New Label Profile: Radar Records

28 Feb 2011

Radar Records logo

Radar Records is a new drum & bass imprint from Belgium, we spoke to label owner Murdock to find out more...

Please introduce yourself...
My name is Hans Machiels, but on stages and flyers I go by the name of Murdock. I've been DJing for almost 15 years and I am considered to be the most popular DJ in Belgium. I play drum & bass, but I inject some dubstep and even some old school or rave beats from time to time. I ran a show on national radio Studio Brussel called Jungle Fever for five years and now I release mix CDs with the same title. I play abroad once in a while: Buenos Aires, Cape Town, London... but I mainly play in Belgium and perform for huge crowds. I run the most prolific events in the country: Rampage, Radar, Breakdown, Starlight and Wasted, and I have a residency in the biggest club in the country, Petrol. Every summer I play at big festivals such as Dour, 10 Days Off, Tomorrowland and Pukkelpop.

When and why did you set the label up?
I set up the label in October 2009 as a vehicle to release my mix CDs, which are now very popular in Belgium. Since I hooked up with Netsky a year before that, we had produced a few tunes together, and he had a few tunes lying about that no-one else wanted to sign (and I loved!), so it seemed to make sense to release some vinyl. The first 12" was released in February 2010 and contained two tunes by Netsky, Your Way and Daydreaming. Shortly after me signing those tunes, Netsky got picked up by Hospital, so our collaborations are still on the shelf and will probably remain there.

Who is involved with running it?
I run the label by myself but Netsky is a valued conspirator.

What's the ethos behind the label?
As a DJ I play across the board: whether it's jump-up, liquid, techy or dubby stuff, I'll play it if I like it. If I'll play it, I'll release it on Radar Records. Obviously I'm looking for tunes that will stand the test of time and have more then a few seconds of shelf-life. Next to that, Radar Records is an outlet for any crazy ideas I might come up with.

Is it a digital label or will you release vinyl too?
It is first and foremost a vinyl-based label. All music on Radar Records will be released on 12" vinyl. We have artwork by Uber & Kosher that is really worthwhile and I am making sure that every release has a quality tune on both sides of the vinyl, so it'll always be a good buy and one to cherish.

Can you tell us more about your key artists?
Netsky and I are looking for young talent, preferably from Belgium, as we are really big on music and drum & bass is blowing up over here. There are few people we are nourishing, but no-one has delivered the goods just yet. There are a few people that I have been working with as a DJ and a promoter and they will be involved in Radar Records in one way or another. Among them I count Total Science, Crystal Clear, CJ Bolland, Brookes Brothers, Grimelock and Jenna G. There are some very good producers surrounding me doing dubstep, so a dubstep-side to the Radar story seems inevitable.

Are you looking for more artists and if so where should producers send demos?
Anyone who feels that their music needs more attention and is ready for a vinyl release, feel free to send a download link of your best two tunes to info@radar-dnb.be or send us the link to your SoundCloud page.

Tell us more about your next release...
I am working on getting a large amount of non-dnb tracks by original Belgian artists / producers remixed by top notch drum & bass and dubstep producers. There's lots of good music being made in our country, but most of it never seems to make it out of Belgium. I have been talking to artists like Sound of Stereo, The Subs, Magnus, dEUS, Frank Dewulf, Outlander and many more and they are all down with the project.

RDR002 is entitled Radar Remixes Pt 1 and contains a remix by Netsky of Strobot by electro-band Shameboy, and a remix by KG of Seaside, a house-tune by Buscemi. Netsky opened his Essential Mix for BBC Radio 1 with his Strobot remix, so the track is already well known now. Andy C and Danny Byrd, among others, have played it. We launched the 12" at an Antwerp release party which had 1200 people bouncing to drum & bass in the landmark house-club Café d'Anvers.

Got any other releases in the pipeline you can tell us about?
For this remix project I have confirmed and near-finished remixes by Crystal Clear, Nymfo, Blame, Break and Trei, with a lot more in the pipeline. These will be put on vinyl during the rest of 2011 and early 2012. When all remixes have been released, I'll put them all together on a triple CD, containing remixes and original tunes full length, and mixed. I'm guessing this CD will be out sometime in March 2012.