an interview with... Jack Sparrow - Leeds' most promising dubstep producer

This article was also published in Leeds Guide - http://www.leedsguide.co.uk/review/view/11602

Dubstep has been established in Leeds for some time now. The Exodus and Subdub nights have become epicentres for bass driven music and the sound that they have created is now being felt reverberating across Europe.

Born out of this dubstep renaissance is Jack Sparrow. His melancholic sound has recently captured the attention of Radio 1’s Mary Anne Hobbs and DJ Pinch, perhaps the biggest name in Dubstep outside London, has signed him up to his highly-respected ‘tectonic’ label.

Can you describe your style of Dubstep?

It’s hard to explain. No tracks ever sound the same, they each have their own character. My tunes are quite dark but I like to put some uplifting bits in there too.

For me it’s all about atmosphere, deep drums and crossing other genres with dubstep. I have been feeling the carnival style drums and basses for a while and anything Latin, really love the movement of the drums and general vibe….I’ve just made it dark in my own way.

What’s your background in music?

Since I can remember, I’ve had a special bond with music, I would say it’s up there with oxygen for survival. My dad had thousands of tapes and vinyl’s that I used to be really curious about and that started off my obsession with collecting music.

I was 17 when I bought my first music pc and started building a studio. I was completely obsessed with music by this point. I became a bit of a loaner at school… a bit like now actually.

How do you produce you tracks?

Firstly, I need tea, biscuits and late nights. I use logic 8 I have bonded with that program really well and its really user friendly and powerful. I’ll start with drums and then layer incidentals, beeps, crackles etc. over the top to create atmosphere. The bass takes the most time though because dubstep relies on a deep bass with movement, a bit like jungle. I can end up spending days mastering a song that took 2 hours to complete, I just love playing around. After all is done it’s sent off to the cutting house to play that weekend.

How important has the Leeds scene been to you development as an artist?

The Leeds scene is growing and growing. Exodus and Subdub at the West Indian Centre are massive and now there’s a handful of local DJ’s making moves on the scene. We’re all really good mates, it’s a real community vibe going on - we all just like dubstep. What’s special though is that we’re all from broad backgrounds musically. I just want to see more of the frequency fm boys getting abroad and spreading the Leeds vibe in Europe – that would be wicked.

Mary Anne Hobbs says you making some ‘absolutely incredible moves,’ how does it feel to have the mother of electronic music backing you?

When I heard Mary playing my track I did a little dance. She’s been very supportive of my sound and she’s really cool to chat to. She asked me to do a mix for her show over the show which was immense. I put loads of my new stuff into it and it really symbolised my personality and how I feel right now.

You’ve been working with DJ Pinch as well, how did that come about?
Pinch is an absolute legend he has pretty much built up Tectonic recordings in Bristol to be one of the top 3 labels on the scene, He is a wicked producer too. I have done 4 tracks for him now and I’m working on an album for him so things are just getting started. I sent him a track called ‘for me’ last year and it got his attention and since then we have worked close growing my sound and releasing tracks. The Bristol sound is my favourite its so technical and thought out and pinch’s album was a masterpiece, he’s recently signed stuff from flying lotus and joker which are amazing. I feel at home with tectonic and earwax labels.

You’ve played overseas quite a bit now, how well is your music going down abroad?

My gigs in San Francisco, Poland and Croatia really stick in my mind. The crowds just love music there, it’s like going back in time to when the scene started and it was fresh, they just go nuts for it.

Do you believe their a certain spirituality to dubstep?

Yeah. It’s a physical thing and anyone who’s been to one of the nights in the West Indian Centre knows what I’m talking about. It’s like having a bath in bass, it’s amazing. I won’t get into the specifics but certain bass frequencies can do strange but positive things to people. Dubstep will be around forever there will just be people moving forward all the time creating new sounds and rhythms. Mala’s blog on myspace is a very interesting read if anyone ants to know more. When he asked me to play London DMZ I was so honoured as that’s where dubstep started and you could really feel the roots of it all and what he means down there.

Who’s making the biggest moves in Leeds in your opinion?

I would say on the do front Signus from radio frequency he can seriously mix!
Dom Ruckspin from Ranking Records the guy is very talented and his tunes always leave me wanting more from him.

Finally, what’s next?

I’ve got my album coming out and I’ve started doing a lot of UK funky tracks and a few remixes of big commercial artists so there’s still.

www.myspace.com/sparradubz