Grimey - XtraBass 07

Hello myspace. My name's Toby, alternatively the DJ of fine drum'n'bass, Grimey. I usually suck at this online community crap, probably because its superficiality makes me feel like banging my head against a brick wall. However, if you have something interesting or inspiring you wanna say then please share; the people truly on my wavelength in this world are few and far between and usually come from the most unlikely places........

My passion for DJing and everything the culture represents was born around seven to eight years ago; sixteen years or so of classical training gave way to a more concentrated interest in electronic music and I started making regular trips up to Soho accordingly in search of House vinyl (and nothing else, honest). My tastes have since mutated along an increasingly breakbeat-laden journey into my DJing weapon of choice, which is now drum'n'bass. Still as a comparative newbie to the scene I'm not sure i'm allowed to get all retrospective yet ;-) but if i had to name early influences, I'd call out the likes of PFM, Bukem and Peshay, largely down to the theft of my room mate's old Logical Progression mix CDs. So a thankyou to him is probably in order.

Arriving at uni in Scouseland around 2002 I was seduced by the vibrant state of northwest drum'n'bass back then and spent my first year rolling out demos rather than doing any work, grabbing my first club booking about four years ago at seminal night Sophonic Sessions; I spent most of the next three years playing regularly around Liverpool, including bagging a couple of residencies at local events Sub:Stance and Diversity. I also spread my wings over the years in Nottingham, Sheffield and London, the highlight probably winning a competition to play back to back with the great Bailey at the Ministry of Sound after moving back down to the capital for good in summer '06. Since then I've spent some time getting my teeth into the London scene, as well as getting securing further bookings inside the UK and out.

Having developed a love for radio I also ran my own weekly show on internet station (& former stalwart of the pirate scene) Keen FM for about 18 months, and have made guest appearances over the years on Dublin 104.6 FM, WitnesstheSickness radio and London's Life FM and Manic FM. In November 06, myself and partner in crime Sharper joined the family of London's finest, the mighty Rude FM 88.2. After six months on a hectic Friday night slot, we moved to the weekend in May 07 - you can now catch us rolling back to back 2-4 pm each and every Sunday on 88.2 on your FM dial in and around the London area, or if you're out of town check the online stream. In January 07 we gained an additional show on internet station Kunninmindz, where you can catch us on rotation every Wednesday from 8pm-10..

Lock into Kunninmindz using Winamp , Media Player or RealPlayer Check out the Rude FM live stream here using Winamp or Realplayer

www.nwdnb.co.uk

www.londondnb.com

www.bbc.co.uk/1xtra/drumbass/ www.musicv2.com/artist/dnbmixes
Visit Musicv2.com For Your Own Custom Myspace.com Music Player

Because of the constantly evolving nature of drum'n'bass I find my DJ style redefining itself a lot of the time; I would definitely say my tracklists are very progressive, something which no doubt stems from a year or two dabbling in prog house (I'm probably one of those geeks who feels a DJ set should always take you on some sort of journey - sadly something that seems missing from the majority of dnb sets these days). One of the things that got me hooked is how true the music stays to its roots so my sets are always a fairly consummate mashup of old and new, and I would say my tastes definitely lean more these days towards the more musical end of the spectrum. Liquid, techy, dark and most things inbetween, I'd like to say I mix up all genres of quality drum'n'bass. Towards the end of 2006, I've found myself really feeling tunes by the likes of Sabre, Break, Lynx, Commix, Survival, Icicle and Bungle to name but a few.

Various tightly mixed offerings from myself and some top notch up and comings can be found in the player above; see the musicv2 link below for complete tracklistings to all the mixes hosted therein. Check out the back to back offerings with Sharper and Ascension or my recent live recordings from BBC Radio 1Xtra for some fresh beats, rolling through various flexes of dnb as per.

*** Massive heartfelt shout goes out to everyone who voted me the massive honour of winner @ 1Xtra's Breaking New Talent competition for XtraBass '07 - been a mad experience but loved [nearly] every second! Peep my 1Xtra documentary in the video section for some up close'n'personal business, or failing that, a few laughs ;) ***

aim: thegrimeydj

2007 Diary (see way down below for up to date biz)..

Rude FM 88.2 - London & surrounding counties - Sundays 2-4 pm

Kunninmindz Internet Radio - alternate Wednesdays 8pm-10

07 March 2007 Breakthru @ Medicine Bar, Birmingham

13 April 2007 Magnetik @ Custard Factory, Birmingham

21 April 2007 Darklight @ The Volks, Brighton

05 May 2007 Healing Soundz @ Clockwork, London

11 May 2007 Platoon @ Club North, Manchester

18 May 2007 Break Art @ Brno, Czech Republic

02 June 2007 Rotation @ Boiler Room, Guildford

29 June 2007 Sunset Sessions @ Cornwall, UK

18 August 2007 Kunninmindz All Nighter @ Rhythm Factory, London