DJ JAZZY D with SASSA’LE, RICKY D, DIVY and DRUM MAJOR INC. at Una Mas (422 Adelaide West), Friday (April 13). $10. 416-724-3371. Rating: NNNNN
You won’t hear about them hanging with Madonna in Monaco — most people don’t know their real names — but the UK’s pirate radio DJs are nevertheless crucial in setting the tone and tempo of the contemporary club scene.
For the past year, the aggressive pounding of UK garage has dominated London hot spots, and DJ/producer Jazzy D has been a key mover from the moment he left DANCE-FM to take over the Sunday afternoon shift at FREEK-FM.
“The reason pirate radio is so successful in England,” says Jazzy D from his London flat, “is that we’re giving people what they want to hear — that raw, rough-edged flavour you never hear anywhere else.
“Some legal stations play UK garage now, but they’re about making money by selling advertising.”
Jazzy D’s joint She’s Leaving, from 99, is now a certified two-step anthem, and it looks like his latest dance-floor eruption, Lyrical Respect, may blow up even bigger. They share the characteristically bumping bass line that’s been all but lost in the current push for a harder, faster beat barrage.
It’s not entirely surprising, then, to learn that Jazzy D began his career in music by thumping bass in a marching band.
“The bass riffs are what I really love about UK garage. Only they’re changing now. On the track Lyrical Respect you’ll hear a rolling bass line that turns into a bumpy bass line. I guess I’m just a bumpy person who likes bumpy things.”
