Photo by James Mountford, Logo design by Eskimopush
It’s our great pleasure to introduce to the Trash readers the lovely and amazingly talented Hannah Holland from London. Operating as a resident at Trailer Trash first and now at the helm of the infamous Bastard Batty Bass party, Hannah has played Room One at Fabric, has toured all over Europe, and just returned from a tour through Australia.
Featured only one other time here on Trash for her work on V V Brown’s “Crying Blood,” Hannah’s production work is poised to flood your iTunes and club speakers through out 2009. So we thought we would chat with her about it and see what she is feeling right now, what has inspired her, and what exactly Bass means to Hannah Holland. With a record label and a single on its way in November. It’s no doubt that Hannah is one of the most hard working and visionary DJs and producers in the game! Get your All-American welcome wagons ready…Oh, and she did an exclusive mix for us because we’re special. It’s bass, all over your face.
So first off, thank you so much for participating in an interview for Trash Menagerie. It’s been super exciting to watch different readers pop up all over the globe and we’re honored to have a world renown dj/producer to tell everyone what’s up! I know you’re crazy busy and you even just got back from Aussie-land! How was your trip?
Hello! Its my pleasure, Aus was pretty immense. Traveling across to the other side of the world and meeting people who have been to your club and listen to your music , its a real honour. The Aussies have been very supportive and i cant wait to go back.
Now tell those of us who don’t know how long your Bastard Batty Bass party has been running and how long you’ve been in the game?
I’ve been djing in clubs for about 6 years now and started playing with decks about 8 years ago. BBB has been running for two years now, as one off parties, but as a monthly night for 8 months, its a haven for people who r fed up with the same old shit, we like to PARTY and aim to make u shake yourself stupid, to the sickest tunes and almighty vocal dynamics of Mama and MC Chickaboo.
What were some of your earlier influences to inspire you into electronic music?
The first electronic music that i heard were things like On A Ragga Tip by Sl2 and tracks from Shut Up And Dance, rave tunes that had crossed over into the mainstream and were heard by 10 year old ears like mine! Next came jungle when i was 13 and i was just hooked, locked onto pirate radio stations in my area and going to underage raves.
In particular it’s interesting to watch this “genre” Bass and Heavy Bass start to take form. From Trouble & Bass in NYC to the work Starkey and Dev79 are doing with Street Bass in Philadelphia and the Tomb Crew in London and then obviously you, there seems to be this musical obsession with whatever Bass means to each of you. I’ve heard even that Bastard Bass is becoming a somewhat of a genre in your town!Therefore, what does Bass do for you? And why do you think it’s important to emphasize the bass heaviness? What genres does this term cover?
People started referring to my sets as Batty Bass , as the type of music i play is hard to describe as a whole genre, even through it sounds as if its part of the same genre, whether its a house, breaks or dubstep tune, there’s an element in it that i pick out that makes it flow. Obviously the name comes from the night. For me, bass makes the warmth/aggression and the sex appeal of a record, when u hear a great bassline it makes u feel dirty on the dancefloor , as it taps into your soul! If a track makes me screw my face up like ive smelt something bad , ill play it! Bass is the meat of a record for me, but it doesnt have to dominate and be obvious, artists from Martin Landsky and Jamie Jones, who’s bass has roots in detroit techno to Mark Romboy and Oliver Hunnetmann who sounds are electro/tech through to house from Oliver $, Afrojack, Bart B More, Bass Kleph, breaks from peeps like Bassbin twins and Diverted, who’s bass is the dirtiest you ever heard, to some dubstep artists like from Caspa and Woogie, and lil jungle from peeps such as Omni Trio. I guess for me it steams from what i grew up with , its deep inside my soul! At Batty BAss I play a 5 hr set, and go across the spektrum from new york garage, to tech house, to a lil bmore, balie funk, to house , techno , garage, dubstep and jungle and blend it so it flows as its own sound.
Also this brings to mind the influence of UK dance music on American dance music. Most everything I play or hear in the club these days is from across the pond! Now of course Baltimore Club and Chicago House has been crucial in this exchange between the States and the UK, but do you think there is something special in the water over there?
The UK has a huge legacy of dance music and no matter what it will continue, people are so passionate about it. From, grime, to fidget , to dubstep, it all comes out of need to express through the dancefloor and a deep love of raving.
Pic by Alex Noble
I just mentioned some different artists working in this ambiguous “Bass” genre. Who are some artists you’re looking forward to in 2009? Anybody specific to the States? (Canada is obviously doing some big things too).
The artists i am keeping my eyes on are : Solo(UK), who is my studio engineer, he has some BIG tunes coming that will blow you away. From Canada i am loving the huge talent of Woogie, who will be releasing one of his genre crunching tunes on Batty Bass Records next year. I think we have only seen the tip of the iceberg from people like Oliver $ , Duke Dumont , Jamie Jones and Worthy and whatever Dirtybird release!
How about new sound developments? Are you feeling anything up and coming from different parts of the world or even within the UK? I know I see Ragga continuing to play a more and more important role in bass music, especially with Machines Don’t Care and the work Toddla T is doing. Are hoping anything new will catch on soon?
Ragga has ALWAYS been a huge role in bass music. Ragga , dub, reggae is the reason bass music exists, every so often producers go back to using those style of vocals. Dubstep is a genre which i can feel being mutated and forming new styles. the dubstep community are pretty purist, but i think the music’s influence will spark some interesting new ideas, I am always looking to it when im in the studio. In terms of new sounds, im hearing a lot of african and gypsey sounds in new house music, very percussive and moving away from huge bass. We’ve had things like fidget and dubstep break the mould, I feel we are having the quiet before the storm, its bubbling, its coming, something brand new….
What are some of your hopes with Bastard Batty Bass? Trouble & Bass seems to be creating a great relationship with the Nightslugs party. Do you have any similar desires to bring your party to the States in a bigger way?
You people better watch out over there, the BAtty Bass Bitches are coming for you next year. We are planning to tour the soundsystem, myself , Mama and MC Chickaboo, we will burn any house down with our furious show!
What projects can we look forward to from you in 2009?
We are just getting Batty Bass Records off the ground, so watch out for the infiltration of batty next year! 2008 is the first year i have had tunes released, so expect a whole lot more productions.
Do you have any greater production aspirations? Your work with Mama Shamone has been really interesting and great. I know I’d love to see the return of the diva in the club scene.
Thanks, i hope to do an album with her sometime in the future, as far as diva’s go, she’s the bastard love child of Ol Dirty Bastard and Grace Jones! I will be working on more solo stuff like my release on Playtime, which have a deeper techier edge for late night skankin.
Lastly, do you have any wise words for those of us out there starting parties in our cities, pushing labels, production or a new sound?
Work you ass off!!!! This game aint for slackers, you got to push all the time but in the right way, dont overload people with stuff. You have to make your art stand out from the rest, whether its a party, label, tune or sound, make it yours , unique and true to your heart, then people will feel its the real deal.
And out of curiosity, how do you perceive the battyness of our current political climate!? And do you have couches prepared for your American friends when John McCain dies from a plastic surgery misshap and Sarah Palin becomes President of the United States?
We are all praying for you, brothers and sisters ;) x
For DJ dates and productions you can check them on www.myspace.com/hannahholland
Next Bastard Batty Bass on 6th Nov @ The STar OF Bethnal Green, London. www.myspace.com/bastardbattybass
Immerse yourself in the world of Batty Bass at www.battybass.com
Hannah Holland forthcoming releases “Shake It UP” ft. Mama (Batty Bass Records) out Novemeber. “Banshee” (PLaytime Records) out November. “Crying Blood” – V V Brown Hannah Holland remix out now.
Get your fix of the sound from our monthly itunes podcast
http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=266687484
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Hannah Holland – Hannah’s Batty Mini Mix
1. Kaskazi – Jamie Jones and Simon Baker
2. Easy Legs – Oliver $ rmx
3. The Big Stef – Solo
4. Shake It Up (The Reshake) – Hannah Holland
5. Punks – Juju
6. Depth Charge – Woogie
7. Diesel Not Petrol – Sukh knight
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V V Brown – Crying Blood (Hannah Holland Remix)
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