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Tinrib on tour: hard house’s pioneering pirate is back

Reported by HarderFaster Editorial / Submitted 22-07-06 12:10

Ahoy there me hearties, our favourite swashbuckling pirate is back in town from the high seas and ready to party. Cruising back into town at a speed Captain Cook would have killed for, Captain Tinrib aka Jon Bell is much more than just one of the pioneers of hard house as we know it today — although it cannot be denied he helped define the genre with his unique riffs, let alone his extraordinary dress sense and obsession with all things oceanic.

Releasing his first track in 1991 as Morphasis, he made a number of ground-breaking productions under the name of D. R. Base between ’94 and ’97, meanwhile establishing his Tinrib record label in 1995. Responsible for producing and pressing some classic hard house tracks, it kicked it off with ‘Barracuda’, the first of what was to become many collaborations with French hard house producer Karim Lamouri. But more on their recent productions from a make-shift underground bunker at the bottom of the world a bit later . . . Tinrib Recordings released 60 records and 13 cds, including classics like ‘Street Tab’ with R. R. Fierce, ‘Blue Oyster’, ‘2001’ and Wierdo’s ‘I Know a Plaice’ and ‘Photic Zone’, and is regarded as one of hard house’s most distinguished and prolific labels.

Putting the label into dry dock in 2002 for a much needed two-year break, the Captain’s production career then returned with vengeance, re-launching with such tracks as a remix of Max — The Alien Thing’s ‘Beaver Express’, then after being signed to Vicious, ‘Found What We’re Looking For’ with Dynamic Intervention, ‘The Great Gatsby’, in homage of Vicious main man Paul Glazby, and ‘Acid Gate Scandal’ with Max Alien. More recently, ‘Attack of the 50ft DJ’, a collaboration with Upfront’s Sol Ray, has been signed to tidy and made it onto some of 2005’s top compilation CDs, while ‘Amsterdamage’, also with Sol Ray, has been slicing through dance floors around the world like a great white in a feeding frenzy. In short, his productions just seem to be getting better and better.



As well as djing and producing, the Captain has always loved a good party, so promoting came naturally and his Superfish! parties with DFQ, Steve Thomas, Dave Randall, RR Fierce and Karim had to be experienced to be believed. Starting off at the Soundshaft, they had a stint at Crash before finding their spiritual home at the Fridge. With lineups that were essentially a who’s who of hard dance, their set progressions from funky, trance and techno, finishing with Karim’s hammering hard NRG, are regarded as one of the secrets of their success, alongside a shared passion for a bloody good shindig. Over the years Superfish! featured such pioneers as OD404’s Superfast Oz, Simon Eve, Max Alien, JP, Pete Wardman, Steve Hill and of course the wondrous Wierdo, who completed the resident’s lineup, also releasing two innovative artist albums that helped revolutionise the hard trance sound.

But in the last twelve months, the Captain has been unusually quiet. Had he been forever lost on the high seas? No, the ol’ Skippwhore had followed in the steps of Captain Cook and landed on the shores of New Zealand, only instead of trading muskets and blankets he’s pioneering hard dance and Superfish! parties in his new hometown of Christchurch. Back in London at the beginning of his summer tour, I had a couple of beers with Tinrib at Dalston’s classy Railway Tavern as he prepared to head north for his first gig at Vicious Storm.



When did you first start making music? What first inspired you to start?

I first started making music back in 1992 on a Commodore Amiga 1500. I messed about sampling loops from hip hop records in 8 bit and used the Commodore’s sound generator to make sounds. It was pretty basic stuff, then when I played it to some local djs in Bournemouth, Paul Brady and Martyn The Hat, they passed it on and I was offered gigs the whole summer playing at all night raves in Hackney. Other artists at these events included Ellis Dee, The Rat Pack and The Prodigy. It’s quite crazy, looking back. I had no clue what I was doing compared to now. The inspiration came from partying at Madison’s Club in Bournemouth every weekend from the age of 18. There was no turning back.

Who or what were your musical influences growing up? And now?

Mainly the usual chart sorta stuff: The Cure, Jean Michel Jarre, Madness, The Specials. Loads really. These days I check out a broad band of music, I like a lot of the psy stuff, it’s the production that does it on this genre. You can really hear the depth in there. My favourite while moseying around the house would have to be Shpongle.

Your live performances are legendary. Can you remember playing out for the first time? How has your stage persona changed since then?

I did a few housey style live performances at Club UK and SW1 in London to get the ball rolling. The 1st Captain Tinrib live performance was at our club night, FISH! at the Soundshaft. I’ve never really been too nervous about them since. I make it as live as is possible, so I’m occupied the whole live set beating it out!



Why the name ‘Captain Tinrib’?

One of our distributors, Lee at Mo’s Music Machine kept calling me Captain over the phone when sorting out business for the label. This kind of stuck and went well with all those things fishy and nautical! The Captain was born. Lately the Skippwhore has been used . . .

Last year you made the massive move from Bournemouth to Christchurch, New Zealand. Why the move? And has it had an impact on your music in any way?

I was born in London, brought up in Bournemouth, then lived in London for a further 10 years while running the label. I have been lucky enough to tour worldwide, to many big cities across the globe. But I’d pretty much had it with cities in the end . . . . I wanted some space . . .

And then, last July, I went on tour of Australia and New Zealand along with Dave Willis and The Organ Donors. We got pretty horsed in each town, even took a kid’s hobby horse to the local shops — we were that buggered.

We ended up in Christchurch NZ, where we passed a horse saddlery on route to the club. I knew I was safe if I was feelin’ it the next day. We had a great party and then I was told a beautiful kiwi would be looking after me during my stay! Wow . . . it turns out that she owns the saddlery and the rest is history. Proper horse fucked! A destiny!

What is the hard dance scene like in NZ? Have you thrown any Superfish! parties out there?

It’s a really small population compared to the UK. So, a hard dance party would be a good night if you got 250 to 300 to attend. We did a Superfish! back in April in Christchurch. We had a great night . . . . and there’s more to follow when I get back, plus plans on touring around the country.



Where and when would you say is the best set you’ve ever played? In your opinion, what makes a good set?

To me a good set is the measurement of how much the crowd is enjoying it and how easy it was to perform it. Some nights my hands just fly without too much thought to what’s happening next. The horse is strong!

Superfish held some incredible parties, then you retired from performing and promoting in 2002. What made you give up performing in 2002? Then what persuaded you to make a comeback?

I never really did give up performing and promoting, just decided I needed a rest with other things going on in my life. It didn’t take long before needing a club scene fix and I was back onto it, bashing ‘em for Paul Glazby on VC.

You’ve got a hectic touring schedule lined up over the summer months, which includes Frantic 9, Gatecrasher vs Storm and gigs in Ireland, as well as playing for Æ at the Lock Up in Hereford on Saturday 22 July. Do you enjoy being on tour? And what can fans expect from your tour sets?

I do enjoy being on tour. It’s great to catch up with everyone you’ve met on previous visits. I’ve got a new laptop for my shows which is loads faster, so it’s liver than ever. More synths can be handled so more are bashed out.

I’ve done quite a lot of new, unreleased material, so, everyone is happy. Bit of the old, loads of new, some of it made up on the night. Anything goes . . .

There’s been a lot of controversy in the industry recently about what it means to play “*LIVE*? What are your views on the matter? How “*LIVE*” is your PA?

As live as is possible for a setup at a night club/event. I’m a sound engineer and producer by trade so bring as much as I do in the studio creating the tracks to the stage. That’s as live as it ever is when you make the tracks in the first place! Some gigs can be seen with a live percussionist, in case some out there think we’re doing the lights!



You were a pioneer of the hard NRG scene in the mid 90s. How would you say your sound has progressed over the last few years? Would you call the music you make hard NRG, hard house, hard trance or something else?

Hard horse music. A mixture of loads of different named styles really I feel. I try and add elements of everything in my sound and of course add more.

You’ve got a long history with Vicious Circle, and played your first gig back in the UK for Vicious Storm last weekend at the Emporium. How did the gig go? Was it strange to be back playing to a UK audience after being away so long?

I had a great time and was received extremely well. Couldn’t believe how busy it was for a place so far away from anywhere. Nice one Garbo. Didn’t feel strange at all, felt strange myself by the end of the night mind! Ended up in the Biker Bar!!! I was so great I was jealous of myself!

You collaborated with Karim for the first time a few years ago and a coupla years ago finished a second track, ‘Get On It’, released on Karim’s Do Not Bend records. What made you first collaborate with Karim? Do you have any future tracks planned together?

It just so happens, that the young lad Karim came over to Christchurch, NZ, in April this year. He performed at our Superfish! event and we built an underground make shift recording studio in a rented lockup so we could do some tunes. Watch out for ‘Don’t Fuck With Me Fellas’ and ‘Heartbreak’ on Do Not Bend.

Are there any other artists you’d like to collaborate with?

I love working with different people, no matter how much knowledge of production they have. It’s like a jigsaw you have to piece together. If you have fun doing it, do it more, more often!

What djs and producers do you rate at the moment?

Everyone out there who is making music, keeping the whole scene alive. Everyone.

What are your favourite tracks at the moment?

Not too good with names of tracks. Like stuff with good production and new influences mainly.

Vinyl or cd?

Live!

There is not much vinyl left. Has to be CD.



You put Tinrib Recordings to bed in 2002 and then released tracks on other labels. Why did you decide to close Tinrib Recordings? What are the pros and cons of releasing your own music? Do you have any plans to restart Tinrib Recordings or start another label?

The record industry has changed today to 10 years ago. Vinyl doesn’t really exist and isn’t that feasible as a business. I do it just for fun now so plans are underway for a Tinrib NZ which will be CD releases and MP3 downloads mainly. Maybe the odd picture disc too.

Kaktai recently re-released Tinrib 15, ‘Street Tab’. Are there going to be more re-releases to come?

I get requests quite often for the Tinrib back catalogue. I feel it’s already done for myself, and point to creating new material. Kaktai did a grand job on that ‘Shit Stab’ number. Recent licences have included Simon Eve’s Recharge re-look at ‘Ride Me Baby’. It’s down to other labels really. If they wanna remix something, drop us a line! Bring a big net too . . .

There’s been some negative talk in the industry about the scene dying, and many record companies and promoters have called it a day. How do you think the scene has changed in the last few years?

It’s definitely slowed down word-wide over the past 5 years. There’s not much in it to make it an occupation, though I feel by making it all a hobby and for fun you can never go wrong.

If you weren’t making music what else would you be doing?

Saddling horses?

How has technology changed the way you make music since you first started out? Do you use applications like Logic?

It has changed enormously. 5 years ago my whole studio was midi based. I never thought the digital soft synths would quite sound the same as the analogue masters . . . now they do though. So, I’m completely computer-based with midi keyboards and controllers. It’s total recall. Using Logic Pro, Ableton Live 5 for sequencing. Check www.captaintinrib.com for the full set-up.

What are your goals for the rest of 2006? And in the long term?

I have bought a lovely house in Christchurch with my horsey and completed a new studio in NZ a few weeks before I left for the UK. Gonna be renting myself out along with the studio a few days a week, then the rest of the time working on my new album. Gonna be dabbling in a few other genres too. Bit of chill out, to rock/indie (which I’m working on while here in the UK with Bolty at Shaun’s famous Fortress Studios in London,), hard psy trance (Dino Psaras style,) and whatever tickles my fancy at the time. 180 bpm gabba has been found in one folder!!!!

Hard horse music is in the blood and has been with me for the past 15 years. There’s more to come on a monthly basis. Check the website for all the creations as they are born.

Rumour has it you might be pulling off a Superfish! party while you’re back. Is there any truth to this? Where can we buy tickets?!

I’m currently in negotiations with one of London’s top venues about this but nothing’s confirmed just yet! Watch this space . . .



On Saturday 22 July you’re playing for Æ’s birthday at the Lock Up in Hereford. Why should fans travel to Hereford to see you play?

I’ve never played in Hereford before. I’m gonna spend all of Friday programming for the night. I don’t know the Hereford national anthem, so gonna make something up suitable for a night of madness. It’s heading towards ‘Star Wars’, ‘The Final Countdown’ with ‘Black Beauty’ at the moment. ‘Happy Christmas’ maybe? The only way to find out is at the Lockup. See you on the pitch.

Thanks for all your support.

The Skippwhore x

For more info on the Skippwhore check out www.captaintinrib.com

STOP PRESS! There are still a couple of free dates in Captain Tinrib’s summer tour diary. To book the Captain email Tara at Airborne Agency: airborneagency@btinternet.com

Photos copyright Salamander Photo. Not to be reproduced without permission.
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Other Features By HarderFaster Editorial:
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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: *charlie*! on 22nd Jul 2006 17:19.30
Wicked read Thumbs up
Tin Rib rocks, cant wait to see him in action again @ Frantics 9th bday, its been far too long since I saw him play - legend.

From: Anja on 23rd Jul 2006 02:53.07
Absolute legend this fella, seen him play many times and never dissapoints.
I thank you!

From: jud on 23rd Jul 2006 12:08.03
always rocks it and he aint got his head up his own arse....... supastar djs take note

From: Dr DUZZIT on 23rd Jul 2006 12:25.52
C'Tain TinRib is the Daddy, wikkid to have you back in the UK for a while mate...... I will be checking you out for sure!!!

From: AranB on 24th Jul 2006 13:12.25
I remember the first ever Superfish! at the Fridge all those years ago....
Im sure the Captain would agree, truly a night like no other!

From: anushka007 on 24th Jul 2006 13:42.56
Not worthy...

From: Neats on 24th Jul 2006 16:15.00
excellent read, keep up the good work Thumbs up


From: Stakker on 25th Jul 2006 07:30.27
Good lad all round. Always good to see him and reminisce!

From: Lady Bianca on 25th Jul 2006 12:25.13
OI OI!!!!! Nice to have you back trouble!! Be seeing you very soon for some fishy madness, bring back the memories I'm sure!!!!

From: T-bag on 25th Jul 2006 13:23.35
Smoke me a kipper,
I'll be back for SUPERFISH!!!Thumbs up

From: sexyminx on 27th Jul 2006 17:59.32
Wicked interview. Keep up the good work Mr Tinrib Thumbs up

From: Mulla on 29th Jul 2006 09:39.21
Wicked interview!

From: wayo on 30th Jul 2006 19:50.31
what can i say top horse gidy up 150 bpm some body sceram lol lol


From: James Nardi on 1st Aug 2006 09:53.12
Wicked read mate.

He'll be playing his first gig in London this year @ Fuel this Sunday morning!! Smile

From: mkj on 8th Aug 2006 00:39.02
Great interview, Tinrib=Legend I have Tinrib fever now, great show at Fire can't wait for Superfish and Frantic Bring it on Yay!

From: Miss Riding on 10th Aug 2006 02:22.58
i have tinrib fever too lol
mwah.

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