A quarter of a century of pure house music perfection
Words by Matt Caldwell
The electronic music game has gone through somewhat of a reformat in the last 25 years. We still stand in front of our musical heroes in front of stacks of bellowing speakers and still pledge to the church of the four to the floor kick drum – but behind the scenes where the music is made, distributed, sold and promoted – it’s a whole different world in 2015. Sure there’s a vinyl revival gathering momentum and we find ourselves in the midst of a revival of classic drum machines and styles, but it’s a digital world we live in now and there’s just a handful of pioneering minds that have survived the total restructure of the music industry as we know it. From an era that involved stacking your car full with white labels, heavy lifting and a lot of petrol to get your music heard – the Hi-Bias Records collective where there working on the same name, brand and sound that they still dedicate their lives to today. When DJ’s Rule‘s ‘Get Into The Music’ shined bright in its sky blue 12-inch record sleeve amongst racks of the world’s finest House and underground electronic music – that was the birth of something special. With the Hi-Bias logo stamped firmly on it, this was the start of a movement that’s stood the test of time and overcome drastic changes to still flourish as one of the gems of the House music world.
Fast-forward to 2015 and Hi-Bias look back on a thriving discography that helped to breakthrough some of the world’s finest producers including releases from deadmau5, Nick Fiorucci, Above & Beyond, Bob Sinclar, MC Flipside, Hatiras, M1, Luca Debonaire, Jerome Robins, Gusto, and the list goes on. Matched with an equally impressive run of compilation series that included music from the likes of Afrika Bambattaa, Frankie Knuckles, New Order, Marshall Jefferson, Chaka Khan, Junior Jack, David Guetta, Company B and hundreds more – the Hi-Bias collections were truly at the forefront of not just electronic, but the global music industry entirely. 5 years is an achievement that few labels will make in this day and age, so it is only fitting to mark such an occasion with a celebratory collection of the tracks that helped to make this great label the shining star that it is. We sat down with label boss Nick Fiorucci to dig deep into the back catalogue of the imprint and talk about how things have changed…
Hi Nick, thanks for talking to us today. First off – congratulations on this benchmark anniversary, 25 years in the game is a serious accolade – did you ever envisage the label ending up where it is today?
NF: Thank you. They say time flies when you’re having fun and it certainly is hard to believe twenty five years have past since I started Hi-Bias but the truth is I couldn’t see myself doing anything but music so I’m very proud and feel fortunate to still be in this industry doing what I love and am passionate about.
Let’s start at the beginning – 1989, you’re pre-Hi-Bias – what was your world like then and when did those first sparks in your mind begin to ignite?
I started DJing parties in my early teens and before I was even legal to be in bars I lied about my age to get club gigs. I landed my first club residency at a club called “Affairs” which literally became a dance music institution in the late 80s. The seeds of Hi-Bias (first as an artist alias) were sown when I befriended another DJ there, Michael Ova. Michael and I became production partners and we would create special edits and mixes for the club which started a buzz amongst the regulars and patrons as they couldn’t hear these mixes anywhere else. That led us to doing more original music which we also tested in the club. But even before Hi-Bias, shortly after I graduated as an Audio Engineer/Producer I had actually started a label with another partner called Bigshot Records in 1988 which lasted a couple of years. We had some incredible success particularly with records like Dionne ‘Come Get My Lovin’ and Landlord ‘I Like It’ (which is why I felt it was fitting to include them on our 25th year collection as ‘Bonus’ tracks).
Something obvious to some but not others – it’s a whole different game starting a label in 2015 than it was back then. Surely this wasn’t something that happened in a day or week?
Yeah it was certainly more involved back then to start a Label as we had to manufacture 12” vinyl records and find physical distributors in every market that we would export to. Unlike today where you upload a digital file to an aggregator and it could virtually be available worldwide within a week. Back then it took months to release a single from the whole analog mixing process, to mastering, to manufacturing and distribution of physical products.
Were you surrounded by talent that you felt needed a voice when this all started or did you go in with an A&R mindset to unearth new names?
The truth is we started the label as an outlet to release our own music but it took on a life of its own very quickly after our debut release ‘Get Into The Music’ by DJ’S RULE (which was one of our alias’). It became an immediate hit, reaching No. 1 on the playlist of London, England’s KISS-FM, charting internationally and getting licensed extensively overseas. Our mottos for Hi-Bias ‘The DJ’s Label’ & ‘The Music Speaks’. Our mandate as DJs ourselves is to create, find, and release music which first and foremost we really love and makes you feel good. A great original song with dynamic and creative flair and what we feel other DJ’s will love and support.
Were there many people involved in the project from the start? How has this changed over the years?
When Bigshot defunct in 1990 it felt natural to start Hi-Bias with my production partner and DJ friend Michael. Sadly he passed on a few years later but I’m happy his legacy lives on with Hi-Bias still standing a quarter of a century later.
What challenges did you face as a startup that might not exist in the modern industry?
As other artists quickly became aware of Hi-Bias and our label brand grew, it drove me to hone skills in marketing, promotional, distribution and pretty much every facet of the business. With todays digital technology and the internet it’s much easier to reach people and do the things that were much more labour intensive and required a staff back then.
I assume there was a lot more of a financial risk to starting a label back then in comparison to today?
Absolutely! A recording studio back then was a massive investment with a mixing console, outboard synthesizers, effect units and reel-to-reel machines. Today, you could pretty much do everything on a laptop. And when it comes to the release there is virtually no risk for manufacturing inventory or even promotion and marketing as most of it is done through the Internet.
‘Get Into The Music’ was the real launch for you – what came first, the track or the label?
The music. Always the song and the music before anything.
You guys obviously setup in a different era in terms of music consumption and lived through the digital revolution – how did you manage the transition?
Funny story comes to mind about technology…I remember putting my email address on my business cards I think around the mid 90s and handing it out at Midem (a big music convention in France) and my colleagues would ask me “what’s email?”. Today, even business cards practically don’t exist, lol. No but seriously, back then it was next to impossible to envision that people would be consuming media on mobile devices but I’ve always been forward thinking with new technology. I saw the shift coming and started to steer the company into the digital realm even before the late 90s when portable MP3 players started appear. In fact, in the early 2000s we developed a digital platform for delivering promos to DJs which today along with my partner Kevin Unger has morphed into zipDJ.com which is one the leading digital promo services for DJs on the planet (yes that was a shameless plug!)
Do any new Hi-Bias releases still end up on vinyl anywhere?
We stopped manufacturing vinyl several years ago but we are actually considering doing small runs on some special projects (like this one, who knows?) and we still sell vinyl of some of our catalog.
25 years is a lot of memories, what are your most memorable moments on this long journey?
There really are so many sensational memories but I’ll share a few that stand out in mind. One of my early visits to the UK I met a guy named James Hamilton, a popular journalist who wrote a weekly dance column in the famous British publication Record Mirror. We had a late dinner and afterwards he drove me into this small side street in the Charing Cross area of London and we enter the back door of a massive building and little did I know I ended up on the stage of the London’s Astoria Theatre with a packed house of over a couple thousand plus clubbers and Nicky Holloway, Pete Tong, Johnny Walker and Danny Rampling all on the bill. The night was called Sin and was one of the first legal Acid House clubs. Nicky dropped one of our tracks and the crowd erupted – it was one most inspiring moments of my life. Other highlights include being on the same bill as Carl Cox – spinning at the legendary Haçienda in Manchester alongside Graeme Park and Mike Pickering – performing at club Heaven in central London with resident Paul Oakenfold – headlining and having a label party at Ministry Of Sound – playing in Switzerland alongside Tony Humphries, Stockholm with David Morales, and so many more.
The list of talent on the label is extensive, but which signings were a real milestone for you personally?
One of my favorite stories is when this cassette shows up in our mail from Austria and it was this amazing sounding Techno demo of what eventually became the record SOUP ‘New York-London-Paris-Chicago’. The only thing is, we were not a Techno label so that’s what sparked us to start a sub-label Toronto Underground and after with working these guys long distance (I have yet to meet them) when we finished and released the record it went #1 in Holland and was massive hit in the 90’s rave scene. There really are too many more to mention but I’m proud to say we also licensed some records and artists that went onto be massive hits like Gusto – ‘Disco’s Revenge’ and the first ever albums of Bob Sinclar and Above & Beyond before they became really famous.
The anniversary compilation hit the shelves this week – how difficult was it to pick out the right tracks?
With over two and a half decades of incredible music and many memories attached to our amazing releases, yes, it was extremely difficult to say the least, but after a lot of retrospective I basically followed my heart and am quite proud of this collection and many chronicles of the Hi-Bias it represents.
Finally – we can’t let you go without asking for your Hi-Bias all time top 10 and why they hold the special place in your heart.
Wow, that’s a real hard one as every record we released represents a chapter in our history but okay, here’s 10 of these records out of hundreds of others…
– DJs Rule “Get Into The Music” – of course this is my number 1 pick not only because it was our first release and the launch for our label but there’s a certain magic in the record that I feels stands the test of time.
– Red Light “Thankful [feat. David Gordon]” – the vocal is outstanding and we won a Juno Award (Canadian equivalent to a Grammy or Brit Award) for this song as Best Dance Single.
– Nick Fiorucci “The Night [feat. Kelly Malbasa]” – the record was supported heavily by greats such as Tiesto, Paul Van Dyk and many more and the Chriss Ortega Mix has one of the best bass lines I’ve ever heard in Electro House and totally smashes all dance floors.
– Shauna Davis “Get Away” – This record blew up for us in Europe and was on the pop charts in Germany and is just as catchy today as it was when it was first released.
– Joey Seminara & Danny Nagels vs. MC Flipside “Just The Tip” – Hatiras pulled off one of those mixes that bursts at the seams with energy and totally works on the dance floor, and Flipside has that knack of lending just the right vocal for House music.
– Soup ”New York-London-Paris-Chicago” – this record was actually released on one of our sub-labels “Toronto Underground” and was a huge techno record in the early ‘90’s Rave scene and went #1 in the Benelux countries. I bet would go over like gang busters in the festivals today.
– Temperance “Hands Of Time” – A classic house song that sounded just as good on radio as it did in the clubs and went #1 for us and was included on the coveted “Much Dance” compilation (by Much Music) which went 7x Canadian Platinum.
– The Uprising “You Can Wait” – Produced by a duo from Switzerland has a killer sax riff and is undeniably catchy.
– Nick Fiorucci “Beggin’” – This was my brother Mario’s idea and turned out to be one of those novelty concepts that just clicked and the original ‘60’s record is one of my faves.
– DJ’s Rule “That’s It” – I would consider this an early “festival” record way ahead of its time ☺
Any shout outs or people to thank on this anniversary?
Wow, my goodness I could write pages of people I would like to thank but I’m afraid I will forget so many names so I will play it safe and humbly say this…thank you to EVERYONE who has been part of mine and the Hi-Bias Records journey because I could not have done it or be here without you.
Thanks Nick and happy birthday to the label and all involved.
Thank you so much!
*****
‘Hi-Bias 25 Years – The Origin of House’ is truly an extraordinary and eclectic 25 track selection to commemorate an unbelievable 25 year successful streak for Hi-Bias Records. Showcasing the diversity of styles and top end quality advocated by Hi-Bias, this compilation is the evidence of why it has been at the top of the pile for so many years. In stores May 5th…
Advance release available on Beatport:
http://classic.beatport.com/release/hi-bias-25-years-the-origin-of-house/1509492
Listen Now…
https://soundcloud.com/nickfiorucci/sets/hi-bias-25-the-origin-of-house/s-Gvr4F
Hi-Bias Online…
www.facebook.com/hibiasrecords
www.youtube.com/user/hibiasrecords
Nick Fiorucci Online…
www.soundcloud.com/nickfiorucci
