Mr Trick and Waxfactor - Rhythm Incursions
Mr Trick and Wax Factor, the DJs behind Resonance FM's mighty Rhythm Incursions shows, have been name checking Musicalbear's download section for a while now... So Musicalbear returned the favour.
Rhythm Incursions, Resonance FM's own predictably leftfield challenge to the Westwood-led hip hop hegemony, runs with the tagline that it's 'picking up where hip hop stops.' What this means to someone like me, a long-time fan of labels like wordsound and Force Inc, is an hour and half of sonic nirvana... Seething, gritty beat and bass-led experimental ambience from guys who really know the score and, better still, actually have the time to dig out all that really great stuff, old and new, that you would otherwise just never get round to hearing; guys with the skill to mix it all up and the smarts to get themselves into the position where it comes pumping out of your radio on a Saturday night. Really, I haven't been this excited by or addicted to a radio show since I first discovered Peel.
That's my take on it, I'm a fan, but how would the guys themselves describe the flava of Rhythm Incursion's heady sonic stew to those yet to sample it? We meet up in their suite of offices atop Centrepoint from where they plot full spectrum domination of all media. Trick is a six foot four, gold-toothed cyberpunk straight from a William Gibson novel and Waxfactor an urbane hip-hop dandy surrounded by a bevy of bikini clad Japanese supermodels.
Actually, Trick's in Spain and I'm about to leave the country, so we do it via email.
'Rhythm Incursions means,' according to Trick 'you could be hearing anything from Machine Drum to Spectre, Edit to Mr Dibbs, The Bug to Kode9. While we might stretch things and play a track by someone like Tammy Garcia, we won't go overboard and play the new Sunn 0))) track, because people would quite possibly just switch off.' Waxfactor underlines the point, 'Essentially, it's a show for all things which take hip hop as their basis and then progress them to wherever they feel. It's not a rigid format – just a guideline really.'
The show came about when Trick, who was already doing a turntablist show for Resonance FM, got frustrated by its narrow remit, put together a compilation called Illbient 60 and pitched it to the station. 'Once they said yes I called Wax up and told him he had to co-present; simple as that!' The ethic, according to Wax, was that 'we felt there was a vast area of music...which was being largely ignored by any kind of major radio. We wanted to fill that gap and represent that area, to be honest'.
Thankfully, intelligent and articulate guys though they are, both Trick and Waxfactor are mercifully absent throughout the show itself, they clock in and that's pretty much the last you'll hear of them. Just how are we supposed to know exactly what it is that we're currently enjoying? That's where the website comes in.
'We both hate people chattering pointlessly over music you're trying to listen to, so neither of us say too much on the show, and instead tell people to check the website for the playlist so that they can identify a track title, The label its on.' Trick explains. But that's not its only purpose. 'The main one really' Waxfactor explains 'is to enable people to listen to the show whenever they like/can – regardless of how far they might be from the range of broadcast Resonance FM covers'.
It's this kind of generous ethic along with their adventurous tastes that make Trick and Waxfactor refreshing. It really is 'all about the music' and sharing information. The website keeps the past several week's worth of shows on archive along with tracklists and a weekly update of the DJ's current faves along with all the links you need to explore more, and there's a similar principle behind Trick's other major project, Turntable Radio, with scores of links and downloads.
One of the highlights of recent shows, and a good indication of the guys' sonic adventurism was a truly awesome mix by Warp's Team Shadetek. 'What can I say about it? Huge up to Matt from Shadetek for lacing us with that' Waxfactor tells me, and Trick's no less impressed 'Yeah – they fucking ripped it on that mix, no question. I'm still caning that mix though; it's off the hook. They're really up for doing another one, and will be coming back with more for our worldwide all-night special on December 18th.' December 18th? I'm going to be out of the country! For a moment I consider canceling the flight. Never mind, true to form they are going to put the whole thing online. Heroic!
I wonder where Trick and Wax get the time and energy to devote themselves to all that they're doing on top of their day jobs and lazily enquire whether they have any other projects on the go. Predictably, the hardest working men in experimental hip hop have several thousand. Among the most notable are Trick's side project Fallen, available to check out through Isolationist, which he freely admits was inspired by the brilliant Isolationist compilation that Kevin Martin put together for virgin a few years ago. There's also Needlework Records, who have just released an excellent album by 2tall who, 'is one of the best producers out there' according to Waxfactor, Wax's own Sci-Fu and his collaboration with Trick, Vengence of the Volume, both due to drop in the new year, both of which promise to be essential purchases.
It looks like 2005 could be worth waking up to after all, so if those winter blues are coming on strong, stock up on your stimulant of choice, set the dial to 104.4 FM and let London's two finest exponents of dub-soaked post-hip hop and distorted dancehall rock you on 'till the break of dawn.
That's my take on it, I'm a fan, but how would the guys themselves describe the flava of Rhythm Incursion's heady sonic stew to those yet to sample it? We meet up in their suite of offices atop Centrepoint from where they plot full spectrum domination of all media. Trick is a six foot four, gold-toothed cyberpunk straight from a William Gibson novel and Waxfactor an urbane hip-hop dandy surrounded by a bevy of bikini clad Japanese supermodels.
Actually, Trick's in Spain and I'm about to leave the country, so we do it via email.
'Rhythm Incursions means,' according to Trick 'you could be hearing anything from Machine Drum to Spectre, Edit to Mr Dibbs, The Bug to Kode9. While we might stretch things and play a track by someone like Tammy Garcia, we won't go overboard and play the new Sunn 0))) track, because people would quite possibly just switch off.' Waxfactor underlines the point, 'Essentially, it's a show for all things which take hip hop as their basis and then progress them to wherever they feel. It's not a rigid format – just a guideline really.'
The show came about when Trick, who was already doing a turntablist show for Resonance FM, got frustrated by its narrow remit, put together a compilation called Illbient 60 and pitched it to the station. 'Once they said yes I called Wax up and told him he had to co-present; simple as that!' The ethic, according to Wax, was that 'we felt there was a vast area of music...which was being largely ignored by any kind of major radio. We wanted to fill that gap and represent that area, to be honest'.
Thankfully, intelligent and articulate guys though they are, both Trick and Waxfactor are mercifully absent throughout the show itself, they clock in and that's pretty much the last you'll hear of them. Just how are we supposed to know exactly what it is that we're currently enjoying? That's where the website comes in.
'We both hate people chattering pointlessly over music you're trying to listen to, so neither of us say too much on the show, and instead tell people to check the website for the playlist so that they can identify a track title, The label its on.' Trick explains. But that's not its only purpose. 'The main one really' Waxfactor explains 'is to enable people to listen to the show whenever they like/can – regardless of how far they might be from the range of broadcast Resonance FM covers'.
It's this kind of generous ethic along with their adventurous tastes that make Trick and Waxfactor refreshing. It really is 'all about the music' and sharing information. The website keeps the past several week's worth of shows on archive along with tracklists and a weekly update of the DJ's current faves along with all the links you need to explore more, and there's a similar principle behind Trick's other major project, Turntable Radio, with scores of links and downloads.
One of the highlights of recent shows, and a good indication of the guys' sonic adventurism was a truly awesome mix by Warp's Team Shadetek. 'What can I say about it? Huge up to Matt from Shadetek for lacing us with that' Waxfactor tells me, and Trick's no less impressed 'Yeah – they fucking ripped it on that mix, no question. I'm still caning that mix though; it's off the hook. They're really up for doing another one, and will be coming back with more for our worldwide all-night special on December 18th.' December 18th? I'm going to be out of the country! For a moment I consider canceling the flight. Never mind, true to form they are going to put the whole thing online. Heroic!
I wonder where Trick and Wax get the time and energy to devote themselves to all that they're doing on top of their day jobs and lazily enquire whether they have any other projects on the go. Predictably, the hardest working men in experimental hip hop have several thousand. Among the most notable are Trick's side project Fallen, available to check out through Isolationist, which he freely admits was inspired by the brilliant Isolationist compilation that Kevin Martin put together for virgin a few years ago. There's also Needlework Records, who have just released an excellent album by 2tall who, 'is one of the best producers out there' according to Waxfactor, Wax's own Sci-Fu and his collaboration with Trick, Vengence of the Volume, both due to drop in the new year, both of which promise to be essential purchases.
It looks like 2005 could be worth waking up to after all, so if those winter blues are coming on strong, stock up on your stimulant of choice, set the dial to 104.4 FM and let London's two finest exponents of dub-soaked post-hip hop and distorted dancehall rock you on 'till the break of dawn.
