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Interview with BK Reported by Tom Allen / Submitted 31-10-03 12:25 Ben Keen, better know by his DJing and production alias BK is one of the few people currently on the scene who can lay true claim to having defined where it is today. With a dazzling array of productions on his CV including such seminal tracks as 'Music is Moving', 'Bad Ass', 'So Wot', 'Ascension' and 'Accelerate' his tunes are played night in night out in every hard dance club in the UK. His anthemic track 'Revolution' was the biggest hard dance tune of 2003 by some margin, achieving regular airplay on Radio 1 and individually championed by mainstream DJ Judge Jules. Not only that but he DJs on a regular basis all round the world; in the last 4 months he has been asked to play in no less than 15 different countries. Read on for more in our exclusive interview. Tom Allen: To start off, can you go through what you might do in a typical working day at Nukleuz? BK: Get into the office about 10am go through emails open letters and listen to records and cd's sent to me. Next would probably be to go and see Lisa from the agency and go through my diary checking new gigs that have come in and what I'm doing at the weekend. For example, journey times, what sort of sets I have been asked to play, sometimes people request you play classics or techno as an extra. Then she would usually give me some interviews to do either by email or by phone and sometimes in person which may include a photo shoot. Next would be get into the studio, often there would be some new material we are thinking about signing to listen to, I would listen to that and go and give my opinion to Ed and Pete. Then would be get down to either making new tunes on my own or with someone or perhaps doing a remix and depending on the deadline would probably finish about 9pm. I used to do this 5 days a week but over the last year have cut it down to 4 days so I can have Mondays off to sleep. TA: When working with another producer on a track, I guess you have pretty much all the technical skills that you'd ever need for a tune so what are you looking for that person to bring to the studio with them? BK: I like people to try and come with some new tunes they have got hopefully they would bring something I would not usually make or play so some variety can be brought into the process. I would also like them to bring some samples in, vocals, drum loops extra. Then we would have a discussion and try to come up with a game plan for making the tune. I will often try to come up with something that that person would play but at the same time try to make it different from what we both normally do. TA: Why did you produce 'Music is Moving' under the pseudonym 'Cortina'? Do you have any regrets about doing that as potentially you'd be an even bigger name now if it had been labelled 'BK'. BK: At the time I was producing pretty much all of the hard dance material on Nukleuz and I didn’t want to water down the BK name as often DJ's feel funny about playing too many tracks by the same artist; the same is true of people who compile compilations. By having several pseudonyms it’s another way of getting more of your tracks included on these compilations and played by the DJ's. Also by using pseudonyms creatively you can be varied without alienating any existing fan base and at the time vocals were not being used much in hard dance. So, Cortina was a forum for me to do material with big vocal hooks. I don’t have any regrets at all, at the time it was the correct thing to do. BK at Heat NYE 2002 TA: Out of interest, where did the original sample for Music is Moving come from? BK: Farghetta was the original artist and Pete from Nukleuz knew the original vocalist so I rerecorded it. TA: Obviously one of your biggest tasks this year was producing all the tracks on your BK Klub Kollaborations Album. Were you pleased with the end result and how the album went down with the public? Is there anything in particular that you've learnt from that experience? BK: The album was a good experience and I was pleased with the result and all the feedback and reviews were great although it did have a lot of restrictions as all the material was to be released as 12inches. So, it all had to be material that was suitable for clubs so there could not be anything that was suitable just for home listening. But at the same time an album of this sort hadn’t been done before. When you are making music you are constantly learning new things and this is one of the appealing things about it. In this case there were quite a few new technical things I picked up on how to mix an album as a producer and not a DJ. For example I put filler sections in-between some tracks so the album had breathers and felt like it had three sections to it, a beginning, a middle and an end. TA: How much pressure did you feel under to produce a similarly big track to follow up the huge success of Revolution? BK: Loads! Everyone wanted another Revolution but the trouble for me is as far as I’m concerned it had been done and if I had repeated the same thing in the long run it would have done me no good. It’s a marathon not a sprint, there’s plenty of time to do more. TA: In the end, Stay High was very different to Revolution and aimed squarely at the underground - was that a conscious decision to go back to your roots or was it just how the tune turned out? Why did you use your own vocal on that track? BK at Hardhouse Academy 2003 BK: I never made Stay to be a follow up to Revolution, I made it because I felt like it and wanted the track to be used on my solo artist album but Nukleuz decided to release it as a single. I used my vocal because there was no one else there at the time, it was a spur of the moment thing. I often do the vocals on my stuff as on for example Revolution as nowadays I prefer to use original vocals on my own stuff and if you have a vocal idea I can't be arsed to stop working and wait for a vocalist to show. TA: We heard that soon after you'd handed Revolution to a select few DJs for play testing you walked into a club and saw a DJ you'd never heard of playing a copy which had been leaked out... is there any truth to that story and if so what happened? BK: It was actually Farley - he walked into a club up north and found some guy playing it about a week after it had been finished. Now there are only a VERY select few that get my stuff upfront. TA: What's your personal favourite of all the tunes you've ever produced (and why!)? BK: Too hard to say, I've made over 200. TA: Who’s your favourite producer to work with and why? BK: Again to hard to say because you work with different people for different reasons but I love working with Farley because our music taste is so similar. The reason I originally got him in to do 'Concentrate' (Andy Farley’s first tune) was because he sent his top 20 chart in and it was identical to mine and also we were both religious Trade goers. So, our musical history is very similar and apart from the Trade DJ's Andy was one of the only DJ's I knew who was playing all my early material on a label called Friction Burns. TA: Is there anyone you've not yet worked with who you'd love to get into the studio? BK: I'd love to do stuff with Liam from the Prodigy. Norman Cook, Chemical brothers or Carl Cox, Meek. Fuck there’s loads. TA: Is there any particular tune that you'd love to do a remix of? BK: Speedway by the Prodigy TA: Who would you most like to see remix one of your tunes and why? BK: Again, Liam from the Prodigy or the Chemical brothers or Norman Cook because I have a lot of respect for their production abilities. TA: As someone who practically defines the standard as to the state of the art in hard dance production, are there still producers out there who you look to as a source of inspiration? If so, who? BK: It would be the people and the reasons I mentioned above. BK with Andy Farley TA: Do you think it's fair that producers can practically guarantee themselves DJ sets on the basis of their tunes often in place of those with more DJing ability and / or experience? Does a great producer necessarily make a great DJ? BK: A producer may get booked to DJ if they have got a big tune but they would not get booked again if they didn’t do the job properly. You could also switch the question round is it fair for a DJ to go in the studio with a producer just because they can beat match? I don’t think producer always make great DJs in the same way DJs don’t always make good producers. TA: If you could only produce or only DJ, which one would you choose? BK: Unfair cause I love them both for different reasons but if pushed I would have to say producing because no matter how good a DJ is if what’s on the vinyl is crap then the DJ aint going to rock a club! TA: What's the best part about your job? BK: Doing what I love! TA: Do you find it takes a while for clubbers to get to recognise a tune before you get a big reaction from it or do you expect a future anthem to instantly ignite a crowd? When you first played your historical biggest tracks, did they send the place wild from the offset or did people have to learn what to expect? BK: It's different, some tunes build over a period of time to be anthems and some are instant, it’s the same with my own material. TA: After techier influences pervaded UK dance floors this year and hard house has made a huge comeback, where do you see the sound of 'Hard Dance' going in 2004? BK: Hopefully it won’t go completely backwards as for a scene to survive it must go forward. It would be great if it incorporated all styles of hard dance. [ TA: What's your opinion on Hardstyle - do you play any and can we ever expect you to produce anything in this genre? BK: Personally I don’t like it much because it sounds very dated. That sound has been round before in similar forms on labels such as Bonzai back in 92 to 94, although not called hard style then the production was very similar. I also find its feel to be to military and it stops and starts too much not allowing much time to dance before you have to stop again and because of this mixes have to be quite short. TA: With the advent of new CD decks from Pioneer and Technics amongst others, do you see CDs taking over from Vinyl in the near future? What kind of proportion of your set do you play off CD? BK: Who knows, there are not many vinyl pressing plants left so I guess it’s inevitable but I do love vinyl, it feels more hands on although cd decks are often tighter and easier to mix with! I play quite a lot of unreleased materiel on CDs. TA: Who do you have scheduled to appear in the studio over the coming months? BK: More work with Farley, Glazby and Rob Tissera. TA: For last year's New Year's Eve you had to take to the skies in a helicopter to make your gig schedule work - can you tell us which events you've been booked for this year's NYE? BK: Gatecrasher, Passion, Storm, Heat at Brixton Academy and Trade. And Goodgreef on New Years Day. TA: What's been the highlight of your DJing performances this year? BK: Hardhouse Academy, Trade, Creamfields, Global Gathering, Riot, Godskitchen in Oz, Lashed in Ibiza and Judgment Sunday. TA: Finally, what 3 tracks are really doing it for you at the moment? BK: Bass EP Vicious circle 27, Dave the drummer and Farley "mbs" and Baloney remixes on Tec. TA: Thank you for your time Ben. BK plays at Dream Team 2 at the Camden Palace on Saturday 8th November. For full details on this event click here With thanks to tom, boshmaster and Sim Pat for the use of their photos Share this :: : : : Follow HarderFaster :: Other Features By Tom Allen: Hardhouse Academy Preview: Interview with Nuw Idol The Thirsty DJs Interview with DJChewy Lashed Preview 2: Interview with Charlotte Birch Interview with Nick Rafferty Interview with Jana The views and opinions expressed in this review are strictly those of the author only for which HarderFaster will not be held responsible or liable. Comments: From: JP and Jukesy on 1st Nov 2003 12:57.34 nice interview From: Stevi D on 1st Nov 2003 12:59.14 When it comes to applaue you its the hardest thing to do. As u've accomplished all four coners of the earth, things most dj's dream of doing. Ur a genius!! And damn fine producer/dj too and it was a radical experience to have chilled ur entire set with u in the box at turnmills. Keep it up!!!! Ur boy Stevi D From: Robyn on 2nd Nov 2003 07:23.21 Sensational interview .. BK will be one of those guys you tell your grandkids about in 50 years time when your recalling those 'raving days', no one else can move a room like BK can. From: Steve Prince on 2nd Nov 2003 14:45.46 BK the legend but the only thing that gets my back up about him is that at wildchild one time i was speeking to him for 3hrs and he was listoning to me and then i got to the part what do you think i should do about it and he said dont fucking bother about doing it cuz your idea is shit well he could have toled me a lot earlyer From: Lizzie Curious on 3rd Nov 2003 09:41.08 really interesting interview, nice to get a real insight into what BK does and how! From: clubchick on 4th Nov 2003 03:19.49 Fantastic interview! Great work Tom. From: Vivacious on 4th Nov 2003 11:26.44 Music is moving wow nice work! I bet there are a lot of people on this site who would love to be where you are today! From: Lx on 4th Nov 2003 11:51.19 Sounds like pretty hard work n fun the same time.Well done BK,love ur Bad Ass From: EssQue on 4th Nov 2003 14:00.35 For once I actually read a whole interview and enjoyed the questions and answers. Well done! From: dj_ds on 5th Nov 2003 04:40.12 B.K Im your biggest fan KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!!! From: little Em on 5th Nov 2003 13:50.05 Ur a legend mate, keep it up BK, and one day i iwll make a tune with u for sure3...u rock xx From: shazzabazza on 5th Nov 2003 15:08.55 wicked interview! Think that is the first time i have ever seen a photo of BK - what a honey! Been v impressed with his production this year - am always playing out "Final Chapter" and "Tiptronic" - this man is a superstar - long may his success continue! From: Red5 on 5th Nov 2003 15:36.37 BK is a machine, constantly bringing forth top tunes, "So Wot", "Music Is Moving", "Bad Ass", and "Revolution" is a tune we won't be forgetting in a hurry. As a DJ and Producer, you made my year in 2003 From: Dom on 5th Nov 2003 16:33.58 I suppose he might be quite talented Shame about accelerate though. In all seriousness - hats off to the man - he has done more to shape Hard House than TdV IMO - a better DJ and a far better producer. He probably needs to go on the Atkins diet though From: sunvisordude on 5th Nov 2003 16:57.02 BK makes me rOcK From: Ian Betts on 5th Nov 2003 17:47.03 Great interview Tom - you can't argue with the mans talent in the studio, he has been the source of many a rocking tune I've even got a couple of trance CDs he's mixed from years ago :shh: From: carl nicholson on 6th Nov 2003 10:12.14 You watch your mouth pardey! LMFAO From: Gurnmaster Deluxe on 6th Nov 2003 11:05.24 Good questions Tommo; nice to hear BK thinks hard-style belongs in the dustbin, where it should be. BK rocked Gods Kitchen in Perth too....... From: Lashed-Up on 6th Nov 2003 17:35.18 Fantastic interview, Ben rocks! - a true leader, Robyn I totally agree with the grandkids thing, who knows, maybe Ben's future son will take over where he left off BK Jnr : xx From: special-k-lady on 6th Nov 2003 19:47.24 Well done Ben, on achieving everything you have achived, one should be so lucky too follow in your foot steps, such an admiration i put all my heart into my work and maybe one day will i stand with the best, nice work babe! x From: dJDR on 7th Nov 2003 21:43.13 Any chance we can get blessed with the amazing sounds from BK over here in New York??? GOD (!!!) I miss London. Love you all.. From: Matt Church on 11th Nov 2003 04:16.56 Great reviewTom, what an amazing influence he's made over the years, keep up the good work!! From: Rick Saunders on 11th Nov 2003 13:02.48 You da man BK From: Maria on 2nd Dec 2003 17:50.41 GIVE IT TO ME BABY...Let's make a REVOLUTION and GO AGAIN!

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