Interview by Dan Prince
Braxton! A huge welcome back to DMCWORLD towers young man. Where are we finding you today?
Still in sunny Brighton, right now tucking into some left-over pizza from last night. Italian sausage. Classic.
The best piece of music you have heard since rolling out of bed?
I’m still in bed! But probably ‘Jeremih – Oui’. I’m absolutely obsessed with this new Donald Glover show ‘Atlanta’ at the moment, it’s all about the rap scene in Atlanta. Funniest thing I’ve seen on TV in ages and the soundtrack is insanely good. That Jeremih track was on it earlier.
So, another day another monumental piece of music from Braxton! We are loving your new ‘Body’ track swinging our way – Phil Taggart and Danny Howard all over it on Radio 1. Talk us through the track…
It’s a track I began producing a long time ago, when I was back in Hong Kong. I think I’ve probably tried to re-write it about a thousand times but never managed to capture the magic from the original recording, so I just left it as it is. I wanted to take the euphoric proggy vibes of a track like ‘Kowloon’ and make it a bit ‘brighter’. The feedback from everyone so far has been incredible.
‘Body’ first appeared on The Magician’s ‘Magictape 61’ a few months back, what took so long dude for it to see the light of day?
I think I just wanted to get it out there anonymously to begin with, it represents a bit of a departure from my first EP so it made sense to kinda drip feed it a little bit. The reaction has been incredible as soon as his mix appeared online, it was nice to see people freaking out trying to guess the ID in the comments sections. The lengths some of them went to ID the tune was remarkable!
“I get a bit silly when this happens”. That’s a quote from you remarking on your state of mind when you hear one of your tracks on the radio. So what do you do, Olympics round the kitchen or something?
Haha, I’ve toned it down a little bit, but I definitely have a bit of a spring in my step for the rest of the day. It usually involves shouting random incessant nonsense at the top of my voice until someone (usually my GF) tells me to shut the fuck up.
The best and worst thing about living in Brighton? Be honest with us now, does that pebbly beach really not do your head in?
Hah, nah man the beach is a vibe. The seagulls are complete and utter twats tho. Best thing is Burger Brothers. Without a doubt the best burgers on this planet, I shit you not.
The big 5 tunes in your box this weekend…
andHim – Mr. Bass feat. Super Flu (wAFF Big Room Mix)
Everything wAFF touches turns to gold, huge club sound on this one, goes off like a frog in a sock.
Braxton – Body (Late Night Edit)
This one was written as a ‘remix’ of body that I could play out at 3am in a dark sweaty basement somewhere.
Cristoph – Alone
Probably the track of the year for me. This and the new Sasha track anyway. Absolutely perfect track in every way possible.
Sasha – Track 10
He’s my absolute hero and one of the reasons I got into production in the first place, this is one of the best things I’ve ever heard from him. Total euphoria with a little ‘French Kiss’ vibe. Perfect.
Guy Gerber – Stoppage Time
Such a bloody classic! Totally forgot this tune existed until the other day. Epic proggy vibes and just constant energy, constantly building.
One of may favorite reviews of your music was “the best house record MTA have released since Ben Pearce ‘What I Might Do’ when MistaJam was remarking on your 4 track EP ’Stronger’. That must have put a jig in your step?
Yeah that was a bit mind-blowing. I’m never focussing on getting radio plays when I sit down to write music, so when it happens it’s obviously exciting. But when someone like Mistajam says such incredible things about your music it means so much more than the play itself. It’s weird, there’s ALWAYS days where you feel you should probably just get a normal job, as writing music can be incredibly challenging especially when any doubts start setting in. But when these guys talk so passionately about something YOU created it’s a nice little reminder to keep plugging away.
The last time you went out and had a real good dance?
Last Friday. Went to see Fucked Up play their Hidden World album beginning to end. I guess you could call it ‘dancing’. Is it still dancing if I’ve got a really angry face on and I’ve got someone in a headlock?? If so then yeah, I danced the shit out of that show.
Your favorite track of 2016?
Tough one, there’s been some incredible tracks and albums but not many that I’ve often gone back to throughout the year. In all honesty I tend not to listen to a lot of new music anyway. I usually wait till the hype dies down before getting involved in something. That being said, Modern Soul by James Blake was one of my faves at the start of the year. I also still really love Seigfried from Frank Ocean’s album. That track is a real palate cleanser – It doesn’t matter what mood I’m in, I can just put that track on and my entire mental state resets. Also, anyone who can get away with lifting an Elliott Smith lyric is pretty fucking special. He’s an exceptional talent.
What is coming out next from you studio wise?
There’s a couple of new tracks I’ve been sneaking into sets & mixes recently, plus a whole plethora of remixes and edits, haven’t really planned what/when yet but you’ll be first to know as soon as I know 🙂
The last GREAT…
Film you saw
‘Dope.’ It’s hilarious. Great cast of unknowns, 90’s hiphop soundtrack & Zoe Kravitz (huminah, huminah…)
Album you bought
Tourist – U, he’s a really good pal of mine and I spent a lot of time touring with him as part of his live show last year. It’s great to hear these tunes the way they’re meant to be heard.
Live show you attended
Fucked Up @ The Haunt in Brighton.
Holiday you had
What the hell is a holiday??
It’s your birthday! Who are the 3 DJs you invite round to play, money no object!
Desyn Masiello, Sasha, Jeff Mills. In that order. Vibes, vibes, vibes.
Your favorite DJ gig of the summer?
I had a great time DJing at The Nest for Subsoul in July, they had a boat party on the Thames in the day then headed to The Nest in the evening. Great day all round.
Okay let’s rewind for a moment. Your earliest musical memory from your childhood?
I remember my dad introducing me to PM Dawn and the world of sampling. I found it fascinating that they took that Spandau Ballet track and did something totally their own with it, a new song with a whole new meaning.
The moment a record changed your life and you knew your path in life was music…
Boards of Canada – Music Has The Right To Children. This was an absolute game changer. It’s a timeless masterpiece as far as I’m concerned, I can still play it today and it gives me the same chills as I got when I was a teenager. I’ve since had many mind-altering moments that have always involved this album, so it’s practically part of my DNA now. The first time I heard this album it literally consumed me, I don’t think I was interested in ANYTHING apart from shutting myself away and listening to it. I experimented making this sort of stuff early on, I’m fairly certain I don’t ever want to hear those tunes ahah.
The best piece of advice you have ever been given?
“Don’t pick THOSE mushrooms unless you want to end up deader than a Dodo…”
And finally, let’s skip forward 12 months. What do you want to achieve by this time next year?
I don’t really think that far ahead in all honesty, It’s easier to focus on the smaller day to day goals than the bigger picture. You tend to enjoy the journey that way and that’s really what it’s all about anyway. I just try and push myself to do better each day; to write better music than yesterday, to perform better DJ sets than yesterday, make more people laugh than yesterday, make better breakfast than yesterday, eat more pizza than yesterday etc etc….
