ASC is a British Boy now based in Del Mar, California, pioneering a new sound with the likes of Instra:mental, dBridge or the Nonplus+ label. Browse his profile for more musical delights and check the interview below:

What are you up to at the moment?
I’ve just finished a few big projects, including my debut LP for Instra:mental’s NonPlus+ label.

How do you see D&B scene evolution since the 90’s with exclusive dubplates and selling white label from the vans?
It’s a tough question, as I feel in many ways the scene has evolved, especially with the addition of technology throughout the years, but I also think that a lot of the magic from the early 90’s has been lost along the way. The fact labels are struggling to sell a 1000 copies of a 12″ these days, where as back in the day, a 1000 would fly out of the shops in a few weeks, no problem. It’s easier than ever to promote your music to the masses, but with the internet and technology in general, it’s also a lot easier to release your own music and that’s why there are so many artists these days.

How has internet and the new media changed your way of working as an artist? How do you use it on a day to day basis? How do you see it evolving in the coming years? From your experience what are the pros and cons?
The internet has been a blessing and a curse for artists in general. On the one hand, you have an extremely powerful and useful tool to network with. There are a number of sites, including Fairtilizer, that you can use to your advantage to showcase your music and link people to. The downside to it all is the theft. With new technology in the market for DJ’ing and playing music with, a lot of people are content to steal music in MP3 format, rather than buying a physical product to support the artist and label. This isn’t always the case however, as you still get people that will support digitally, but in general, this has been a hindrance to any sort of business aspect.

Your records are available on physical and digital formats: do you think there’s still a place for both? Do you have an idea of the percentage of the physical toward the digital? Could you tell us what is your most important source of income today?
Yes, there’s definitely a place for both. The problem is there are so many people now doing digital ‘labels’ and the amount of crap out there really gives a bad name for digital; anyone can do it, and they do. Of course, just because a product is physical, this doesn’t mean that it’s exempt from crap also, but you tend to find that if labels and distributors are willing to put their hands in their pockets to finance a product, then the quality control definitely goes up.

Do you think that giving away music for free (as free mp3 or streaming) could help you sell more physical or even digital releases? How do you deal with / prevent / use an (un)official leak?
It can be a good thing, but if done sparingly. If you give too much away, then people automatically think ‘this wasn’t good enough for a release’ and then you kind of lose the respect of some of your fans I think. I do give away the odd track every now and then, but nothing too major. As for preventing leaks, it’s all about keeping the people you give your music to play to as tight knit as possible.

As a digital only release you are avoiding a lot of costs, like manufacturing CDs, promotional costs, etc. Do you know how much money you are saving? Do you care about the eco-friendly side of it despite we all truly love a nice piece of vinyl wrapped into a killer designed sleeve?
Well to be honest, I’m not bothered about the eco side of things. You will obviously save on all costs when you release something digitally, but what do you get for your money? Another file on your computer? As a consumer, I feel a bit empty by this, and as an artist, it all feels a bit false and hollow. I guess I’m old school still in this aspect and probably always will be. Give me a killer designed sleeve with a nice slab of vinyl any day of the week!

Artists / Labels / Websites to watch?
Vaccine
Instra:mental
dBridge
Blu Mar Ten
Consequence
Mode
DJG

Visit ASC Fairtilizer profile

Visit ASC blog

ASC’s album “Nothing is certain” is out on July 12th on Nonplus+ Records, London.