Probably best known for his output on Labels including ESP Institute, Futureboogie and Culprit, Ian Blevins is a prolific producer and a world class DJ based in the UK.
Honing his craft as a resident at Ibiza’s legendary “We Love Space”, Ian has been a regular feature in UK clubs such as Back to Basics, Ministry of Sound and Shindig, and now finds himself fulfilling a global clubbing schedule which has seen him travel as far and wide as Asia, Australia and South America, with regular appearances throughout Europe.
After scoring a bona fide hit with last years “Hannibal” EP, and it’s follow up “Resume/ My Poor Head”, Ian has a packed pipeline of releases which will serve to reinforce his status as one of the more interesting production voices to emerge in the last year..
Where are you from?
I’m from the popular holiday resort of Horden, County Durham in the North-East of England.
What have you been up to already this year?
This year i’ve been based back in the UK apart from a couple of trips to Amsterdam and Switzerland to play. I’ve been working on and finishing EP’s for Not An Animal Records and Futureboogie as well as my album for ESP Institute. Plus a few remixes too that will be out soon and I’ve been keeping myself busy till the summer and a lot of travelling commences.
Do you consider yourself a DJ first or a producer?
Definitely a DJ first. I got into the game fairly late as far as playing goes. Bought my first set of decks at Uni with a bursary i received and started buying vinyl. Its always been a hobby until I started playing more and more out here then finally start to get my head into the production side of things. Late again compared to other people these days like Disclosure etc who are remarkably talented and extremely young. They make me sick 😉 Only kidding.
https://soundcloud.com/ianblevins/ian-blevins-not-an-animal-mix
What do you think makes a good resident? Everyone always talks about the art of the warm up, but do you think there is more to it than that?
Know how to play the room. How to start off, what tempo, style etc. Nothing worse than cruising through several rooms of a club and hearing the same shit in each room. Know your sound system as well …and be nice and friendly.
Which other DJ has been the biggest source of inspiration in your career? (ibiza or not)
I got into DJing really through disco, soul us house scene so i’d name folk such as Theo Parrish, Larry Heard, DJ Spinna to name only a few.
You’ve played festivals, parties, club nights, probably even in your mates bedroom. No doubt some of those have been truly memorable and others totally forgettable, what is it the makes you keep coming back for more?
Playing music you love to people who want to have a good time. What’s not to like about that. That situation has, and will do doubt in the future, provide me with some of my favourite memories.
If you hadn’t become a DJ/Producer what do you think you would have done instead?
I’ve a degree in Internet Computing so something within that area more than likely.
Given that electronic music, its audience and means of creation are constantly evolving do you think it’s important as a producer to continually adapt your own sound, or should you remain true to your original sound?
I think an artist should evolve or at least ‘polish’ their sound over time though I don’t think adapt is quite right as that insinuates that a ‘norm’ or ‘standard’ should be adhered too and there’s nothing more boring than listening to hours of music that sounds exactly the same. No artist who’s music stands out for me, I doubt tried to adapt to sound like the music that everyone is playing at a particular time. Each I think will be influenced heavily by many people and experiences, but the trick is finding your own sound and to craft that. Only then will the music stand out from the crowd.
That’s the idea anyhow 🙂
And finally, what should we be looking out for from you both in 2016 and beyond?
As far as my solo work is concerned I’ve got a remix and EP forthcoming for ‘Not An Animal Records’ as well as working on a couple things for ESP Institute which I couldn’t be more excited about. There’s also a few more remixes on there way and a couple Al Gobi tracks that should be released too amongst a few other things.
On the gig front I’m really looking forward to getting away a bit more than last year, with trips to SE Asia, Australia, Ibiza, Mexico and Obonjan in Croatia already penciled, or the wheels are in motion at the very least. Aside from that I’ll be spending another summer in the tropical climate of North East of England, finishing off music and gigging where I can.
https://soundcloud.com/ianblevins