J-One is a producer at the start of his career, one with huge prospects, and one we’ve been a fan of since the first listen. ‘Don’t You Know’ is his contribution to the series; an upfront, snappy garage cut that, refreshingly, harks back to early UK garage productions more than anything new. Grab the track and read our interview below.
- J-One, please first introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m Simon Jones, I live in a town called Ramsgate in the South East. I make websites for a living, and mess around with beats whenever I get the chance.
- You said you went to Outlook Festival. How was it? Best sets?
Yep, can’t praise it enough really had an amazing time. The weather wasn’t great this year but it definitely made some moments… had the best fun getting absolutely drenched on the Swamp81 boat, such a sick atmosphere especially when the sun started breaking through and then we were all blessed with a double rainbow. Too many good sets to list, spent a lot of time down The Moat which has to be my favourite stage. Phaeleh smashed it as per, had such a massive crowd too. Really enjoyed Damu‘s set and caught My Nu Leng last who brought so much energy.
- How much DJing have you done? If you could DJ anywhere in the world where would it be?
I’ve literally only started getting into mixing over the last few weeks. Slowly picking it up, I think having produced prior to getting into it has definitely helped as you’ve already got that knowledge of how a track is made up so it’s felt a bit more instinctive. Still going to be a while before I feel comfortable playing to a paying crowd though I reckon! If I could DJ anywhere, Outlook would have to be up there, and probably Fabric too as that would be a huge milestone.
- Have you got any releases planned yet?
There’s a few projects I’ve been discussing but nothing signed. In talks with Joe (Blind Prophet) about a release on his upcoming label ‘South Fork Sound‘. I’m sitting on a lot of tracks I’d like to get released, it’s just finding the right labels. Going to put out another free EP very soon too.
- The track you’ve given us ‘Don’t You Know’ seems to hint at the kind of sampling and drums in Burial’s music. Big compliment. Is he someone that has influenced your production?
Yep, definitely a big compliment. I think it’s fair to say he’s influenced a lot of the newer generation of producers, myself included. You can hear glimmers of his sound across so many different genres these days. There’s always the danger of being labelled a “Burial Lite” if you’re making deep, atmospheric 2-step and there’s been plenty of poor imitations scattered across Soundcloud and YouTube too but hearing less and less of it these days as people find their own sound.
- Which other artists have had an impact on the way you make your music? Any particular releases?
I’m fortunate enough to be surrounded by a lot of upcoming talent. Lex, Wen, Arktrix & Baitface all hail from around these parts, as well as My Nu Leng, Etch and countless others that I’ve met over the last couple years. I think the constant swapping of tunes and collab work we’ve done together has definitely been key. Gotta give kudos to Phaeleh too who definitely had a big impact on my production. Was blown away when I first listened through ‘Within the Emptiness’ back in ’09 and got loads of production advice when putting ‘Fragments’ together for his label.
- Where are you from? Do you think you’ve taken inspiration from your surroundings?
I grew up in North Wales but moved to Kent about 10 years ago. There’s definitely a lot that can be taken from your surroundings. All about trying to recreate a certain vibe in your music from things you’ve lived, makes it a bit more personal and gives your music a lot more character.
- Favourite few releases this year?
Been loads of good releases this year.. Djrum – Mountains Pt.1 (Pedestrian‘s Pirate Radio Remix), Dusky – Flojam, SBTRKT – Living Like I Do (Lil Silva mix), My Nu Leng – Damp EP, LHF – Keepers of the Light. I could go on.
- And finally, please complete the following sentence: Get Some…
swung beats, yo