Contributing WriterSharam Jey returns with a heavyweight collaboration between himself and London’s Vanilla Ace on Kittball.
Since the ‘90s Sharam Jey has produced over 100 releases on labels like Toolroom, 8Bit and Suara, not to mention helming his own imprints King Kong and Bunny Tiger. The ‘My Thang’ EP dropped on the 5th April and is available to purchase now on Beatport.
1. Hi, great to speak with you Sharam, how are you doing today?
I’m feeling really great. At the moment we are preparing for my South America tour, which will start this weekend.
“I started in a school-band around the age of 12-13 but quickly got involved with a producing-partner and we started experimenting with electronic-music and this led to DJing.”
2. You’ve mentioned in some of your previous interviews that you were inspired first by 80s electronic music like Depeche Mode and Human League. We’d love to know if you ever had any formal music training, be it in theory or instruments?
No, it was more like learning-by-doing. I started in a school-band around the age of 12-13 but quickly got involved with a producing-partner and we started experimenting with electronic-music and this led to DJing.
3. Back in the summer of 2012, you released ‘Money Right’, which marked the very first release of your Bunny Tiger imprint. Has the label’s ethos evolved over the 113 releases it’s had since?
Not really, in so much as the main thing for Bunny Tiger has always been, and is still, to produce 100% DJ-tools, from DJs for DJs. And we did not want to have limitations. But of course the sound evolved over the years.
“When we started jamming we discovered our mutual approach towards sampling and in particular our love of hip-hop beats.”
4. You have frequently collaborated with London based Vanilla Ace, going back to the 19th Bunny Tiger release ‘My Thang’ in 2013. What is the story behind the two of you meeting?
With Sam/Vanilla Ace there was a connection from the very beginning. When we started jamming we discovered our mutual approach towards sampling and in particular our love of hip-hop beats. And we continued to exchange ideas and beats and what has resulted has been a natural evolution of that.
5. You’ve now collaborated again for your Kittball Records release, ‘My Thang EP’ featuring a new version of ‘My Thang 2.0’ and ‘The Boom Bap’. Would you take us through how you tackled this EP from a creative approach, do you both work in the studio together?
No, we have not been in the studio together for this EP but we regularly meet up on tour and we are constantly in touch. We got the idea to work on some updated edits and remixes of our stuff so that it would fit even better in 2019. Kittball was immediately thrilled to release it and we are excited to be working with them.
6. What’s been some of your most memorable performances to date?
Luckily I have had the chance to play so many great gigs all around the world over the past 25 years. So I am really not able to just pick a few.
“My connection with Brazil is pretty much based around the people being so warm and welcoming and showing me so much love and passion for my music.”
7. Looking at your recent and future gigs, there’s a lot happening for you in Brazil. What is your connection to the country, and where are your favourite places to perform?
My connection with Brazil is pretty much based around the people being so warm and welcoming and showing me so much love and passion for my music. That does not often occur in one’s career. This really creates the connection and so I have played pretty often there in the last 5-6 years. And of course this country has many beautiful places but I really enjoy playing at Warung Beach Club and at Tribe Festival, to which I will return this year.
8. What are your essential pieces of studio gear currently?
Usually if I found the perfect studio setting, I’ll stick to it. So for me it is still the Juno 60 Roland, the Jupiter 6 Roland and the OSCar.
“I am busy working on new stuff as well, so some exciting releases are scheduled”
9. What can we expect from Sharam Jey and Bunny Tiger throughout the rest of 2019?
Much like last year we will have some of my classics being re-released with new remixes and edits this summer on King Kong Records and Bunny Tiger. I am busy working on new stuff as well, so some exciting releases are scheduled. Up next I have a release coming out on Get Twisted (Tough Love’s record label) called “Come With Me”.
Kittball’s ‘My Thang EP’ is out now.
