Ahead of the 29 April party, MIB Crew interviewed Mr. Frenkie. Read his answers to our seven questions (plus one extra) below.
How did your journey into the world of drum and bass begin?
The very first drum and bass track I heard was Ed Rush & Optical — Alien Girl, on some worn-out cassette that had been copied a hundred times. It was mixed in with Dr. Alban, Robert Miles, Aleksandr Rosenbaum, Nirvana and other hits from the turn of the millennium. At the time, I still didn’t understand that this was the then-new direction from England called techstep. The tape was eventually worn through, and for a while I didn’t come across drum and bass again. Several years later, a compilation called Future Perfect by DJ Dara fell into my hands. That’s when everything started spinning!
Who were your first inspirations?
There were many names. For the most part, they all came from that same compilation. There was Decoder, together with and separately from Kosheen, as well as Teebee, Universal Project, Stakka & Skynet, and, of course, Future Cut with J Majik.
How would you describe your musical style?
A vinaigrette (I hate that dish) made up of drum and bass subgenres. Over the years, I still haven’t managed to give preference to any one direction within drum and bass.
Where did you most enjoy performing, and where would you like to perform in the future?
The most vivid memory is, of course, my first tour dates. It was Halloween in the city of Omsk in 2010. Club Planeta 3,5,7, if I’m not mistaken. The room was packed, and my knees were treacherously shaking. Several years earlier, we had organised local parties back in the city of Yoshkar-Ola. Those were the golden days of hardstep. I’d be happy to perform at Let It Roll, but it’s still unclear what I could possibly have done to deserve it. :D
Which artists inspire you at the moment?
I’m afraid you could count them on the fingers of one experienced milling machine operator’s hand. Of course, there’s the ever-consistent Dom & Roland, and the extremely futuristic Ivy Lab in their 20/20 guise. I’m always happy to see releases from DJ Hazard. I closely follow the work of the producer Serum. After that, it’s one track from here and one track from there.
What are your future plans? (releases, collaborations)
My drum and bass business plan hasn’t changed in a long time. As always, it consists of creating new ID tracks, testing them out in a podcast, and putting them away until better times. Some things do manage to get released, but as a rule, it happens by accident.
What do you like most about the current community, and what do you think could be improved?
I wouldn’t say that I’m generally inclined to love communities. Especially communities of people. But I’m very sympathetic to the fact that jump-up drum and bass is beginning to confidently reclaim positions in the charts from glossy neurofunk. After all, you can still feel the primeval drum and bass vibe in modern jump-up, something neurofunk lost about seven years ago. So everything is proceeding as it should, and everything has its time.
What should the audience expect from you this time?
To be honest, I don’t know myself. Every time I’m on stage, I open my playlist with that same vinaigrette of drum and bass styles and give myself completely to the audience. Want some pots? Here you go! Tired, and in the mood for something more melodic? No problem! You can rock out to future beats grooves and then launch back into unrestrained dancing to Mr. Happy.
