In this special drum and bass podcast, DJ Corp and Bremlin, both prominent figures in the South West music scene, discuss their ongoing initiatives to raise funds for hospital cancer care. They highlight the Code Red club nights, which are organised in memory of the late DJ ReDeFeat, aiming to create a positive impact through their music and community efforts.
Please introduce yourself to those unfamiliar with your DJ sound.
Hi my name is Charlie Orpin aka DJ Corp i'm now 42yrs old and first got into the scene in the mid 2000's living in Plymouth and being introduced to the Legends Of The Dark Black nights. I've always leaned more toward the deep melodic rolling side of DnB and would say that's where I firmly stay today.
Hello, I’m Barry aka Bremlin. I got into things very early in the late 80’s when acid-house emerged, then the natural progression was classic hardcore (1990 to 1993), then Jungle and then Drum & Bass, 30 years later I still can’t get enough of it. I think a lot of my inspiration for Drum & Bass stems mainly from the early to mid 90’s when baselines rolled like thunder plus there was some very dark stuff being made during that time hence I do like to drop some of those in here and there. I engage with most flavours of Drum & Bass but it would be fair to say I’m not generally known for, liquid, jump-up or high energy styles you might hear at a festival, but there are always exceptions to the rule.
What are your highlights of the past year and what is planned for the future?
Corp: Highlights of the past year would defiantly be seeing money raised by our Code Red nights going to the Forever Days charity and onto the cancer ward at Treliske Hospital. Code Red DnB Newquay was run by the late Jay Day " DJ ReDefeat" who after his battle with cancer sadly left us over two years ago now. Without him and Code Red, Cornwall would never have had the scene we do now not least the countless standout nights to be remembered by many. In his last few months his wish along with his daughter Tia was to set up a charity to provide funds for the staff at the hospital, the start of "Forever Days". Therefore it only seemed fit to carry on Code Red and use any money raised to go towards his goal with "Forever Days". Plans for the future are to very much be playing out more and to carry on putting together more Code Red nights and keeping the dream alive.
Bremlin: Highlights for me this year were getting to play a vinyl only night with Code Red, I usually only get to play with them at home so it was really awesome to play on Technics in a club environment again. Another highlight was getting back into the production side of things after a break from it, the time off has served me well and I’m looking forward to a fresh batch of home made artillery for 2025.
Tell us something positive to inspire future artists.
Corp: Something positive for future and upcoming artists for me is easy. Drum and Bass is coming back round. I recently played at a night run by DJ Proof and was by 20yrs the oldest on the line up. They all absolutely smashed it and what impressed me the most was the over tune selection over the course of the night and the ravers loving it from start to finish. Keep doing what your doing and it will be fine.
Bremlin: For future artists? Find your own sound that represents how you feel about the music, it’s good to play/produce for the crowd, but remember to be true to the integrity of your own style, create your own sonic identity and believe in it. Drum & Bass is 30 years old and still going strong, it’s not disappearing any time soon, but don’t sit back and wait for things to happen, work rate is everything.
What artists have inspired your DJ style?
Corp: Artists who have inspired my style have always been those who I've seen live. I remember early vinyl sets from Shy Fx and Calibre. Also early sets from Dj Sly with Bassman and Trigga mc'ing having a big influence on me. Probably my biggest influence though would be Kev Baird " Dj Blazin" who i spent many a year with back in the Plymouth days, he taught me how to mix and that has always been with me.
Bremlin: My inspiration for artists, specifically on the DJ’ing side of things comes from the mid 90’s, one particular club was the Blue Note in Hoxton which was run by Metalheadz on a Sunday night, the venue was very intimate and was probably the first time I was really inspired watching the likes of Peshay & Randall really working their craft, I mean these guys were just next level with long drawn out intelligent mixes that told stories. Other artists I’ve been inspired by over the years by would include Devious D, Kenny Ken, Micky Fin, Dj Hype, Rap etc etc and of course my all time favourites, Kemistry & Storm who played the best sets I’ve ever heard.
Talk us through your podcast mix track selection.
Our track selection for this mix was quite spontaneous in that we didn’t exactly plan the set in advance or anything. We’ve played back to back many times before and we know each others style so we just hit record and got into it. Our styles often compliment each other well and the direction often changes depending on what the other has just played, that’s the dynamics of how we like to do it, so we decided to just record in one take with no planning and see what surfaces. We did this mix on Technics which slightly forces a different style of mixing than what we might do if we were on CDJ’s for example, so our tune selection also took that into account. Had we had done the mix the following day the selection may well have gone a very different way, but it would still be reflective of the typical and parallel styles we often play when we’re paired up for a mix.
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