With an excellent remix of T.Williams' 'Heartbeats' already doing the rounds for 2011, Mosca's current burgeoning reputation is a testament to a whole host of highly-accomplished releases. His 'Square One EP' was selected to be the first 'Night Slugs' release just over a year ago and in the months following, Mosca went on to remix everything from Foals' 'Spanish Sahara' to CRST's 'Dance', demonstrating the versatility in his sound. As a deejay, his grime-infused, bass-heavy style has earned considerable recognition too and 2011 looks set to be another defining year for one of the scene's up-and-coming stars:
"Most of 2010 was a highlight to be honest, it's been a steep curve though you know! Having said that, I like to look forward instead of reflecting on past stuff too much because it's a dangerous thing to look back - you're only as good as your present material. A lot of heroes have fallen off for me, and while I still respect those guys, it's a shame to see a few people living in the past or creating sub-standard music."
With such variation in his work, its Grime that's played the most significant part in the development of Mosca's sound:
"Yeah, I love Grime or at least the idea of Grime. The problem is the scene's so hit and miss for a relatively small movement, but I guess that makes it all the more sweet and rewarding when you find a new banger or an emcee that you rate. Personally, I would say my style crosses by a few genres but there are a few kinda themes running through - I like to balance my sound in terms of moodiness and light, rhythmic complexity and simplicity and what not..."
With this in mind, it seemed only right to ask whether or not any Grime collaborations were on the horizon:
"Yeah, there's a few projects that I'm really excited about but unfortunately I'm not going to name names right now - hopefully you should be excited about them STILL! I've got a few contacts I'm working with at the moment too but I'm always looking for new people to work with - any emcees or singers out there who would be interested in using my music, give me a shout on twitter or something!"
Being responsible for Night Slugs' first release back at the beginning of 2010, Mosca has played his part in the label recently being recognised as Resident Advisor's 'Label of the Year':
"It's a familiarity/alien concept with Night Slugs - you've got all the sounds you're familiar with, the synths of Timbaland and high-end Hip-Hop, the rawness of early Grime, the appeal of funky and all that - in a way it's nothing you haven't heard before but it's always twisted into something that sounds alien and new. I think alot of the Night Slugs sound needs some time before you can really start to appreciate it - it's so sharp you might cut yourself! I know personally a couple of their releases haven't done much for me at first but once I've heard them in out in a club, it all clicks."
On the topic of Night Slugs and the fusion of different sounds, I wondered whether or not Mosca thought variation was key to the future of bass music:
"Not necessarily I don't think. I respect those people that will aggressively stick to their style and work it into an art form, especially in genres like Dancehall, Grime and House. We need those guys and girls to carry the scene and to keep the levels up and to bring genuine passion to the music. As long as that's maintained, then I guess we have the luxury of being able mix and blend the different scenes and cultures."
As a deejay, Mosca has played all over the world but as with many artists I've spoken to, home is most certainly where the heart is. It's reassuring to know he still likes vinyl too:
"London's music scene is the best in the world for what I do so I'm happy to call home my favourite city to deejay in. In terms of clubs, Sven Vath's 'Coccoon' was incredible to play at - the main room has a half a million pound sound system, unbelievable! As for a favourite night, I can't really choose - it's whichever one I'm playing at to be honest! As a deejay, I'll stick mostly to MP3 these days because I don't buy much new vinyl anymore, just old Grime and Garage bits that I might have missed over the years. That's not to say I don't love vinyl though, it's just hard to incorporate as your collection gets bigger and bigger - it's hard to store it all too, especially when you compare it to how easy it is to look after all your digital files."
With Grime still very much at the forefront of his thinking though, it must still be nice to see labels like 'Butterz' putting out good quality vinyl:
"People seem to respond really well to that sound now and I think that's maybe because Grime has some history and some authenticity to it. The Butterz guys are dons in my eyes and take note, I need a sweatshirt as well as my T-shirt! Biggup to them though, they're kind of a shining example of what I was talking about earlier - they're appreciative of all types of music but aggressively Grimey at heart and are giving the scene a good name again. Having said that, I still rate Grime riddims as well as opposed to instrumental Grime - that 8-bar energy is just unbeatable."
After a good start to the year, continuity looks to be key for Mosca in 2011:
"I'm not looking to do anything out of the ordinary really. I guess I'm happy just having the chance to put out the music I make, playing lots of raves all over the country and working with artists that I feel can bring things to my sound. On the whole, I feel like I'm making music at a good time too which is nice - people seem to be showing me love from all angles!"
DETAILS:
SOUNCLOUD: http://soundcloud.com/deejaymosca
TWITTER: http://twitter.com/#!/DEEJAYMOSCA
MOSCA DISCOGRAPHY: http://www.boomkat.com/artist.cfm?a=20190
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