Bailey is what you call an encyclopedia of music in physical, human form. Ask him anything about jungle or drum & bass. He’s been there, he did that, he bought many of the t-shirts. And whilst his stories of the past and knowledge of the scene’s roots remains quite unrivalled, his focus is firmly futuristic.
Pivoting into a new era entirely – whilst continuing his work supporting the music he adores – Bailey brings us: Intabeats Music.
Launched in conjunction with his Intabeats Sundays events at Notting Hill Arts Club, the label operates as both a platform for Bailey’s long-awaited productions and a nurturing home for exciting new talent.
Intabeats Music is about keeping things soulful but experimental. Alongside releasing his own tunes, Bailey’s mission with the label is to encourage the new generation of producers and artists to do something different. Go against the grain. Think outside the box. And for those who dare to dabble, there’s a home here for you at Intabeats Music.
After kicking things off his debut EP Electronic Soul – a slick four-track nod to Detroit techno and Chicago house – we dialled in with Bailey half way through his Asia-Australia tour to hear more about his new venture.
Tell us about Intabeats Music. Is there something in particular that you’re doing with the label?
The label is open to all different types of people and all different types of sounds, but it’s also got to make sense. I don’t want to go all strange and stuff, but I want people to feel free to try different things – that’s also what the club night is about as well. In some areas of the scene right now, it’s become quite formulaic. Someone has to step out and say, if you want to try something different, we’re listening for that. That’s why the label started and it’s also a celebration of me doing more music now. I did the first release – it would normally take me a long time to make tracks, but now things are just flowing. I feel like I found my feet in terms of what I wanted to do rather than try and fit into the market.
You’ve poured so much into the scene over the years. Why was now a good time to focus on your own productions?
I never really got into production. I did bits and bobs in the past, but that was it. I just loved playing music. I’ve always done a few bits here and there over the years, but what really gave me the kick was lockdown. I felt like I couldn’t feel the soul in a lot of the liquid stuff. It was all very piano-y, very sing-songy. I wanted to make some tunes for my sets too. I didn’t care if anyone liked it or not – I just wanted it to be different. I ended up making about 25 to 30 tracks during lockdown. This is someone who can take three months to get something done. That then encouraged me to make more tunes. The track with Rosalie, that was actually an old bootleg that I transformed into one of the tracks for my first EP.
Gotcha! Talk to us about Electronic Soul – what were some of your influences?
The EP is based around and led on from the EP that I did for Sun and Bass, which showcases my love for – and my beginnings in – electronic music through Detroit house, Chicago house and techno. So I wanted to put those influences in there. I deliberately put the Rosalie track on there just to be like, you might like this as well. That one is one of the more popular tracks. I put a jungle vibe in there too, instead of the house and techno influenced stuff, and that was also quite popular. It’s good to do those things, and I’m trying to lead by example – you can stick to whatever you think is going to sell, but put one on the EP that’s different. There’s room for it.
Absolutely. Do you think we’ve lost that element of experimentation? Doing something a bit different?
Absolutely. The thing is, everything goes in cycles, but you have to try and do something different in those cycles. For me, this EP is the cycle of making this Detroit and Chicago thing fit into drum & bass. I’m not the first person to do that. Spirit and Marcus Intalex and others were doing that a long time ago – I really identified with it. The reason I liked coming from house into early rave and jungle is that you could hear all the different influences and different cultures in the music. You’d hear dub basslines of reggae. You’d hear a dancehall tune with an opera sample in there. Reggae with a Dolly Parton vocal. We were doing that sort of thing with our music. But now everyone’s worried about not fitting into the machine of it all, so they’re trying to do the same as everybody else. This is not progressive. That’s why I’m like, I need to do something to show there’s other options out there.
Your Intabeats events have a great vibe! What’s the intention with these parties?
So we’re currently doing Notting Hill Arts Clubs on Sundays. I always feel like no matter where we go with the sound on the night, we can’t say, this is what you can expect. We naturally go where it goes. Right now it’s a casual setting – people sitting around drinking, we’re playing tunes. It’s on a Sunday too – early – starting in the afternoon. You’re probably out the night before, there’s no need to mash the place up. It’s an environment for people to hang out and listen to good music. There’s been plenty of times where I’m supposed to be playing then someone pops down and is like, have you got USB? Yeah, come on. Younghead played last time. Dom & Roland has jumped on. This happens fairly often. People come down and say, I’ve got some tunes, let’s do the back-to-back. It’s welcoming in that way.
We’ll try some things out down there too. I want people to be like, this track is a bit strange, but I’m going to play it anyway. I’m really feeling that sort of energy. I want to set up a space to do that. Try things out. Take some chances.
Keeping things interesting and filling in the gaps!
Always! I’ve been asked to be on other radio stations before where everyone played drum & bass and I said no, because, what would I be doing there? I’m just fitting in. Let me go somewhere where that’s not really being done, and let me educate that audience about what we do. That’s why Mi-Soul offered me a show. It’s an older audience. Those bootlegs I made during lockdown had the purpose of showing people on the station that we’ve got soul over here as well. My job is to draw other people in and show them there are alternatives. I’d rather go somewhere and make more of an impact than blend in.
You do so many different things – production, radio, events, DJing. What’s your ultimate favourite?
It’s always going to be the DJing. It’s a moment of release, and when everybody is in the room with you. It’s not always the perfect note – there might be technical things and then it’s a bad night. But when you get those nights where everything aligns, everyone’s right there with you, feeling the emotion and you’re able to play as deep as you want, and express as much as you want – that’s what keeps me addicted to DJing. It doesn’t have to be deep either – sometimes it’s like, we want a hype thing, we’re going to play some mad tunes, some breakbeats, crazy stuff, and they’re going nuts. Its expression.
Expression and people rolling with you… a win win!
Yeah. This is an us thing. I treat it like someone’s birthday party, everybody’s contribution is important. It’s not just me up there and this is my glory moment. Me and the promoters and the MC and the people on the dance floor make the whole thing work. We’re all there for one thing – to enjoy the music. I try my best to make sure the whole room is good – how good is the sound system, is the bass dropping low, was it raining that day? I tend to float about and find, okay, you guys want this, and then go down that route.
What’s the common thread through everything you do?
Inclusivity. I want everybody to have an opportunity to get involved. By sharing the spaces that I’m in and teaching the things that I teach, giving everyone an opportunity to get involved. I’m also a lecturer at Point Blank – not a lot of people know that – but even the students will be like, I want to do this. So I’ll give someone a call – then they’ve got a job. Whatever I can do to help people who genuinely are not going to mess that opportunity up, I will help. That’s why I did the Generation Next mixes on Kool. Inclusivity is my thing. I don’t care what your walk of life is, as long as you’re not a mean person. As long as you’re kind, I’ll look out for you. I’m always looking for the next batch of sounds – it keeps moving – and even though I love it all, there are times when it’s like, I’ve had enough of that now, I want to hear another style.
What sentiments or values help you to stay focused in this game?
I’ve been here a long time. I could call a friend and say, can you go write this for me and make pop tracks, make a lot of money. But I didn’t come in for the money, I didn’t come in for fame. Music – they say it keeps you sane. It’s a healer and I’m here to help other people get that same experience.
Last but not least – future plans for Intabeats Music? What can people expect…
It’s simple really. More releases, more parties, more collaborations with promoters, more collaborative nights at Notting Hill Arts Club too – there’s a lot in the pipeline that I’m excited about. Lots of great stuff incoming.
