Mickey Finn | ||
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RURAL TAKEOVER WITH MORE THAN 20 ARTISTS FROM RIGHT ACROSS THE UK UNDERGROUND, MICKEY FINN AND APHRODITEÕS URBAN AGENCY HAS GROWN FROM HUMBLE BEGINNINGS INTO ARGUABLY THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PLAYER ON THE SCENE IN LITTLE MORE THAN FIVE YEARS. NOW, HAVING RECENTLY MOVED TO A NEW BASE IN KENT AWAY FROM THEIR LONDON ROOTS, THE URBAN CAMP ARE READY TO TAKE ON THE WORLD FROM THEIR NEW RURAL SURROUNDINGS Begun as a joint venture by the duo responsible for the establishment of pioneering old skool label Urban Shakedown and jungle equivalent Urban Takeover, the agencyÕs booking roster now reads like a whoÕs who of UK dance music. Anyone from Total Science and Eksman to Ratpack and Altern8 or even the Narni Shakers are all available for hire at events around the world as the Urban team seek to make the world of underground music run like clockwork as never before. ŅMe and Gav [Aphrodite] have been on the road for a long time so we know whatÕs going on and what the artists want,Ó says Mickey Finn as he waits to board a flight for one of his regular trips abroad. ŅWe see what goes wrong, what needs to be fixed and we try to be professional and efficient and it seems to have paid off. Both of us set the rules for how the company is run. We send the artists on the road the same way that we want ourselves out on the road - if someone goes abroad, they should have every bit of information that they need. They shouldnÕt have to call home from another country to find out where they should be, it should all be arranged for them. We want to provide a service - not just take your money and thatÕs it.Ó And with the likes of Baron and Total Science having already joined the growing Urban army that also includes heavyweights like Darren Jay, Nicky Blackmarket, Det and Shabba, it seems that artists are beginning to appreciate the work that the agency has been putting it for them. ŅWe never poach new people from other agencies but if thereÕs someone out there and they arenÕt represented, then itÕs our job to do something,Ó explains Mickey. ŅIÕm out on the road a lot so I do loads of talking and if someone fits the criteria we are looking for then we are always interested. We are just trying to be quick, efficient and polite - thereÕs no reason if someone rings to say ŌIÕll ring you back in a couple of daysÕ, people need answers instantly. Every one of our artists has their own personalised booking page on the computer so itÕs easy to check what they are doing and we can give a definite answer straight away.Ó ItÕs all very well being efficient, but if you havenÕt got the talent on your books, then no one is going to be interested in using your artists. So how do Mickey and Aphrodite decide on who gets in and who doesnÕt? ŅThe most important thing for us is to have a good business relationship with the artists we are working with,Ó elaborates Mickey. ŅNot mentioning any names, but I had to get rid of a few people last year because they didnÕt appreciate what the office was doing for them and they thought they had the right to shout at everyone. They were offloaded straight away because we canÕt do anything if they donÕt work with us. We expect them to repay us with the efficiency and professionalism that we give them. ŅWeÕre not devoted to drum & bass either,Ó he adds, ŅweÕre just an agency. Obviously most of our artists are from that side of things at the moment but itÕs not about the genre of music that theyÕre into, we just want to help put them on the map. Good chefs donÕt only cook fish and chips - we like to support all types of music. I have to think as an agent when IÕm on Urban business and itÕs not about my personal preference, itÕs about what people are going to like.Ó But the whole thing could have been so different had it not been for breakdown of the working relationship between Mickey and his former agents Groove Connection at the end of the 1990s. ŅI wasnÕt happy there,Ó remembers Mickey. ŅI wanted someone I could deal with whenever I needed to and Gavin had never had an agent before so we just came up with the idea of starting one just for us two. IÕd been with Groove Connection for about 12 years so it was a big decision for me to make at the time but IÕm glad I did because this would never have happened.Ó Since those days, the promoterÕs job has become a great deal easier thanks to the rise of so many agencies hoping to provide the best supply of DJs and MCs to an ever-demanding market. ŅThereÕs always been agents around but it used to be controlled by just a couple,Ó reflects Mickey when asked whether there are now too many on offer. ŅNow thereÕs a lot more artists about so a few new agencies have popped up recently but I donÕt think itÕs out of control. Our job is not just to sit there and answer the phone taking bookings, but to go out there and find people work. ItÕs like what happened with Baron. He wasnÕt happy where he was before but he had heard things about the agency and the rest is history because he is getting loads more bookings. We donÕt go on a particular sound, we go on what the person is like and whether there is demand for them. Baron is cool and enthusiastic so it works for us, but if youÕre a nightmare and canÕt fulfil bookings then it wonÕt.Ó And with the agency now settled in their new headquarters in Rochester, Kent, brace yourself for a new kind of musical war that is set to threaten the surrounding Kent countryside. ŅWeÕre now gonna be calling it Rural Takeover!Ó jokes Mickey. ŅAll the artists will have to turn up wearing Barbour jackets! I love it down here and IÕm glad to have got out of London. ItÕs good because everything is thriving now weÕve done it.Ó The relocation has also allowed Mickey to concentrate on producing once again after taking a break from the studio to give attention to his various other projects, which include Innovation as well as his numerous duties at Urban. ŅIÕve been having a dig about recently and getting back in the studio but IÕve definitely got the bug again to make tunes again,Ó he reveals. ŅA few years ago when the sounds were hard, I didnÕt know how much I could really contribute to the scene because I didnÕt like it much so I didnÕt feel like I could really make it. I took a step back and concentrated on all the others things I had going on but now IÕm back and IÕm hungry again. I like quite a few producers at the moment - Hazard, Shy FX, J Majik- and that keeps me interested in what is going on.Ó He is now waiting to release a track he has been working on with Special K in the next few months, as well as the long-awaited ŌArsonistÕ remix, while Mr Finn refused to be drawn on details on a project the camp are working on in the future involving two vocalists. Also on Urban Takeover, new protˇgˇs The Force are going from strength to strength with several releases in the pipeline, while Nicol and Magistrate and Special K have also been busy of late. With so much going on, itÕs a wonder anyone at Urban ever has any time to think, but, according to Mickey Finn, it wasnÕt exactly planned that way at the start. ŅItÕs not like I sat there one day and said ŌIÕm gonna do all thisÕ - the opportunities have come up over the years and itÕs grown steadily. IÕm an honest and ambitious person who thrives on having a challenge and kicking open new doors. IÕve always enjoyed taking a risk - sometimes you win sometimes you lose - but thatÕs what being innovative is all about because you have to prepared to see it work and see it fail.Ó And does Mickey see his future entirely involved in drum & bass? ŅCourse I do, itÕs the only thing I know how to do,Ó he responds immediately. ŅWeÕve got lots of exciting stuff that weÕre trying to keep under our hats at the moment but going to Spain with Innovation is just the start of it. Watch this space for more developments.Ó The partnership between the two supremos of the Urban empire has to be one of the most influential in the history of jungle / drum & bass. MickeyÕs production talents first emerged with under his alias BitinÕ Back with 1991Õs ŌSheÕs Breaking UpÕ, before he went on to form Urban Shakedown with Aphrodite and Claudio Guissani in 1992. Together, they released the groundbreaking ŌSome JusticeÕ and countless other anthems that moulded the emerging jungle scene, before each decided to pursue individual careers. In 1997, they reunited and formed the Urban Takeover label that has now grown into the force it is today. But what is it that makes the combination work so well? ŅWeÕve been partners for about 12/13 years and weÕve got a great business relationship,Ó says Mickey. ŅHeÕs good at one thing and IÕm good at others so we have a very good partnership. ItÕs the same in the studio - I produce and he co-producers it and engineers the track as well and everything always runs smoothly.Ó And with all-time classics such as the Urban Takeover remix of ŌJungle BrotherÕ already behind them, Mickey is now looking towards recreating the past with his old mucker in the near future. ŅI havenÕt worked with him for a while but weÕre planning to get back in the studio soon, although weÕre not sure when,Ó he reveals. ŅBut GavÕs just had a bambino so it might be quiet on that front for a bit, but weÕre both keen. ItÕs been too long since we worked together so IÕm looking forward to doing it again soon.Ó ItÕs the hot topic of conversation in drum & bass right now but Urban Takeover have already taken steps to counter the effects of widespread music downloads. The whole back catalogue from ŌRinsing QuinceÕ to ŌBad AssÕ is now available to buy on iTunes, a move that Mickey Finn hopes will keep the scene alive. ŅWeÕre trying towards understanding that the download thing is here to stay - everyone in music is getting hammered by it at the moment,Ó he reflects. ŅItÕs no use thinking everything is cool when itÕs not - record sales are down, shops are dropping like flies so you canÕt hide from it, itÕs reality. Surveys say that 43 per cent of kids in Britain have got MP3 players so we have to do something.Ó But, as discussed in Knowledge 57 ŅWill Vinyl Ever Die?Ó, does the rise of new technologies like downloading spell the end for drum & bass vinyl purists? ŅThereÕs good things and bad things about it in terms of people but if you canÕt get a dubplate anyway, whatÕs the difference?Ó says Mickey. ŅBut itÕs a technology that is going to be here to stay and itÕs no use saying in five years time ŌI should have done faced up to itÕ because it will be too late. The whole thing is a reflection of the way life is at the moment - people donÕt want to pay the money to go to the shops when you can just sit at home and get whatever you need.Ó |
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