UK Dub Files: Nomadix

The first time I heard reggae in a large dancehall environment was back in '79, when Jah Shaka Soundsystem was playing in Club Norick on Seven Sisters Road in London. I was captured there and then and fully absorbed into it. From then I just carried on, went to other soundsystems and took in the vibe. But in the late eighties the UK reggae scene changed, everything turned towards the new dancehall style. I didn't really like that vibe, being a rastafarian. I was heavily influenced by the big soundsystems like  Shaka, Fatman, Moa Anbessa and Quaker City...they inspired me in the path that I took. One day I didn't want to buy records anymore, I wanted to make my own records. My brother and I decided to form our own collective and produce our own tracks. We learned to play the keyboards, bass, guitar and went through the basics of how reggae music is actually made. What were your first steps as an independent producer? We have been releasing records for about twenty years, but not on a continuous basis. The first album we've done was Rolling Papers, which we released around '89. A bit later we released Roar to the Max and a few 10 inches, which all did pretty well. Shortly after that, there were a few personal problems that kept us away from the studio, so our production slowed down. Luckily we got these problems sorted out and two years later we released the ten inches that became pretty well known, 400 Years ( met de zanger Bagga Worries, red.) and Soloman's Dream on our own label Roar Recordings.  Is releasing music actually your main interest?  Not really, everything has always been on an underground level. I like to keep it there because it enables me to just do my thing and collaborate a lot with other producers, like King Alpha and Roots Hi Tek. I do a lot of special productions for soundsystems that only they can play. It works for me because I can focus on my productions the way I want them, but I stay in touch with the scene and people know that Nomadix is still here.  Is there a certain reason you keep a lot of your music exclusive? The only reason these "dubplates" are exclusive to ome soundsystems is because they haven't been released yet. In the end I want to reach people on a more universal level with a proper Nomadix CD that will set things straight .  Your music is made for the dance. Why should we best hear your dubs on a soundsystem? It's the vibration! If you're not feeling it through your whole body, you're not getting it a hundred percent. You need to hear it on a high decibel level so the music can become a part of you, rather than separate from you. You will interact with the music on a greater level.  Your music carries a certain message, what is it about? Reggae is sufferers music, it's music for the people. It relates to everybody who wants peace and harmony. That's what we promote through the music, that's how we get our message across. No matter what colour you are, everybody lives on the same planet and this music is for everybody. There's always something happening after 2 or 3 am in the session, people get in a special kind of concentration, a kind of trance even. Where does that come from? I'm glad you use the word trance. After a certain amount of time, the people start to blend together with the music. The higher the music, the higher the people go, the bigger the vibe, the more harmony. You just feel the oneness more and more as time progresses, because it's that unity and togetherness that we promote. It comes to a height in the early hours when the people are more concentrated and feeling the vibe more.  Going to a Nomadix session is not the same as going to a party in a club, where a DJ will mix the tracks. You always play different versions of a track, why do you do that? A producer has the opportunity to mix the music to a certain level. So the first version will be mixed differently from the second version, second version will be different from the third version and so on. Usually it grows more elaborate and more expressive as each version goes by. The frequency and the vibration of the fourth version might be completely different from the original vocal track. So your mind can explore all these different versions of the same track, and it will stimulate your imagination and your feelings.  Mixing a track is like putting your vibe, your experience, your life onto the track. The mixing desk is the instrument we express ourselves with. I cant' describe it, it's like I can take a dub track and make it sound totally different from the original. You might not feel the original, but I can manipulate it in such a way that you will know that track. That's what's happening when we're playing the different dubs in a session: the original might stay on the outside, but the versions will make you feel the music on the inside.  Things are very different now from the late eighties when you started to go to sessions. How do you feel when you see the explosion of soundsystem culture all over the world? It's about time, innit? It was kept on such a low level for so long, but it's all spreading out now. Lots of new soundsystems from all over the world are building up and putting out their vibe now, dub music is coming forward... It's amazing, it's exactly how we wanted it. More vibes for everybody, the message gets spread, peace and harmony for everyone through the music...what more could we want? You see, in our time the roots scene was strictly a one-black-nation-kind of thing. But through times we realised ourselves our struggle is not a strictly black thing. Everybody can feel the sufferation and the hurt, and the solution is for everybody, no matter who you are. I'm really glad people from all over the world are picking up the music and making themselves known through it. Some people might think soundsystem is about bass and noise, but it's not that. It's about creating the vibes and the harmony that spreads all over the globe because everybody appreciates it. It's about being absorbed into the music so you become more spiritually and consciously aware of your surroundings. Being aware of the others around you through the music, that's what it's all about. Interview door Andreas Peeters, met dank aan Kingstep Soundsystem

Can you recall a specific experience that made you decide you wanted to make music?
The first time I heard reggae in a large dancehall environment was back in '79, when Jah Shaka Soundsystem was playing in Club Norick on Seven Sisters Road in London. I was captured there and then and fully absorbed into it. From then I just carried on, went to other soundsystems and took in the vibe. But in the late eighties the UK reggae scene changed, everything turned towards the new dancehall style. I didn't really like that vibe, being a rastafarian. I was heavily influenced by the big soundsystems like  Shaka, Fatman, Moa Anbessa and Quaker City...they inspired me in the path that I took. One day I didn't want to buy records anymore, I wanted to make my own records. My brother and I decided to form our own collective and produce our own tracks. We learned to play the keyboards, bass, guitar and went through the basics of how reggae music is actually made.

What were your first steps as an independent producer?
We have been releasing records for about twenty years, but not on a continuous basis. The first album we've done was Rolling Papers, which we released around '89. A bit later we released Roar to the Max and a few 10 inches, which all did pretty well. Shortly after that, there were a few personal problems that kept us away from the studio, so our production slowed down. Luckily we got these problems sorted out and two years later we released the ten inches that became pretty well known, 400 Years ( met de zanger Bagga Worries, red.) and Soloman's Dream on our own label Roar Recordings.
 
Is releasing music actually your main interest? 
Not really, everything has always been on an underground level. I like to keep it there because it enables me to just do my thing and collaborate a lot with other producers, like King Alpha and Roots Hi Tek. I do a lot of special productions for soundsystems that only they can play. It works for me because I can focus on my productions the way I want them, but I stay in touch with the scene and people know that Nomadix is still here. 

Is there a certain reason you keep a lot of your music exclusive?
The only reason these "dubplates" are exclusive to some soundsystems is because they haven't been released yet. In the end I want to reach people on a more universal level with a proper Nomadix CD that will set things straight . 

Your music is made for the dance. Why should we best hear your dubs on a soundsystem?
It's the vibration! If you're not feeling it through your whole body, you're not getting it a hundred percent. You need to hear it on a high decibel level so the music can become a part of you, rather than separate from you. You will interact with the music on a greater level.
 
Your music carries a certain message, what is it about?
Reggae is sufferers music, it's music for the people. It relates to everybody who wants peace and harmony. That's what we promote through the music, that's how we get our message across. No matter what colour you are, everybody lives on the same planet and this music is for everybody.

There's always something happening after 2 or 3 am in the session, people get in a special kind of concentration, a kind of trance even. Where does that come from?
I'm glad you use the word trance. After a certain amount of time, the people start to blend together with the music. The higher the music, the higher the people go, the bigger the vibe, the more harmony. You just feel the oneness more and more as time progresses, because it's that unity and togetherness that we promote. It comes to a height in the early hours when the people are more concentrated and feeling the vibe more.

Going to a Nomadix session is not the same as going to a party in a club, where a DJ will mix the tracks. You always play different versions of a track, why do you do that?
A producer has the opportunity to mix the music to a certain level. So the first version will be mixed differently from the second version, second version will be different from the third version and so on. Usually it grows more elaborate and more expressive as each version goes by. The frequency and the vibration of the fourth version might be completely different from the original vocal track. So your mind can explore all these different versions of the same track, and it will stimulate your imagination and your feelings. Mixing a track is like putting your vibe, your experience, your life onto the track. The mixing desk is the instrument we express ourselves with. I can't describe it, it's like I can take a dub track and make it sound totally different from the original. You might not feel the original, but I can manipulate it in such a way that you will know that track. That's what's happening when we're playing the different dubs in a session: the original might stay on the outside, but the versions will make you feel the music on the inside.
 
Things are very different now from the late eighties when you started to go to sessions. How do you feel when you see the explosion of soundsystem culture all over the world? 
It's about time, innit? It was kept on such a low level for so long, but it's all spreading out now. Lots of new soundsystems from all over the world are building up and putting out their vibe now, dub music is coming forward... It's amazing, it's exactly how we wanted it. More vibes for everybody, the message gets spread, peace and harmony for everyone through the music...what more could we want?You see, in our time the roots scene was strictly a one-black-nation-kind of thing. But through times we realised ourselves our struggle is not a strictly black thing. Everybody can feel the sufferation and the hurt, and the solution is for everybody, no matter who you are. I'm really glad people from all over the world are picking up the music and making themselves known through it. Some people might think soundsystem is about bass and noise, but it's not that. It's about creating the vibes and the harmony that spreads all over the globe because everybody appreciates it. It's about being absorbed into the music so you become more spiritually and consciously aware of your surroundings. Being aware of the others around you through the music, that's what it's all about.