopefully.
Who have you learnt the most from during your years producing?
I’d have to say Nick Sentience. The man is amazing in the studio. I learnt so much from the time I spent with him doing out first track together. It was unbelievable. Since then I’ve always enjoyed working with him.
Let’s talk about your eponymous debut album then. How long has it been in the making and has it been an easy ride or a difficult one?
I’ve spent the last 2 months doing it. It has been difficult because I work full-time and it’s difficult to fit everything in. I’ve been working at home in the evenings after work as well at weekends. All the people I’ve worked with had to fit in around that, which wasn’t so easy to organise. So it’s been really full on for the past 2 months. There are collaborations with Nick Sentience, Nick Rowland, Technikal, MDA & Spherical, Trevor McLachlan and Greg Brookman and some of my own tracks on the album.
Why has it taken you so long to record an album? After all you’ve been churning out the tunes for quite some time now, why did the time seem right?
I started writing tracks for an album about 2 years ago, but only decided a couple of months ago that I would put out a Phil Reynolds Hard Dance album. The other stuff that I’ve been writing has been non hard dance stuff like breaks. It’s been a long time coming and I felt the time was right for me to get an album out before it was too late. Really I should have put this album out about a year ago, but at that point I didn’t know which direction I wanted to go in musically.
What music have you been influenced by while making this album?
The album reflects the music I play so there is trance, tech-trance, psy-trance and hard trance. Originally I was going to put on loads of different musically styles like breaks and house, but I realised that the name Phil Reynolds means trance to most people. So I’ve stuck with what I’m known for. Once this album is out the way I’m gonna spend some time finishing off the breaks stuff that I’ve done.
Is there anything on there that might surprise people? Any ballads or slow jams for instance?
I don’t think so. It’s pretty much the same sound as what I play. I’ve got a really bad voice as well, so if I tried a ballad I think it would scare people. Plus I’ve never heard a ballad recorded at 145 BPM! Maybe the next album will be full of surprises. We’ll see.
You are doing your first ever solo live PA during the show. Tell us more about that.
The live PA will give me a chance to showcase the album music as well as some of my older music. I’m still in the process of learning how to use Ableton Live. Hopefully it will all come together on the night. I’ll probably be crapping myself that something will do wrong though. I still have a few weeks to get it all sorted. So fingers crossed. I’m really looking forward to it though.
When you make a track, where do you usually begin the creative process?
I usually start off by getting the beats together, then on to the bassline. Once all that is sorted I start on the melodies and any other bits that need to be put in. I know that some people start with writing the melody and making the rest of the track fit around the melody.
Which track has given you the most difficulty in making over the years?
Remixes are the most difficult things to get right. Myself and Steve made a bit of a hash of our remix of Steve Morley ‘Reincarnation’. It is such a great tune and we got really stuck trying to make it better. In the end we didn’t give the tune any justice and I wish we had never taken it on.
What do you make of the current state of play in the hard dance scene?
The scene seems to be getting smaller and smaller. There are less young people getting into it these days and all the older generation of clubbers have moved onto different genres of music. There is a lot of good new music about, so hopefully that will start to attract more new people.
When Camden Palace closed down, did you think you’d ever get the chance to play there again? People really thought that it was all over.
I thought it was all over to tell you the truth. I love the venue. It was kind of my DJing home for such a long time. I just loved playing there. It was such a sad day for me when it closed as a clubbing venue. So I’m obviously very happy that I’ve got the chance to do my album launch party there.
Andy Farley, Ian Betts, Steve Blake, Technikal and Kevin Energy will join you at Evolution for 6 hours of back-to-backness. How and when did you meet each of them?
I think I would have met Andy when he first played for Frantic. Ian I’ve known for a very long time. I first met him at Turnmills through a friend. We became friends and went clubbing together. This was way before either of us starting DJing. We had some fun times back then, so I’m pleased that I’ve got him on the line up. Steve I first met at Provocation, a Sunday morning club that I used to be resident at. He had just had some really big tracks released on Tidy. He came and said hello and I was like ‘wow this is Steve Blake’. He mentioned something to me about doing a tune together for his label and the rest is history.
Alf (Technikal) I first met at Mass I think. This little 5 year old boy came bounding up to me saying ‘Hello my name is Technikal’. I was like “Sorry son, are you old enough to be in this club?!” Alf will laugh at this because he calls me an old timer, which compared to him I am. I had been in contact with him via e-mail, but I’d never actually met him before that. And Kevin, I have no idea when I first met him.
Got any dirt to dish on any of the aforementioned? You must have some stories from over the years that are worth hearing
Yeah I have plenty, but I’m not gonna say anything though. They might bash me!
What’s been your most enjoyable gig of the year so far, home or away?
I don’t really know to tell you the truth. I did really enjoy my first live PA with MDA and Spherical at Innovate. It was a different buzz to DJing.
HeatUK: The Evolution of Phil Reynolds
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On:
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Saturday 14th July 2007
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At:
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KOKO [map]
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From:
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2200 - 0600
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Cost:
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£15/£17 advance, MOTD
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Website:
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www.heatuk.com
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Ticket Info:
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£15 Early Bird / £17 Saver / MOTD
Ticketweb: http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=gb_london&query=detail&event=224798 / 08700 600 100
Clubtickets (Buy 5 get 1 free) www.clubtickets.com 08702 462030
Viewtickets www.viewtickets.co.uk
Never Enough Maria (Cash Sales – N. London) www.neverenoughevents.com 07813 684399
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Buy Online:
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Click here to buy tickets
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More:
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Picture the scene. It’s 5:55am at KOKO. You’re standing in the middle of the dancefloor, surrounded by a sea of ecstatic clubbers soaking up the last few minutes of the party, anticipating that mindblowing final tune. The DJ unleashes another huge, chunky, hard-grooving bassline, jumping out of the speakers and smacking the crowd sternly in the solar plexus. The tough hard house beats are soon joined by invigorating, uplifting hard trance riffs, creating an incredibly potent strain of dancefloor energy that has the dancefloor in a frenzy. Clubbing doesn’t get more exciting and intense than this. No DJ has created more of these unforgettable moments in London’s hard dance scene than Phil Reynolds.
For the past 13 years, Phil has been rocking dance floors across the globe. From his beginnings in London Phil has risen up the ranks to become one of the worlds most popular hard dance DJs. He’s headlined Brixton Academy, The Astoria, Turnmills, arenas at Escape In The Park and Creamfields and countless others across the planet. From Australia to Argentina, Russia to Japan and beyond, his distinctive, powerful sound has won fans far and wide.
A fierce producer to boot, Phil’s solo tracks and collaborations with the likes of Steve Blake and Nick Sentience have been amongst the most enduring and popular tracks in the hard dance genre. From ‘Instru(mental)’ to ‘It’s A Dream’ and ‘War On Drugs’ and all his releases on Impact Recordings, his tracks never let the quality slip and have laid waste to countless dancefloors. And now, in 2007, the time has come for his long-awaited debut album to finally be unleashed. ‘The Digital Revolution’ will be released this July on his new label Digital Creation, featuring stunning collaborations with the likes of Technikal, Nick Rowland, MDA & Spherical, Matt Williams and Greg Brookman. HeatUK are proud to present a tribute to this legend with The Evolution of Phil Reynolds; a night of hard dance mayhem at KOKO featuring a 6 hour set from the man himself, plus sets from Andy Farley, Technikal and Steve Blake.
The king of Hard Trance is back…in a big way.
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Other Features By Ben Gomori:
HF exclusive SouthWestFour preview: Sasha vs Digweed
Scott Attrill aka Vinylgroover: The Bass Junkie
The Bluffer's Guide to Detroit Techno
Riot! memories as hard dance returns to The End
The King is back! Andy Farley finally returns
The views and opinions expressed in this review are strictly those of the author only for which HarderFaster will not be held responsible or liable.
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