It is an exciting time in UK bass music right now. The coalescence of scenes and sounds has led to some of the most exciting music in years as producers continue to explore new territory and shake up long-held scene segregations.

 

No one epitomizes this freedom and innovation better than the Nottingham-based Blunted Robots imprint, run by Brackles and Shortstuff. Finding the balance between futuristic experimentalism and undeniable dancefloor grooves, this is music for both the head and the body.

 

Despite having only released two 12"s to date, they are already garnering a lot of well-deserved attention for their off-kilter, quirky UK funky/garage hybrids and unique aesthetic.

 

I got a few questions at them to find out what the label is about and what they have planned for the future...

 

Why did you decide to set up the label?

We had two tunes by two unknown artists that we loved and wanted to put out there. We started out planning to press a few whites and the more we thought about it, the deeper into creating an actual label we got.

 

What is the label's 'manifesto', as it were?

I don't think we have one really; Rob and I like a lot of the same music, so we sit and listen to tunes and the ones we both feel are right we will put out.

 

What do you think ties together all the music that you release? What is fundamental to a Blunted Robots release?

I think most of the stuff we choose for the label has a sort of uneasiness that makes it right for a Robots release. So you might not be sold on the first listen - or even the fiftieth - but we like stuff that has a peculiar edge, without losing its groove, we're not into weirdness getting in the way of a tune's effect on the dancefloor.

 

The label has a pretty strong image. What is the thinking behind the name and the storyboard artwork?

We came up with the name in the car on the way down to meet our distributor and the cartoon concept just followed on from that. Past that all the credit must go to our amazing designer Spam Chop (who runs the Wigflex label in Nottingham), we give him the story line and some garbled ideas as to how it might look and he does the rest.

 

What releases do you have forthcoming on the label?

Blunted Robots 003 is due out on March 8th. That record features Bok Bok's Citizens Dub and a Brackles and Shortstuff collab, entitled Pipey D. After that we have another wicked 12" from Martin Kemp and then something really quite special to celebrate the fifth release.

 

Do you have any other plans to expand the label?

There will definitely be a line of t-shirts and possibly action figures at some point, but at the moment we're just concentrating on keeping the music fresh and trying to break even. We have a few broader musical plans, but we're keeping them well under the hat for now.

• Martin Kemp - No Charisma / Mickey Pierce - Innami is out now.
• Martin Kemp - Aztec / After The Night is out now.
• Bok Bok ft. Bubbz - Citizen Dub / Brackles and Shortstuff - Pipey D is out on Monday 8th March.

 

• Blunted Robots
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• Brackles
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• Shortstuff

Related Links:

• Shortstuff & Brackles On Blunted Robots
• Brackles Launches New K7 Mix Series
• Brackles Interview
• March 2010 Dubstep Reviews
• Lone Guest Mix

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