Adam Freeland at New York's Breakbeat Science
Jan 1, 2002 12:00 PM, by Ken Micallef
Brighton, England — based DJ and producer Adam Freeland coined the term nu-skool breakbeat when he realized that everyone around him was mired in old-school fever. Even though Freeland says that he's primarily concerned with helping music progress, he confesses to a personal fascination with one of the most maligned old-school genres: 1970s jazz-rock fusion.
“Sonically, what Mahavishnu Orchestra was doing is very similar to what I am doing,” Freeland says, nursing an orange juice and a massive hangover incurred from the previous night's DJ set at New York City's Shine. “There are a lot of good samples on Mahavishnu records, not that I use them verbatim. I love Visions of the Emerald Beyond and The Inner Mounting Flame. With the Fluke remix I did for On Tour, I tried to capture that tripped-out feeling I hear with Mahavishnu. They have that soundscape in their music. And wicked drums.”
The sound of cut-up drums skipping, looping, and careening is one of On Tour's special ingredients. Featuring new tracks from Überzone and Forme as well as familiar faves from Bushwacka and Radioactive Man, On Tour proves that Freeland's rise to breakbeat prominence is no, er, fluke. On Tour has a sense of space in which you can breathe. It's a great experience whether you are dancing or not — a quality that eludes many other mix CDs. Inclusion of sparse, cerebral tracks by Pressure Drop, Sound Workers, and Exile adds drama to the pounding floor-fillers.
Freeland holds a residency at London's Fabric and hosts a weekly Friday night radio show on London's popular Kiss 100. He also DJs frequently at Washington D.C.'s Buzz, San Francisco's Spundae, and Barcelona's Nitsa Club. Surprisingly, he began his musical career as a Hendrix-loving blues guitarist. After a life-changing experience hearing A Guy Called Gerald's “Voodoo Ray,” Freeland began spinning Masters at Work, Todd Terry, and tracks from the Strictly Rhythm stable.
Freeland's attitude toward contemporary house is surprisingly critical. “It is easy to make a house record,” he says. “You get your software, record a 909 kick drum, add a trippy sound, and you've got a house record. But with breakbeat, you've got to be a very experienced producer to get a really good sound, because it is so much more intricate. It is harder to get beats punching without using drum machines. I base what I am doing around proper funk beats sampled from old soul tracks, which are chopped up and rearranged.”
Walking into Breakbeat Science — the United States' leading drum 'n' bass specialist shop — in Manhattan's Lower East Side, Freeland first checks for his own records and those of his label, Marine Parade. Oddly enough, On Tour is missing (though his previous CD, Tectonics, is on display), but Marine Parade's roster of Ils, Tsunami One, Apex, Beber, and Evil 9 is well represented. “They all have their own sound,” says Freeland about his Marine Parade artists. “My ethos is to put out music that works in a club but also has musical depth so that it is a good, enjoyable listen on any level. Everything we do is very musical.”
The prominent London DJ comes home to a huge stack of new releases waiting in the mail, but with constant touring and overseeing Marine Parade, he has little time for listening. As a result, his selection process is fast and ultracritical. “Jesus!” he shouts as he quickly needle-drops through stacks of vinyl. “I can't handle London boys singing on house records. There is nothing better than a great vocal, but nothing worse than an average vocal. So many house vocals never get past ‘take me higher.’ Drumrolls are a turnoff. I can drive the crowd wild without having to use a big snare roll. Sometimes you hear this wicked electro track, and then it has this cheesy snare roll. Then some dodgy vocal comes in.
“I look for a balance between something that is interesting and that you can also play out,” Freeland says. “Often, the simplest records work best. One of the first things I listen for is production. If a record is badly produced, it will not work in my set.” Tempo, however, is less important. “My new mix album is at about 132 bpm,” he explains. “When I am at home in the studio, I like making records at about 128 to 130. But in a club, my metabolism speeds up, and the tempo will go up to 133 or 135. I don't like going faster than that, because you lose the funk. There is not enough space between the beats.”
With his own artist debut in the works and no end to touring in sight, Freeland remains buoyant, if sleepless, about his prospects: “The most exciting point of any musical form right now is where the technological meets the organic. That is always exciting in any creative medium — where you've got that warm organic center, but with a high-tech edge. Sonically, that is what I am trying to do: to have that warmth, but with something extra. That is what turns me on.”
Here are Freeland's comments about the record finds that turned him on.
Agent-X
“Decoy”
Heatseeker
You know those little seven-inch ragga tunes put out for the dance floor? This has got that beat, that ragga rhythm, like the stuff I have been working on for my album. I don't think the production is great, but there are not many records around like this with that ragga beat. I can probably just cut it up in my sampler; I wouldn't play it in its entirety. I don't hear much ragga at this tempo; most ragga is 110 bpm. I could use this at peak times. It is something original, really. It is not drastically great, but it's similar to what I have been working on, though my music is better than this.
Blue Martin
“The Conversation”
Inflight Entertainment
Nice beat. This is musical, and it's got some depth. I would like to find a complete dance-floor smasher, but this is not quite that. It is not amazing, but just … nice. It has some quality — a lot of what I have been listening to here is crap, but that is what usually happens when I go into a store to buy records. This would work well early in my set or as a warm-up tune.
Darqwan
“Pipe Dreams”
Soulja
Good bass line. The way the bass and kick drum are synced up is very hip-hop. Call me boring, but again, it is the unusual rhythm that I like here. I like the flute sample, too. I don't know how I would fit it into my set; this is more party style. I could cut it up and put it in. This has good production, too: fat drums, well mixed. The bass line is pulling the beat, which shows that they obviously know how to make music.
DJ Zinc
“Unstable”
Bingo
Bingo is Zinc's label. You can tell that this was done in a day: it is thrown together. I like the time signature, though. They call this break-step or breakbeat two-step. I like it because it switches beats. To be honest, if it wasn't for that, I wouldn't be interested in this. The beat is like a triplet feel: it goes to a 3/4 over the four — three beats around the four, which is original. The sounds are not that freaky, but they do add to the dance-floor possibilities. This is one of the better records I've heard today, especially the Wookie remix, which has that little Rhodes sound. Good bass line. I like Wookie. Some of his stuff is wicked.
Hatiras
“Spaced Invader”
(Ed Rush and Optical remix)
Canvas
This is just a groove with a good bass line. It has a simple hook that sounds repetitive. When you mix it, you can get around that, though. It's like a house track, but I can play it on 33 rpm and pitch it up. Some drum 'n' bass tracks sound like they are being played at the wrong speed when you play them at 33, but some work. That breakdown is all right — it doesn't sound too plodding at 33, but it is supposed to be played up. I'd put it on 33 but with the pitch up to +8. Okay, we are getting there!
Nos
“Words from the Wise”
Zest
This one has some depth, just like the Blue Martin tune. Nice production. The snare is accenting an interesting part of the rhythm. It is original. It's nice to hear a beat accented off the “and” of the rhythm. They do that quite a lot in hip-hop as well as in some Latin music. This has musical ideas in it, not just the usual sounds. I would probably put this on a mix tape or if I was playing at the beginning of a night just to warm up. It is not good for peak time, but it would do for something mellow — a bit of a shuffler.
Shimon and Andy C
“Body Rock”
Ram
Wicked drum 'n' bass track. I have heard a million people playing it, and it has been out a couple of months. I did this tour at the beginning of the year with Roni Size, and he was playing this off a dub plate. It's just a good track that I would like to have. I sometimes bust out a drum 'n' bass track like this. I could run it down to 33. Again, it has an original beat. Most drum 'n' bass tracks have the same accents, but this one has more interesting timing. That extra kick in there gives it a different shuffle, like a triplet thing. It gets boring when you hear the same old beat over and over again. This is original and different. Andy C knows what he is doing.
Breakbeat Science; 181 Orchard Street, New York, NY 10002; tel. (212) 995-2592; e-mail scientist@breakbeatscience.com; Web www.breakbeatscience.com
Check out www.adamfreeland.com for more info about Adam Freeland.
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