“PBH and Jack never sleep! They always being the fire and should be high on everyone’s one to watch list”. That’s according to Don Diablo. And when you learn that MistaJam has also tipped these guys as ‘ones to watch’, you start believing there’s a certain truth to this hype. They are long time residents at BCM Mallorca, have released on prominent labels such as Ministry of Sound, Universal and Spinnin’, remixed for Hardwell, Loud Luxury and Jonas Blue, and their breakout single, Waiting All My Life, was written by none other than, Example. DMC World spoke to the duo to find out exactly what the hype is all about.…
Welcome to DMC, PBH & Jack. Let’s get the formal introductions out of the way. What are your names and where d’you come from?
We are Paul and Jack, we are based up North in the UK, not too far from Leeds.
Where did it all start for you?
We were both playing the club circuit up North and met each other about 7 years ago. We ended up on a camping trip together and things gelled over a few beers. Paul disappeared to Mallorca for the summer and the tracks kept flowing back and forth. It wasn’t too far after that we signed our first single as a duo act and the rest, as they say, is history!
2019 has been a strong year with the release of ‘Waiting All My Life’ on Xploded. Half a million streams on Spotify and multiple Dance Anthems spins, we hear! How did this record come about?
2019 has been our best year to date. We need to update you there as it’s now done over 1.5 million streams and is constantly growing. We need to thank everyone for the support here, it’s crazy, and of course thanks to Example for believing in us and working on a single with us.
You quickly followed with a mighty fine remix of the rave classic ‘Bits & Pieces’ by Artemesia on Armada. Where were your favourite to places to rave? Any anecdotes you can share from those days?
We were blown away when Armada asked us to remake it. Our favourite places to rave were Gatecrasher in Sheffield and Godskitchen in Birmingham, once upon a time! We’ve no anecdotes to share as those days were hazy, late and a bit messy lol!
MistaJam tipped you as one’s to watch for 2019 alongside Jack Back. What does an accolade like that mean to you?
Yeah, he first played “I Wanna Know You” on BBC Radio 1 in January this year. We were both locked in as regular listeners to Dance Anthems, and we had a mini kitchen RAVE when he said those kind words. It was a mixture of adrenaline and happiness. We are very motivated individuals so things like this really mean the world to us.
What’s been your most memorable DJ set to date and why?
I think we’d have to say Creamfields 2018. We played the opening set in Diplo’s Mad Decent arena. Now, when you play an opening set at any festival, you know it’s going to go one of two ways – empty or epic! We’d spent all week making a new show intro, but were gutted we couldn’t use it, so we actually stopped the set halfway through, we got out of sight, and asked everyone to pretend they hadn’t seen us. Then the intro came on and the place erupted. The best memory of that day was playing ‘Bring The House’ to a near three-quarters-full, huge area and thousands of people all chanting the words on the build! Pure goose bumps, and a true example of why Creamfields is one of the best!
Did you grow up in music households? Were you encouraged to listen to and make music?
Neither of our parents played musical instruments but it was the long car journeys listening to Queen and ABBA that were drilled in our brains!
What (non-music) jobs have you done whilst climbing the music industry ladder?
Ok, one of us has ONLY ever worked in the music industry and one of us once worked at McDonald’s. That’s all we are giving away!
What is your go-to ‘inspiration song’?
PBH: Traffic – Mr Fantasy Jack: Sister Sledge – We Are Family
What labels are you digging at the moment? CID’s new label Night Service Only is fresh and red hot. Hexagon and Heldeep of course are firm favourites too!
Who would your dream collaboration be with?
That’s a real tough one as that’s a long list. Calvin Harris would be high up there. We’d also love Nile Rodgers working his magic too!
What are PBH & Jack’s 5 Hottest Records Of All Time
1. Eric Prydz – Everyday
2. MGMT – Kids (Soulwax Remix)
3. Rusko – Everyday (Netsky Remix)
4. Daft Punk – Get Lucky
5. Daft Punk – Robot Rock
Finally, what’s next for PBH & Jack?
We’ve just confirmed an official remix for Charli XCX ‘White Mercedes’, that’s coming in November. We are also real busy working on some killer original tracks. We’re working with some super talented vocalists and writers right now, we’re really excited! We also can’t wait to see what’s next in store for ‘Waiting All My Life’, the support on that single keeps growing. Thanks to everyone for the love and if you’re reading this, let us know what think on Insta @pbhandjack or @jackandpbh!
PBH & Jack ‘Waiting All My Life’ Feat. Hayla is out now on Xploded… https://xploded.lnk.to/WaitingAllMyLife
Also out now is the PBH & Jack Remix of ‘Bits & Pieces’ by Artemesia on Armada….https://ARDI4147.lnk.to/BAPPJR
