Flux pavilion 20179/1/2023 ![]() ![]() Then I discovered artists like High Contrast and Noisia and became infatuated with the energy. Once I was hooked, I started buying jump-up records: Zinc, Hazard, Twisted Individual, Drumsound and Bassline Smith, Baron, and Clipz, to name a few. I had listened to tape packs before of people like Kenny Ken, Grooverider and Swan-E, but that Andy C set cemented my love for D&B. I discovered drum & bass properly through an Andy C set, playing Pendulum and Fresh records. I don’t really give a fuck about the perfect snare, as long as it fits the piece.Īs a drum & bass head, I love the fact that you initially started out writing “wobbly drum & bass.” Give a shout to your old-school drum & bass roots! Who were you listening to, and how do you see that era as having influenced your evolving sound? The production side is something that I use to get inspired, and then I run with it. I’ve always been and always will be a writer first and a producer second. I could invent my own sounds and work them in. My interest in electronic music came from the discovery that I didn’t need other humans to fill out the gaps. Doctor P would record us and produce our tracks, and I was engrossed instantly and started learning from him. We started out playing cover songs, but all of a sudden, I had these instruments and performers at my disposal-so I started writing parts for everyone and building songs. That was when I really started writing, played guitar, and singing in a band with Doctor P. I’ve heard you started writing music as early as 12 years old! Did you already have visions of being an electronic music producer at that time, or was it more of you just living in the moment? ![]() I think innovative music and creativity was a theme in my house growing up, and I’ve been shaped to always reach outside of what is happening right now and try to find my own expression and individuality. Frank Zappa’s approach and philosophy on art is something that has become somewhat a cornerstone of my approach David Bowie is another. ![]() ![]() My dad ingrained into me that he was a really special artist, and I’m glad for it. What kind of music do you remember hearing around the house when you were young? I noticed that pic of Frank Zappa in your studio-how does he work into your story?įrank Zappa was THE artist growing up. Interestingly, it was a reference to a character from a Monty Python sketch called “Kierkegaard Grant.” As I’ve grown, I’ve personally taken to philosophical thinking, though, and Kierkegaard is pretty rad. I noticed your middle name is “Kierkegaard.” Were your parents deep into existential philosophy? I think it’s a place I try to stay in when I write now. As a child, there’s no construct of what is right and wrong creatively, and so the world is opened up before you. I had a little keyboard that I would write my own “pieces” on, and I think that’s the idea I was getting at with that quote. I started playing instruments when I was really young. (Laughs) Not too dissimilar to how I am now! I didn’t really like people telling me what to do and wanted to be left to do my own thing. You once cited John Cleese’s idea that “children are the most creative people” and that the best way to be creative is to revert back to being a child. And a glimpse of the future ends with an electrifying, EDC-inspired mix that captures all the riotous, chest-pounding fury that Flux Pavilion brings to the stage. Recently embarking on his aptly titled Around the World in 80 Raves tour, and with our own annual pilgrimage to EDC Las Vegas looming on the horizon, we thought we’d touch down for an in-depth reflection, including his influences (they range from Frank Zappa to Andy C), the continued evolution of Circus Records, and his own ongoing love of chaos, wildness, and “creative punk sounds.” As with all things Flux, it’s a wild ride from the past to the present. Ask anyone who’s been fortunate enough to spend some time chopping it up one-on-one with the man, and you’ll no doubt get a sense of the kind of inspiration and refreshing insights into the creative process that Josh seems to emit in an almost effortless fashion. He’s earned a reputation as an innovator and true artist in every meaning of the word. With his 2015 Tesla LP still holding it down as a contemporary classic in the genre-not to mention the numerous anthems the South London–based producer has kicked out over the years-the ever-impressive Josh Steele, as he’s known to family and friends, seems just as energized and excited by writing music as he’s ever been. Having come a long way from the garage band he and Doctor P formed during their pre-teen years, the undisputed heavyweight of dubstep known as Flux Pavilion continues his unending onslaught of illness across the globe with no signs of slowing down anytime soon. ![]()
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