Big, bad and heavy
Jumpin Jack Frost is an integral part of the history of Jungle/D&B. A huge personality, a founder of V Recordings/Chronic/Philly Blunt and an original, wide-ranging and completely electric DJ. Standard! It was time to catch up on the eve of a huge night at Swerve alongside Fabio at Cable in London to see what he’s listening to, about some names to watch and about music with style. Damian Bennett checks in with the main man…
People used to talk about ‘taking people on a journey’ through a DJ set, is that something that still applies to you?
“That’s definitely my kind of thing…I just do what I do. I play a range: I go from jump-up stuff, liquid stuff, some old skool, a range of different things. And I enjoy doing it all.”
So what sort of artists come to mind to make this vibe of yours happen? You’re known for your wide repertoire…
“I’m a big fan of Level 2, a big fan of Marky, of Die – I’m a massive fan of Die… Need For Mirrors, people like Goldie, Hazard, Ruffstuff, I’m a massive fan of High Contrast, Commix, there’s a huge range of stuff I like.”
That’s a great range right there: lots of different shades, lots of light and dark, and personalities. Speaking of which, you mention Marky and knowing how massive D&B is in Brazil (and your part in it with V Recordings, way back to a certain EP on V which turned the industry upside down), do you have plans to hit that wicked country soon?
“Totally looking to get out there, maybe with DMC. Maybe from Brazil go to Argentina, I’m tight with all the guys out there.”
You travel a lot…
“I’m doing a lot of stuff in Europe/Germany, and February I’m in Dubai. I just sorted out Israel and I do America a lot.”
What are the big 10 tunes you are spinning right now?
1. Thousand Soul Songs…DJ Die...dubplate
2. Blazing...Calibre…V Recordings
3. Jazz Cafe...Peshay...V Recordings
4. Who Is It...Bladerunner Rmx…Firefox…Philly Blunt Records
5. Seduction…Dramatic & DB Audio…V Recordings
6. Northern Lights…Serum & Bladerunner…V Recordings
7. I’ll be Gone...Acuna...V Recordings
8. Why You Wanna...David Boomah...V Recordings
9. Uprising...Dillinger Rmx...AI...V Recordings
10.Urban Jazz...Peshay...V Recordings
And back to Die, I know you go back with Roni and the Bristol Sound…
“The Bristol Sound’s something that I’ve championed for a long time.”
So what sort of vibe emerged in your OWN style over time… ?
“I think I had a niche. It was somewhere between that Bristol sound and a liquid vibe. The Bristol beats together with that funk, that sexy sort of sound…that’s how I saw my sound. I’m a huge fan of feel good music, right back to Masters at Work. I like a sort of Latin style, and music with nice beats…chunky beats. There’s some styles about right now, well, I like them but can find the beats a bit light. Too light for me. At V we just like chunkier beats…more ‘jungle’. With a sassy, feel-good attitude.”
How will it transfer to the ‘Swerve’ sound? How you gonna get your Swerve on??
“With material like Level 2 definitely Acuna…Ruffstuff‘s new stuff which is very deep, musical and almost trance-y. You can mix that with vocal-lead type of stuff, you know? Die’s got an amzing new direction he’s going in…whole new vibe, like a disco kind of thing. I’ve got some tracks of that I’ll be playing down there on Wednesday. It’s D&B but it’s fresh, it’s a fresh outlook on the whole thing.”
Acuna has this incredible spirit and love the collab of his Groove has been playing too ‘About You’. Do you feel the music is changing?
“Man yeah, it’s always evolving. They say evolve or be extinct. It’s great about this music, it’s ALWAYS evolving, it’s exciting to be on the cutting edge, to always stay current, to stay up front in it. You can never rest on your laurels and think ‘Oh well, I’ve been here for ages’ cos it’s not like that. You always have to be on point in this business. It’s hungry as ever, all over the world.”
You mention Masters of Work, what sort of original influences did you have?
“I’m a massive House fan, I continue to play House sets now. I’m a massive fan of good strong vocal music, music that makes you happy. A massive Hip Hop fan, Dancehall Reggae and always love Jazz. I’m also a massive Giles Peterson fan.”
What’s coming up release-wise?
“Watch out for the new Liquid V Club sessions mixed by Bryan Gee and look out for my ‘Big Bad and Heavy’ album early next year.”
Follow Frost on Twitter… @djjjfrost
