Here’s the deal: DJ Hazard has only released one EP on his Radius label this year. That release was Dushi’s Dimensions EP. And if a man who’s so notoriously hard to please he can’t even handle his own productions has signed it, you know it’s probably worth a looksee…
Coming off the back of releases on DJ SS’s legendary Formation and Bassline Smith’s Worldwide Audio, the Dimensions EP was Dushi’s broadest statement to date. Covering the contrast spectrum with a clear penchant for the groove, the four track EP galvanised everything the south London artist had achieved so far… And set us up for more level-upping beats in the future.
Now comes the waiting game. Clearly a kindred spirit with Hazard, Dushi has averaged a release per year since emerging in 2011. A strong believer in less is more and an even stronger self critic, Dushi doesn’t let go of her tunes easily. But when she does, they’re always worth checking.
With another EP incubating for early 2018, we caught up with her to find out more.
Let’s go back to that first release in 2011 – Dizzy / Carefree. That picked up some really big support with Fabio, Groove and Bailey all singing your praises live on the airwaves. Quite a mad way to enter the game.
I have to thank Simon Bassline Smith for that. He picked up on them, put them out on Worldwide Audio and really shouted about them. People seemed to really like them. More than I thought they would. It was quite intense.
Then you kinda disappeared for a bit?
I wasn’t expecting all the attention! I think it was almost a bit too intense. I’d been writing music for a while but once you have a release out and people have received it like that, it changes things a bit. You start approaching your music in a bit of a different way and I just wasn’t happy with anything I was making for a bit. So yeah it was a little while before I put anything else out and I’ve just learnt that these things take time and accept that a lot of things I make will get stuck at a dead end at some point. The ones that work out best are when I seem to go into this zone. Like I’m travelling through the experience and I’m not in control at all. Those moments don’t happen all the time.
Less is more is the best way anyway. Too much sub-standard stuff around…
Yeah I’d release even less if my mates didn’t extract them from me. I worry over the little details to the point I think it’s un-releasable.
DJ mates or mate mates?
Mate mates. Some of them DJ but just proper mates, not peers. They love the music and want to see me succeed and I think they’re fed up with me being such a harsh self-critic. Sometimes they can see I’ve learnt loads of things and turned a corner but I’m too blind to see it.
What do you think you’ve learnt best lately? Or what do you wish you knew earlier on in your production career?
How to be more organised with my projects! I’m still learning that one every day. Something I wish I know before was that every single artist suffers writers block and it’s not a bad or unusual thing. This took me years to realise! At the end of the day, music is ultimately a vibe and making people feel a certain way. The best tunes are the simplest tunes and everyone can suffer creative block.
Sounds like you and Hazard are peas in a writers block pod. How did you two hook up?
Yeah we’re both quite similar with our sporadic releases but I’m nowhere near as good as him! I think we hooked up through a bootleg I’d done. He got in touch for tunes and we’ve made a connection. You need to have that when you’re working with someone. He spends a lot of time talking through stuff and helping on the phone. He cares massively about the music. I love working with him. He gives a lot of time just listening to it and going through it. I have so much respect for that.
Treating the music with respect!
Exactly! And being on the same vibe. He’s just a really safe person. He’s inspired me to think differently.
When your head’s not locked in the music what else makes you think differently?
I love meditation and taking pictures, drawing and hanging out with mates. But to be honest even when I need to get away from the studio, few things beat going raving.
I’m always suspicious of DJs who don’t go raving or at least come from raving! If you’re speaking to the dancefloor you need to know what the dancefloor wants, right?
Exactly! Plus it’s nice to be able to hear your tunes when you’re on the dancefloor. Not just played by yourself but actually being on the dancefloor and hearing it. I’ll never get tired of that experience.
When was the first time you first heard your tune in the dance?
That would have been my first tune Dizzy at Warning. I’d just arrived. I don’t know who was playing but I walked in and bang… I heard my tune. That put me on such a good vide for the night. Seeing everyone enjoy something you’d created and being there on the dancefloor with them. It’s very addictive!
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