Rinse:06 - Plastician

SCENES OFTEN MOVE AS ONE, DRIVEN FROM THE CENTRE BY A CORE OF DETERMINED, LIKEMINDED ENTHUSIASTS.

Wherever the core headz are, is where the movement is at. Sometimes, however, the most creative individuals sit on the edges, orbiting in their own sphere. But Plastician is in an enviable position of transversing both core and margins, centre and edges of both dubstep and grime. On this, the latest edition of the Rinse mix CD series, he takes his own unique trajectory.

South London’s Plastician began DJing as a hobby, listening to late 90’s UK garage and 2step tapes he’d recorded off the radio but it was the twin forces of production and pirate radio that were to put him on the map. “I’d done a few small slots on lesser known stations in South London but I was aiming for a slot on Rinse for some time,” he explains. “I realised that becoming a producer would be a much easier way of gaining the recognition I needed to take my DJing career forward. I picked up production pretty quickly, taught myself most of it through trial and error. Eventually after getting to know Benga and Skream they also taught me a few techniques as we were all producing on Fruity Loops.”

At the time – circa 2002/03 – both dubstep and grime were pretty nascent scenes, with the former still in a period of gestation and the latter about to generate a huge amount of critical hype. Plastician was about to get his first big break. “Slimzee picked up on a track I mailed him called ‘Venom.’ He decided to sign and release the track on his label Slimzos Recordings which in turn had the desired effect of production for me as it linked me up with the guys who were running Rinse. It led to me getting a few guest shows… the rest is history!”

That history includes tracks on Rephlex’s Grime compilation and his own debut album “Beg to Differ,” but he’s the first person to dedicate his progress to the airwaves. “I owe 100% of my success as a radio DJ to Rinse,” he continues. “In the early days it was all about being given the platform to showcase my mixing talents to the London audience, but as the station grew in stature and professionalism, this spurred me on to better myself in presenting an entertaining and informative radio show. Now it’s very much the same - the roster of DJ’s on the station is so respectable that it keeps me well and truly on my toes, and ever-eager to find the next big producer to unleash to the world on my show! There’s a lot of competition out there and it’s very healthy.”

The heart of this Rinse mix is a set of the kind of wobbly, riff-lead halfstep that has become the genre’s mainstream club fodder and you can see clear similarities with the mutating instrumental grime Plastician was pioneering circa 2003 at Forward>> and his short-lived but pioneering rave, Filthy Dub. It’s almost as if while everything around him has shifted, he’s stood his ground.

“I wanted the mix to evolve throughout with different paces and peaking points so I made sure I picked out some more chilled out stuff as well,” he explains. “I also wanted to represent all styles in the mix, so balanced it out with some grime instrumentals, dubstep bangers, some blissed out synthy numbers and even chucked in a live acapella mix for good measure! I wanted it to be personal - I think this mix represents what I’m all about.”

In many ways the mix is as much inspired by his radio show as his club DJing. “For me, radio is all about education, letting the listener know what they are listening to, as well as who it’s by, when it’s out and where they can get it from. I like to play a nice varied selection of styles so to represent the full spectrum of the dubstep and grime movements. When in a club, my set normally depends a lot on the vibe in the venue, what time I’m playing, and generally what I feel people will want to hear on the night. Club DJing is all about entertainment - giving the people something to dance to at the time, and leaving them with something to talk about on the way home.”

In a club, Plastician is a formidable DJ, with high energy mixing that traditionally forced other selectors to up their game. On his Rinse show however, you see another side to Plastician, his awesome sense of humour. “It’s a predominantly dubstep and grime show, but we have been known to drop Phil Collins, MC Hammer, Vanilla Ice and Enya in the past! This is partially Silencer’s fault for being late! We call that ‘injury time’ - if he’s running late we find it quite entertaining for ourselves (and the listeners) to draw for something completely random.”

It’s been entertaining listening to his shows over the years, not least on Skream’s legendary back-2-back show when he got dubbed “Plastic Ian: a very complex polymer,” so it’s little surprise that even Plastic himself is hard pushed to choose his funniest Rinse FM moment.

“There are so many…. some classics include Slimzee building a 10ft tall cardboard studio inside an old office and getting chased into my car by a huge rat! I’ve always enjoyed the banter with the DJ’s on before and after me … I think Monday nights on Rinse could almost certainly qualify as stand up comedy on the airwaves!”

But if you think his on-air-banter is ruff, it’s little compared to the antics of Plastic and his host Nomad, when they get together with their mates, collectively known as the Wotless Crew. Sure, there’s turning up at DMZ Christmas parties in shiny, full neoprene suits. But when they go abroad, it’s on.

“I still think to this day I’ve never laughed at one thing so much as the video of the Wotless Zante 2006 Props on YouTube. Gets me every time!” laughs Plastician. “Spotting my mate pour a fresh bottle of Heineken over his afro-wigged head in front of a baffled barman is one that sticks in the memory.”

“The funniest thing about it was the fact nobody but me and the barman saw him do it - he’d done it completely for his own entertainment, there was not an ounce of showing off involved in the act! Once the beer was empty he simply said ‘cheers mate’ to the barman and walked off.” From Rinse to having a right laugh, that’s just how Plastician rolls.

Martin Clark
LDN Summer 2008

TRACKLISTING

1. Plastician - Flying Dagger
2. Darkstar - Thugged Out 9
3. Skream - Fick
4. Jakes & Joker - 3K Lane
5. Kosheen - Guilty (Plastician Remix)
6. Crissy Criss - Humans
7. Maniac - Wreckage
8. Benny Page & Zero G - Trigger Finger
9. Joker - Digidesign with Unkle Sam - Round The World Girls (Acapella)
10. Plastician - The Clouds
11. Skream -
12. 0 Bit Dreams
13. Maniac - Three Crows
14. Crissy Criss - Fackin Ell
15. DJ Narrows - Starboy
16. Ed Solo - Age Of Dub
17. Plastician - Pushkin
18. K Rio - Headrush
19. Babylon System - Examination Of Time VIP
20. Benny Page - Step Out VIP
21. Jakes - Modem
22. Sukh Knight - Beneath Your Blouse
23. Skream - Filth
24. Crissy Criss - Soap Dodger
25. Crissy Criss - Coco Butter
26. Plastician - Walk In The Carpark
27. Plastician featuring Unkle Sam - Thoughts (Japan)

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