Bodhi

Wales in the house. Satisfaction guaranteed. And ain’t that the Truth.

Interview by Dan Prince


Luke, Olly welcome to DMCWORLD…where on Planet Earth are you right now?

“Hi Dan! We are currently at home in sunny Cardiff.”

A huge Bodhi sound is causing mayhem everywhere at the moment, it’s no wonder Exploited picked up the massive ‘Satisfaction’ EP. Please talk us through the sounds and history of this three tracker…

“The whole EP is quite a soulful affair which taps into our influences inside and outside of house music. The lead track Satisfaction moves along with some deep almost gospel like chords, we are both suckers for large, smooth, soulful chord progressions. Soul Music is on a more clubbier tip. The final track Truth probably has the most history out of the 3 track before it formed its final shape. The track was originally based around the dialogue from an interview with one of our favourite DJs/producers. Unfortunately the sampled couldn’t get cleared so we just keep that version for when we play out now. You’ll have to catch one of our sets to find out who it is. The dialogue that eventually found its home on the tune after a long old dig is from an interview with jazz drummer Arts Bakley. It was a bit less tongue and cheek than what we had there originally but the message is in the same vain. We also started to incorporate instruments on our tunes when appropriate so the guitar and bass got pulled out for this one.”

When I told Buzz Chart king Guy Garrett I was interviewing you today he shouted across the office…“we love Bodhi, the coolest guys from Wales and one of the deepest sounds around at the moment that is so worthy of The Buzz Chart”. So, thoughts on that little comment?

“Thanks Guy – but I don’t know how true that statement is though, I’m pretty sure Tom Jones is still knocking around!”

You have been receiving a lot of love from Radio 1 towers this year…Giles Peterson, Toddla T, Rob Da Bank and Skream & Bega all over your music…can you recall where you were when you first heard one of your tracks on the legendary station…

“It’s always a pleasure to hear your music being pumped through the Radio 1 0ystem and to gather support from such legends as you’ve mentioned. I think the first time I can remember was way back at the beginnings of Bodhi when Mr Peterson gave our bootleg of ‘The XX – Angels’ a spin on a sunny Saturday afternoon. I was in my parents kitchen at the time & being big fans of his show already, it was a beautiful moment to be involved in his weekly playlist. I’m pretty sure he got the pronunciation of the name correct too, that’s a common theme that occurred for a while, is it pronounced ‘bo-dee’ or ‘bod-hi’, everyone seems to have got it down now with ‘bo-dee’ being correct.”

What are the big 5 tunes in your box this weekend?

Doc Daneeka feat. Seven Davis Jnr. – What’s It Gonna Be

Mad Rey – Quartier Sex

DJ Sneak – Keep On Groovin’

Dungeon Meat – Lose Your Mind

K. Hand – Untitled B1

Okay let’s rewind for a moment, you have been producing together for some two years now, what’s the history…how did this formidable production team join forces in the first place?

“As you say, Bodhi formed some 2 years ago. It was a few years earlier that we met in and around Cardiff, enjoying the nights the city had to offer at the time. It was began apparent to us fairly quickly that we shared quite a bit in common in terms of musical interests so it was only natural that we would have a go at writing together. Armed with a cheap copy and logic 9 & limited knowledge on production we dived into a session and came out with a 2 steppy bass weighty bootleg of Destiny’s Child – Say My Name. The tune is still lurking around somewhere on the internet, looking back it’s safe to say we’ve come a long way in terms of production, but the main thing was that we clicked and worked well together which is what really began the Bodhi journey.”

Earliest memory of dance music?

“Disco music would have been first contact but I think in terms of modern dance music it would be listening to one of those cheesy ‘Now That’s What I Call Music’ cassettes and stumbling upon ‘The Prodigy – No Good (Start The Dance)’.   I also remember a year later at the tender age of 7 being slightly unhinged but totally transfixed by Keith Flint’s performance in the Firestarter video.”

Tell us about your studio set up…

Yamaha DX7

Juno 106

Novation Impulse 61

Akai MPK49

Universal Audio Twin Finity 710

SPL Crimson

KRK VXT 6’S

Mac’s

Lots of different percussion

Shure SM7B & SM57

PRS Custom 22 Guitar

Yamaha TRB-5 Bass

Who excels in what department in the studio…who is great at what?

“We are both on par is most departments, there is no real unbalance. I guess we both enjoy taking over and leaving each other to it when it come to vocals (Olly) and the final mix down (Luke). Our work patterns also differ, Luke’s an early bird where as I’m more of a night owl.”

When was the last time you had an argument about music?

“That QT track split the Bodhi camp down the middle!”

 Throw a couple of names at us, some hot up n’coming producers from Wales we should be checking out next year…

“Vestalus, Brawd, Castro, Ratcatcher are our homies.”

Have you ever had a really shite job?

“I class all my previous jobs as really shite! Call Centre’s and a stint at Primark for Christmas was intense.”

Highlight of your US Tour back in June…

“Chicago was a real treat on the tour as you would expect from the house heritage it holds. We managed to dip our toes into the legendary Gramaphone Records for a few hours which was great. Also we had a day off the next day so our hosts made sure we had the mother of all hangovers to accompany it. The food as you expect was unreal, never held such a heavy burger. We also played shows in Montreal and Toronto, a highlight from Canada was seeing a lady walking her dog, they both had matching shoes on…”

Mixmag described your music as… “Laden with sweet grooves, armed with serious bass and dripping with soul.” So we head to yours on a Sunday afternoon…what is the Bodhi Back To Mine 10 you spin us to mellow the vibe?

Andrew Ashong & Theo Parish – Flowers

Eryku Badu – Otherside of the Game

Robert Glasper Experiment feat. KING – Move Love

The RH Factor – Juicy

A Tribe Called Quest – Bontia Applebum

Floating Points – Myrtle Avenue

Gene Harris – Losalamitoslatinfunklovesong

Maxwell – Dancewitme

Bonobo – Ten Tigers

Flying Lotus – Roberta Flack

A producer you would love to spend some time in the studio with…

“Sam Sheppard aka Floating Points – there isn’t much this guy can do wrong for the both of us as a musician and producer. His productions are always on point, I’d also like to have a dig into his eclectic record collection too and knowing he is a student of science I’d end up asking him a load of dumb questions on the subject.”

Best and worst thing about living in Cardiff…

Best – “The people and being only a short drive away from some of the most beautiful places in the UK.”

Worst – “When the Welsh rugby team plays at home the city can turn into a bit of a zoo.”

What is the record that…

…reminds you of your childhood?

Jurassic 5 – Concrete Schoolyard

…always get you dancing?

The GAP Band – Outstanding

…reminds you of being broken hearted?

Little Dragon – Twice

…you wish you would have made?

Floating Points – K&G Beat

You have had a monumental 2014 with your own releases, remixes and collabs. Let’s skip 12 months forward…what do you want to have achieved this time next year?

“Within the next 12 months we are looking to have a body of work behind us that will form an album. Also to run parallel with that is the dawn of a Bodhi live show.”

DJ gig of 2014?

“Hard to pick one but maybe closing at Paradiso in Amsterdam for 5 days off. Such a great venue to play in, and every trip to Amsterdam is an enjoyable one.”

A recent quote from a certain superstar DJ…“I believe true DJing is actually an art, but it’s a dying art, as everyone is pushing the sync button…it’s a real shame when you see a ‘DJ’ plug his laptop in and call this DJing. Music will always evolve but sometimes not in the best way.” What are your thoughts on that?

“I think its important to recognise where DJing comes from if your seriously want to be involved. I wouldn’t say its a dying art, it’s still healthy in my eyes, but with the populartiy of dance music rising it can become saturated with what this quote is referring to. You just have to look a bit harder for right DJs and nights that respect Djing as an art. I’m all for technology paving new ways in which we can express music however you get a pair of technics and learn from the roots up and not jump straight for the infamous sync button. I don’t understand where the fun is in using one. If technology is to be used, use it in an innovative way which will progress the genre, not cheapen it.”

And finally…what is coming out next from you guys release wise?

“We’ll have another release out of Future Classic at some point later this year hopefully and we’ve contributed a few more tunes for George the Poet.”

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