After mating with a Proboscis monkey in Borneo, Boba is back on his journey into the progressive and melodic depths of worldwide breakbeatThis week we have a chat with VIM Breaks Records' (Very Important Music) very hard working boss man Pale Penguin, aka Grigoris Savidis. The Greek-based label is now on over 70 releases and doesn't look like it will be slowing down any time soon.
The output from VIM in breakbeat music has covered every style you could ever think of with release and remixes from some legends as well as a massive output from the new breed of breakbeat warriors. I'm always excited to hear what the next release is from VIM and I'm sure many of you feel the same. Check out the interview below for more information on Vim breaks and Pale Penguin's past, present and future.
Also below, you can check out the sounds of Vim Breaks' last three offerings to give you a taste of what to expect from the label. With Breakspoll approching I think Vim Breaks has earned a contender spot for best label, as well as remix with Kultur + Colombo's monster remix of DBF & Retroid's - Nightfall.
DIGITAL BREAKS FOUNDATION with RETROID-NIGHTFALL (KULTUR + COLOMBO ... by V.I.M.RECORDS
CITIZENS OF THE EMPIRE-UNDERGROUND (REFRACTURE REMIX) 128kbps by V.I.M.RECORDS
BEAT RANGERS-WHERE ARE MY GLASSES? 128kbps by V.I.M.RECORDS
I know who you are but there are new people finding breakbeat music every day. Tell us about V.I.M Breaks and yourself as an artist?
V.I.M.breaks is the breaks division of V.I.M.Records. We’re based in Thessaloniki, Greece and we’re operating since March of 2007. We’ve managed to build a strong profile in the breaks scene releasing different styles of breaks by international artists. We’ve gained a lot of charts/sales success in almost all stores, presented in many magazines (IDJ, DJ, Mixmag), radio shows and stations (NSB radio, iBreaks radio, Nubreaks radio, Dance Radio, A breaks radio, Brap FM, Fnoob radio etc). We have released singles by artists like The Scientifics, Electric Soulside, Dom Almond, 2crush, Break the Box, WI:RE, Blatta and Inesha, Syncro 69, Halobeatz, Doctrashz, I:Lyke, Lady Packa, Macho, Digital Breaks Foundation, Claas Reimer, Toy Quantize, Triple Agent, Gelaz, Elastic Fish, Digibox, Home Alone, Cage Page, F-word, Beat Rangers, Audiotrucs, Ruido, Zipmix, Mike Golden, Steve Maccabe and remixes by a massive selection of top producers of the scene like Kultur and Columbo, Cosmonaut, Andrea Lai, Llupa, Somsay, Maelstrom, Yreane, Circuit Breaker, Quadrat Beat, Rektchordz, Runriot, Ben and Lex, Will White, Access Denied, System 2, Line of Sight, Helbot, EK, Breaking News, Blazer and more. Additionally we’ve released two CD sampler compilations with released and unreleased stuff.
As an artist I’m producing tech-breaks/techno stuff with The Scientifics, which have got releases in labels like Erase Records, Basstard Records, Yellow Finger Communications and V.I.M.Breaks. Additionally I’m producing strictly disco-breaks stuff as Pale the Kid (together with DJ Kid Stretch) for labels like Breakbeat Paradise, Warriorz Music, Erase Records, Dirty Drop Records, Timewarp Music and V.I.M.Breaks.
Tell us about the label and how it all started ...
Well, I was into breaks stuff many many years before (and of course I’m still now) as a DJ and radio producer in Greece. I loved the early darkish proggy-breaks stuff by PMT, Force Mass Motion, Electrofly Records, Meat Katie, some early Bedrock Breaks singles etc. And I have got a massive vinyl selection of breaks stuff, different styles of breaks. I have got many years now a really strong friendship with my mates, Echonomist and Mr.Lookman, DJing together, organising parties, travelling etc. So it was back in 2006 that we’ve decided to start a breaks/tech project called The Scientifics. I was more into breaks, they were more into tech sounds and we’ve combined our love and knowledge in order to do something different, a kind of different approach to breaks sound, let’s say a minimal tech-breaks style. A year later, I think it was March of 2007, we decided to start our own label. Mr.Lookman got the idea to name it Very Importnant Music and so V.I.M.Records was born. A label with the aim to cover quality breaks, tech-house and electronica/downtempo stuff.
Tell us a bit about yourself outside of producing music and running the label?
I’ve got my daily job as an expansion manager in a Greek/Belgian super-market chain many years now, got my family and my beloved six-year-old daughter (thank God she likes breaks stuff!). My passion was always music so I’m an active DJ for almost 20 years now: DJed in many clubs, festivals with big international artists, DJing all over Greece and Europe, used to have my own radio program for seven years in a Greek radio station. I’m also an active music reviewer as I’m writing reviews and music articles in three different Greek music magazines: Freeze (Electronic music mag), Soundmaker (Music equipment and electronic music mag) and Crawford (urban style mag).
How long have you been making music, and what made you start releasing breakbeat?My first attempt in production was back in 2002 with a project called Scopitone Consiracy and then the Pozitronic Ray, a kind of downtempo/lounge-beat project. We have released some stuff for Greek compilations, been active for two to three years, then a short break and then working with The Scientifics and Pale the Kid. I was always into breakbeat stuff ... started with big beat, all Wall of Sound beatz, Bolshi, Dust 2 Dust, Fused and Bruised, Fatboy Slim, Chemical Brothers, some liquid drum 'n’ bass stuff like Good Looking, All Good Vinyl, Creative Wax, Creative Source, Peshay, Fabio, Bukem, old-skool breakbeat like Prodigy, SL2, Liquid, T99, Unique 3, 808 State, funky breaks of course from Catskills, Freskanova, Marble Bar and then moved to pure breaks stuff ... Meat Katie, Lee Coombs, PMT, Marine Parade, 10Kilo, Mantra Breaks, MOB all those gorgeous stuff! So to have a label releasing breaks (the music that I love) was always my dream and it becomes reality!
What monster tunes can we look forward to from you as a artist and from the label in 2011?
2011 started with a massive single for the label! The collaboration of Digital Breaks Foundation with Retroid called NightFall, backed with an awesome remix by Kultur and Colombo. Then we’ve got great singles by Beat Rangers, Citizens of the Empire, Adam Faz. But … we have a lot more to come! A killer single by T.R.O., one by Gelaz, a couple by Digibox, one by Digital Breaks Foundation, Lady Packa, Macho, Parallax Breakz and many more, all of them supported by some really great remixes by hot names of the scene. The Scientifics are going to release some forward-thinking breaks/tech remixes for Lady Packa, Lee Bass and more. Pale the Kid are working on a nu massive disco-breaks EP and they’re going to release some remixes for different labels.
What's your studio set up and what is your weapon of choice when making tunes?
Our studio set up is a Midas Venise 160, AKAI MPC2500, Korg Kaos Pad, Proteus 2000, Octava MK012, Motu Ultra Lite, monitors Adam A7X. Finally our weapon of choice is Logic with Waves plug ins.
It's been a great year (2010) for new artists coming up and I can not wait to see what everyone throws at us in 2011. Which producers are getting your groin area moving at the moment and why?
I think that Beat Rangers are on their way to the top because their music is melodic, epic, powerful and beautiful at the same time, Blazer with his incredible production abilities and his “dirty” sound, Refracture for his unique rocky-breaks quality sound, Home Alone 'cause he’s a “productive machine”, he loves music and he’s got a unique powerful style, Latvian project Under This which have got top production qualities, Aussie Xen Ochren for his superb proggy-breaks approach, Ire from Austria, she will surprise a lot with her dirty massive tech/funky-breaks sound (watch out for her debut on V.I.M.Breaks), Spanish wizards Geon and Blitz both of them for their quality breaks stuff and their open-mind approach to the scene, Digibox for his rollin darkish proggy-breaks sound, Big Mistake the hottest psy-breaks producer, Sketi for his powerful and energetic sound, Spanish Deenk for the same reason and Hunter Vaughan from USA … tech-funk at its best!
Five breakbeat tunes that have blown your head off in 2010?
1. Kultur and Colombo - Everything!!! (Metamorph Muzik, Logico Beatz, V.I.M.Breaks, Ibreaks, Big Square, Dead Famous)
2. Hedflux - MindCell (Broken Robot)
3. Beatman and Ludmilla - Moldova (Blazer Remix) (AYRA)
4. Elastic Fish - Drak Shade (Access Denied Remix) (V.I.M.Breaks)
5. Beatman and Ludmilla - Leeroy Jenkins (Triple Agent Remix) (AYRA)
Is breakbeat reaching the people of Greece?
Not so much. There’s been some party nights organised mainly by me and Stama from Erase records but people in Greece supported more tech and house stuff. I think that there are people that listen to breaks stuff but not a lot….
Ok now I have got the serious music shizz out the way, time for some fun questions. If you could be a muppet from the muppet show, which one would you be and why?
Oooohh ok now! I’ve to share with you one of my best kept secrets. In my other life I’m a crazy percussionist ... I like three styles of music-loud, louder and deafening! Beat drums! Beat drums! Sometimes I’m capable of coherent conversation but these instances are infrequent. Animal man … Animal for sure!!
I'm a massive Star Wars geek. What Star Wars character is most like you and why?
I’m a massive Star Wars fan also so this is a difficult one! Sometimes I feel like Darth Vader because I like things deeply in the dark side, sometimes like Luke Skywalker on a mission to bring quality breaks music to people and sometimes like Chewbacca … So angry about so many things in our society that want to shout loudly!
You are stranded on a desert island. What three tunes would you take with you (any genre)?
The Orb - Little Fluffy Clouds
The Times - Crushed On You
PMT - Gyromancer
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