Page 16 - Zone Magazine Issue 017

TheCaulfieldBeats
TheCaulfieldBeats TheCaulfieldBeats
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16 ZONE-MAGAZINE.COM
avigating the rare and coveted middle ground that separates live performance from 4-to- the-floor, The Caulfield
tracks that are pretty special. They’ve made appearances at Bestival’s The Big Top and Secret Garden Party’s Temple of Boom, as well as extensively gigging at London’s finest electronica nights including White Heat, Racket808 and Orlando Boom.
blues, but as far as electronic dance is concerned we have a particular love for minimal/techno and especially a raw and basic sound seemed to be common around 15 years ago. Music on labels like Kompakt, Poker Flat, Bpitch control, Minus influenced us a lot. We’re quite particular though, we don’t just lap it all up.
Beats commit the soul of a DIY garage band to the vision of speaker cone bass. Spontaneity versus repetition, organic versus mechanical, the uncontrolled versus the restrained, this is the sound of a band unafraid to dismantle the idea of what dance music can be. It's called ‘garage electronics’ and will appeal to the indie kids as much as lovers of acid and techno.
Standing out in the music scene is a huge challenge these days, but The Caulfield Beats are unique and have a sound that draws you in straight away. The album kicks off with 90’s Love (Acid Part ii) with an infectious acid hook. To top it off, a club edit is also included of this track that will be booming across the dark floors of this year’s festivals and underground clubs.
Where did you play your first gig?
The Caulfield Beats are Lawrence Northall and Molly Dixon. A two-piece that belongs to a generation of producers for whom music studios came in the form of illegal software torrents. Production was strictly DIY. In a zeitgeist extending beyond music they were driven into the itinerant boat-based lifestyle of London's waterways from where they conduct their activities and play impromptu warehouse parties. Already reputed for their visually immersive gigs featuring custom live projections, The Caulfield Beats are questioning the traditional separation of dance music from live bands, and in the process, are causing quite a stir.
Lawrence is originally from rural Suffolk, Molly from seaside Essex. Our musical background is very broad (including folk music and garage rock bands) but I think the first dance scene experiences we had were probably due to Free Parties and Raves around Suffolk and Norfolk and especially in Thetford Forest. Our musical collaboration originally centered on combining live electronic experimentation with live visual manipulation hooked up to projectors. Molly was specialising in the latter (and still does) but now also plays live instruments as well, especially the tb303. Lawrence does most the other stuff and lays down the foundations.
What releases can we expect from you in the coming months?
The Caulfield Beats duo have their debut Album ‘NewAcid’ hitting the stores from 1st September complete with 10
It’s difficult to pin down individual artists, our influence goes well beyond electronic music including punk, folk and
Which of you takes the lead when producing music? Lawrence churns out the bulk of it, Molly does quality control and peppers it with acid.
After immersing myself in the album, I had to interview The Caulfield Beats, expect to see and hear a lot more from these two in the years to come, here’s what they had to say;
Production wasn’t our background so we were never ones for being overly technical. The production world and even the culture of dance music can be quite precious and altogether conservative at times. There’s a lack of rebelliousness and we reject that completely.
Where in the World are you right now?
What tips would you offer to new producers just starting out?
Moored up on the River Lea, near the Hope an Anchor, Walthamstow Marsh, East London.
Keep it simple, you don’t need thousands of plug-ins and equipment. If you can’t make it sound good on a four track with a drum machine, a synth and a sampler then loads of kit isn’t going to help. Just do whatever you want and enjoy yourself, don’t take it too seriously and don’t take any notice of what other people think. Don’t be afraid to destroy what you create. Stick at it doggedly and use your ears. It sounds like a cliché but it’s also true, your ears are the only real equipment you should rely on. There’s only one rule, if it sounds good then it is good, end of.
Can you tell us about your background and how you two got together to make music?
Your music has a very particular sound and uses a 303 influence throughout. Who or which artists have influenced your sound?
Whats the one track that you wish youd made?
At a rave in a field near a village called Kersey in Suffolk. There’s was a motley crew of old ravers, hippies and farmers.
What were the main challenges for you when learning to produce music?
Another album preceded by a single, possibly an EP.
The one we haven’t made yet.