'Plenty Of Old School Influence' with Jimpster

Photo: Jimpster via Facebook

In the hectic, ever evolving world of house music, there are only a select few producers that continue to surprise and astound with each passing release, successfully keeping things edgy and ambitious without being coaxed into simply reinterpreting passing fads and trends.

One such character who continues to court our affections is deep house pioneer Jamie Odell, AKA Jimpster, who since 1996 has been on a one man quest to develop his own personal interpretation of underground dance music.

From the future jazz and downtempo exploits of his earliest works to the intoxicating, off kilter house of last year's Porchlight and Rocking Chairs (stream below) LP, Jimpster has time and again managed to push the envelope of house music whilst staying true to the code of the old school.

When it comes to the deeper end of house music, The Essex born auteur continues to evade more well-worn, club-ready tropes, and with great effect - Jimpster regularly pulls in over 100 gigs a year, at venues like Fabric, Panorama Bar, and Zoo Project.

We spoke to him ahead of his set at SSW4 this weekend (26th-28th September), to grill him about his approach to DJing and producing, growing up in the middle of Braintree's rave scene, his thoughts on the current EDM explosion, and the art of keeping things both old school and fresh.

You’re one of the Freerange label's main producers and released your fourth album Porchlight And Rocking Chairs to great acclaim last year. What would you say is your approach to both writing music and DJing?

I'd say that I've always tended to have a good idea of the intended end result, who I'm trying to appeal to and where the track is going to be released in my head before I actually sit down and start a track.

I'm not really one to work prolifically on tons of tracks constantly without knowing where they will end up. So if it's an LP I'm working on I know I'm going to be attempting to put together a collection of tracks that work well as a whole and are more home listening than club-focused.

With my single releases and remixes it's fair to say I'm looking at creating something that I'd like to play out in my DJ sets. My approach to DJing is to reflect my own taste so play a fairly broad mixture of house and disco with plenty of old-school influence and occasionally playing a bit tougher if the floor seems to demand that.

Whatever the gig I'd never play a track I didn't like and also use my DJ sets as an opportunity to try out my own productions as well as potential Freerange releases.

How would you describe the Jimpster sound to someone who has no idea who or what you are?  

Like a fine Japanese meal - classic and traditional but with a fresh, modern twist and an emphasis on fine detail. Ha ha! That's a terrible analogy!

Naah, sounds pretty good to us! You've been hailed for tracks like 'Alsace & Lorraine', 'These Times', and most recently 'Rollergirl' (below), which for us was THE deep house record of 2013. What tracks do you think have cemented your reputation and why?

It seems in certain countries like the US and UK I'm known more for my remixes whereas when I visit somewhere like South Africa the guys tend to request my original tracks on Freerange and Buzzin' Fly. Interestingly enough the remixes for superstars like Bob Marley and Seal have tended to go mostly under the radar.

I guess this shows that the underground dance scene isn't reliant on big names to get noticed and probably on the contrary, DJs are more likely to shy away from something that has mainstream connections.

You've also remixed some incredible artists such as Josh Wink, Photon Inc, Osunlade, Bob Marley, Joris Voorn, Seal, Marc Romboy, Solomun and Kollektiv Turmstrasse. Do you have a personal favourite, and why?

I'd say that the Osunlade Remix is perhaps my most well known and sold the most (above). I think it might have the most longevity too as it still goes down great when I play it now and you still have guys like Moodymann playing it regularly.

But I think my personal favourite would be my remix of Motorcitysoul's 'Aura' which has a simplicity and vibe which I really like and I remember that it just came me together so quickly in the studio and I think you can hear that in the remix.  It has quite a spontaneous feel to it.

Your DJ schedule sees you constantly playing at venues across the globe. Does touring still excite you? How do you approach each date?

Yeah, I've been playing internationally for about 15 years now and the novelty still hasn't worn off. The travelling takes its toll of course and I guess I'm in a permanent state of semi-exhaustion but as soon as it's time to play the adrenalin kicks in to override any tiredness, and at the end of the day I'm just hugely grateful.

I'm getting to do something that I love as my job.  I'm lucky enough to play quite a wide variety of parties so I always do a bit of research if it's a new place so I get an idea of what I can expect in terms of crowd and atmosphere.  

You've been heavily involved with the clubbing world in both London and Manchester in your career. Has either of these cities amazing musical heritage or personalities/DJs/clubs etc shaped and helped you on your path?

Yeah I spent spent several years living in both of those cities, but I'm originally from Essex and am back living there at the moment. Essex proved to be a great place to grow up during the late eighties and early nineties thanks to the exploding rave scene.

We had a club in my home town of Braintree called the Essex Barn which we would go to regularly around 1990 as 17 year olds. Local guys like Prodigy and Shades Of Rhythm performed as well as DJs like Matthew B, Frankie Bones and Frank De Wolf.

You would hear everything from quite industrial stuff like Nitzer Ebb (above), Front 242 or Renegade Soundwave through to deeper house stuff from labels like Nu Groove and Strictly Rhythm.

Being in Manchester around 1993/94 was also very influential, catching the tail end of the Hacienda but more importantly clubs like the Herbal Tea Party where Justin Robertson and Andrew Weatherall span often alongside The Dust Brothers AKA The Chemical Brothers playing their first gigs.

This weekend sees the arrival of SSW4. This will be your first time playing for the festival, what have your heard about the Weekender? Is there anyone special on the line up that you are keen to check out and why?

Yes, it's my first time for the SSW and I've heard good reports from DJs who have played it before. I'm expecting a knowledgeable and open minded crowd and dare I say slightly older than your average weekend club-goer which suits me down to the ground, being an old raver myself! It's a fleeting visit unfortunately but hopefully I'll have time to catch Crazy P.

Have you got anything special up your sleeve for your show at SSW4? And do you have any secret weapons you can share with us ?

There will definitely be a few exclusive edits making an appearance. As it's a weekender event as opposed to a regular club night I'll be digging out some more upfront party vibes but with my own spin and of course some forthcoming Delusions Of Grandeur and Freerange releases.

How does it feel to have been working in the dance music scene for almost 20 years now, and how do you think it has evolved?

It feels great and I'm very thankful! I'm not sure too much has changed within the more underground end of house music. You still have the DJs clamouring and digging for the exclusives or hard to find vinyl. We still have great club nights as well as larger events such as SPW and SSW.

I guess we have to accept that it's becoming harder to fill clubs week in and out and EDM is determined to destroy dance music as we know it but I try and keep my distance from all that nonsense and I'm happy to say I'm still feeling really positive about the state of the house scene.

Do you have any unforgettable memories that stand out in your musical career? 

I guess a career highlight would be playing a full, headlining performance at a sold out Barbican gig with Herbie Hancock jamming with us when we were still touring live as The Bays. Getting to play meet, let alone play with, one of your all time musical heroes is as good as it gets! Playing Panorama Bar probably comes a close second seeing how it has become such a legendary place. 

Do you think house music is having a renaissance right now or did it never really go away? 

I don't think it's ever gone away, it's just the media keep trying to reinvent it and give it different incarnations to help create something to write about.

And how do you manage to keep it fresh, new and we guess, vital? Is it a case of pressure as a DJ and Producer to always be one step ahead in the house scene? 

For me it's not so much about being one step ahead in terms of style or genre but just as good as I can possibly be and still trying to develop and find something fresh and new to say. I still have a lot of ambition and different musical directions I would like to explore but there's never enough hours in the day.

Is there any producer or track that you’re particularly psyched about right now or any new stuff upcoming that's rocking your world and why? 

Guys like Max Graef (above), Andy Hart, Glenn Astro, thatmanmonkz and Ugly Drums are all doing great stuff right now. The new Session Victim LP on Delusions Of Grandeur is essential listening too.

First record you ever bought, or earliest musical memory?

One of the first records I bought would have been the Streetsounds Crucial Electro LP (listen to the second in that series above) which must have been around 1982 or '83.  I got quite into breakdancing around this time so that was my entry point into dance music as these compilations were easily accessible.  

It's fair to say I became fairly obsessed with them and once I got to mess around on a TR808 drum machine I'd recreate the beats from these records - it was how I first got interested in production and programming.

Freerange totally embraces the deep, electronic sound.  What is your take on the EDM sound that seems to have dominated dance music in recent times.

All I see is the Facebook posts of guys like Steve Aoki, David Guetta or Paris Hilton gurning, throwing cakes or wrecking mixes. I don't really have any other experience of it and I'd like to keep it that way.

How and when were you first infected by dance music? 

Breakdancing in the early eighties, inspired by films like Breakdance, Beat Street and Wild-style.

What was your first break in music and did it set you on your path?

My first release was on a London label called Jumpin' and Pumpin', which was also home to the likes of Future Sound Of London and Humanoid. My production was very basic, cut n’ paste sampling breakbeats and adding big euphoric breakdowns but if I listen back now I can still hear an element of my own sound which has carried through to my productions as they sound now.

These early releases weren't big records at the time but were enough to get a bit of attention. I once went for a meeting with Kevin Saunderson who was interested in me doing something for KMS but it never worked out. They were also a springboard for getting out and playing live both as a live PA and slightly later DJing.

What or whom is your biggest inspiration and influence in your life and why? 

My parents, in particular my Dad who is a professional drummer with eighties jazz funk band Shakatak. I would go with him to the studio so would spend countless hours listening to what they were doing but more importantly I'd often set myself up in a side room with whatever synths, samplers or drum machines were lying around and make little sketches or just jam for hours on end. 

So what does the future hold for you? 

I don't think or plan too much ahead but my focus for the coming months is to get a live Jimpster set together so I can manipulate and remix my own tracks on the fly. I'm looking forward to having this as an option for certain gigs where the crowd know my stuff and will appreciate seeing and hearing the tracks in a new way.

And before you leave us, can you tell us something you think we should all be listening to before we head out the door to SSW4?

Patrick Forge's Cosmic Jam Radio show usually does the trick for me - always loaded with brilliant music both old and new from soul and jazz fusion through to broken beat and samba.

Thank you! Catch Jimpster alongside the likes of Danny Krivit, Horse Meat Disco, Ann Sexton, Crazy P, Cottam (listen to his mix for us here) and Graeme Park. Get your SSW4 tickets here.

Tickets are no longer available for this event