+process. broken beat

dj subs. brooklyn. ny
dj. producer

The act of creating can be the most enthralling, frustrating, soothing, panic-inducing, ponderous, perplexing, mitigating, motivating, fixating, suffocating, titillating, castrating endeavor a person could fall into.  But the truth of the matter is there is nothing like bringing what henceforth was only a shifting idea into being.

We’re hip to that feeling here at Nat Creole.  We like to create things too.  In fact, we like the idea of bringing things into this world so much that we decided to start a new column based purely on this notion.  We call it Process, as in the method by which one brings ideas to life. Like GE. No, check that, not like GE.  Like you and me.  Like DJ Subs, a Brooklyn based DJ that spins and produces Broken Beat, among other musical forms, and likes to spend copious amounts of time in the lab making things.  Nat Creole decided to ask Subs to break down how he breaks it down.  This is what he said…     

On Broken Beat
+ What element of the music is at the heart of Broken Beat and where does the form fit in the lineage of Black music?

I've watched broken beat over the past years turn from predictable drum patterns and basslines to the now very complex chord progressions and changes of a modern jazz assembly… it's truly the fusion of different sounds and cultures into one genre of music... you have the techno element...the dancehall element…samba styles...with traditional African and jazz styles fused together..

On Musical Development
+ You've moved into playing the keys more and more. Can you trace your musical development from where you started to where you are now?

I’m playing the keys because I want to really understand the fundamentals of music... broken beat is basically derived from jazz so with that your gonna have to know how to play some sort of instrument while working on production… my musical development basically started with djjng in the mid nineties...but before that, when I was about 9-11 years old… I had an old synthesizer...a boombox and I used to fuck up my mothers turntables trying to scratch on those joints back in 83-84… from djing its a natural progression to want to learn about production…production can get real deep.. and I’m real mental so it gives me a lot to think on... synth programming....drum programming… it's enough to go crazy... but in time I will have it even more figured out than I do now..

On the Daily
+ What is your daily schedule like? How do you spend the majority of your time?

I try to wake up early in the morning... play piano... then record shop online… right now I’m working on my next mixtape so getting the latest records is kind of a priority right now…might finish a track, throw one away...turn on the turntables and just mix... whatever... the only thing thats very scheduled in my life right now is school... and I’m learning a shitload of stuff on the piano... its beautiful...

On Process and Patterns
+ Tell us about your process for creating music. Is there a pattern? How do you come up with an idea and then bring it into existence?

Yeah maybe... soul...sounds...sequence...if I stress out I might just hop on my bike and ride deep into Brooklyn or sit on the Manhattan bridge and just watch the city..  I’m trying to get out of creative patterns... everything I do I’d like for it to be a bit different...sometimes I can be playing piano and hear a nice chord and try to build something off of that...or maybe make some new sounds on my keyboard and see if they fit well within a specific drum track...

On Future Forms
+ What musical forms are you looking to explore more in the future?

Probably broken beat... dancehall... drumNbass...Baile Funk ...house...and hip hop... basically everything...