Matt Aiudi, aka Mindstorm, got into drum & bass when he was 14 after buying Reprazent's New Forms back in 98. From then on he always wanted to make drum & bass so he began researching every single producer/DJ/label he could find in the genre. He also began collecting every piece of musical equipment he could get his hands on and at 16 began producing his own tracks. He's just released his new album Universal Mind on his own Mindstorm label so we had to find out more...

What got you into drum & bass?

I've been producing music for about ten years playing the piano, guitar, bass, drums and jazz. I started seriously producing d&b last summer and have recently gotten into producing dubstep and electro as well.

The first d&b tune I ever heard was Brown Paper Bag by Reprazent and it blew me away. It was jazzy like the music I was playing bass to at the time but it was so different with the sped up tempo and the acoustic basslines. I would say I was hooked from that day forward.

The next one I can remember clearly hearing was Grooverider's Where's Jack The Ripper?. That song was a completely different style to Reprazent but it was still d&b. That's the first time I realized that there were all these sub-genres within d&b and the whole world of it really opened up to me.

The album has a real diversity of drum & bass to it, but also an underlying element of continuous rolling basslines...

I've always steered away from limiting myself to one genre as a producer whether it's within d&b or in other types of music as well. For this album I wanted it to be 100% drum & bass and in a way kind of convey my love for the music as a whole. It's also a great way for people to be exposed to a number of different sub-genres all in one place.

Being a bass player at heart I'm always trying to think of ways I can make the basslines compliment my songs in new ways. I'm a huge fan of bass and the more the better. One thing I tend to do is have an electric bass guitar sample underneath every one of my songs that's just emulating the bassline. I think it adds a little bit more depth and warmth to the overall sound of the bassline itself. Songs like Cruise Control, Fantasy Island and Negative Images are good examples of this.

Talk us through some of the other releases on your label...
 
We've mainly been releasing digitally aside from my first project Dark Future Music which was released on CD and digitally. The Future Music Sessions EP I contributed two tracks to along with a Japanese d&b producer named Glide who we signed last year was released digitally and on vinyl.

In total we've released six singles, two EPs and two albums and have three more singles and another EP on the way. We've also got plans to release some of the tracks we've signed in the past few months on vinyl, sometime in September.

Have you done any collaborations with anyone yet?
 
I haven't unfortunately and if I had a chance to work with anyone at the moment it would have to be Danny Byrd. I like a lot of producers but there's something about his level of production that is extremely polished and clean. The Brookes Brothers, Fresh, Culture Shock, Noisia and Utah Jazz would be close seconds.

What's next for Mindstorm Records?

I plan on keeping the Mindstorm and label releases coming non-stop. Besides the Universal Mind LP parts two and three I'll be releasing a dubstep EP in the next few months along with a bunch of singles before the next album is out.

As far as the label goes I'm always looking for new and unknown producers with great tunes and there are a lot of them out there right now so releases come pretty fast. We're currently on our eleventh release and plan to be on our twentieth by the end of the summer.

Words: James Barclay

 

Mindstorm - Still Breathing by knowledge

Related Links:

• Mindstorm's 50th Release
• Preview: Roni Size Reprazent Live DVD
• Uprooted: Roni Size and New Forms
• Roni Size Live @ Colston Hall Video
• Roni Size Live @ Colston Hall Review

Like it? Share it!
Sign up for more with the Kmag weekly newsletter.