Artist Profile – Dunk – (Brazil)

With fifteen years in the studio under his belt, Dunk is a name that has become synonymous with bass driven, gritty minimal drum and bass.

Starting initially in the Jam Thieves and then deciding to go solo in the last couple of years, he has developed a style that concentrates more on the ebb and flow of a track, building sounds around a minimal core, with a focus on subtle changes and the art of the build-up. He is well known for crafting intricate, minimal drum and bass.

With the full release of his second LP for Dispatch Records – The Art Of Minimal – only days away (Bandcamp & Beatport release is today!) and with two INSIDE DNB Premieres to include with this interview (you can hear those and many other INSIDE DNB PREMIERES here!) we warmly welcomed the chance to talk to this innovative South American producer about music, hip-hop and cats!

Dunk! Welcome INSIDE!

Cheers!

Firstly, your stage name. How did it come about? Here in the UK the word dunk is mostly used when talking about tea and biscuits!

What? Ha! Ant (TC1) told me this a while ago. I really didn’t know! (yes, Brits mostly love to dunk their biscuit! – Ed) Actually, I like basketball and I love it when I watch games and they say DUNK! when the ball goes through. It’s basically that simple!

You’ve signed to an astounding 47 labels in the last two years. That is a seriously heavy work rate. I’m guessing you almost live in the studio?

Everyone asks me this, and the answer is that I just love being in the studio. I usually stay there for around 5 hours every day, but I also have another job, so that means my life can get crazy, but I love it really. I have always liked a challenge.

The next obvious question for us is, how do you possibly come up with so many ideas?

I listen to a lot of other styles. I usually don’t have many initial ideas, but that helps me because I don’t get lost in them. I prefer to create something from scratch and then go to the next song, so when I come back to the first one I already have some ideas in the bank. It can be confusing sometimes, but I always find myself in the end.

So how many of those little ideas do you follow through into useful pieces of sound?

Normally, I don’t like to wait too long to get back to the music I’m finishing, because otherwise I lose the sense, so I have to set some goals. I prefer to finish a track in 2 days at most. I always say that time is money and the music scene today doesn’t have time to postpone.

Your music generally builds slowly over the length of a track. You can kind of get lost in it. You cite techno as a favourite genre style, and you can definitely hear that in your drum and bass. It’s like you’ve taken the ‘journey’ of techno and morphed it into DNB?

This is exactly what I always wanted to show, but sometimes I have a problem with it, because some people complain and say that things are missing, when that was always my intention and my style. Even on a personal level and in life generally I like everything to be very minimalist, but if you look at the music in depth, it has a very deep and dirty side, so there is a contrast.

‘Diamond Head’ which we’ve managed to secure as an INSIDE DNB Premiere is a perfect example. Tell us a bit about the track?

‘Diamond Head’ is a good example actually. I was listening to KRS ONE when I went to the studio and I was thinking a lot about the album.

There are twelve tracks on this latest LP ‘The Art of Minimal’. How long has the entire project taken to write, and do you find some tracks come together much more quickly than others?

I think we finished the album in 2 months (and in those 2 months I also had 5 other releases). I really don’t like stand still!

The other track we’re proudly premiering is ‘Made in Brazil’. You’re from Brazil, so this track has a personal theme, right?

It can be said yes, but also to show everyone that we have our own originality and a lot of quality in all aspects. Our country is going through a very delicate moment with regards to Government, so good things have to be shown.

It crazy actually, the amount of activity there is in DNB in Brazil right now. You’re part of a core of producers that seem to be relentlessly making music and pushing boundaries. If you removed Brazil from the musical equation, there’d be a big hole left!

Exactly. In my point of view, today Brazil is much stronger because more and more producers have emerged. So we managed to show our potential to the outside world. We are not a Brazil that grew up listening to DNB, this makes things a bit more difficult. It also makes the talent more visible for everyone around the world to know that Brazil is present in drum n bass scene.

The title of the LP kind of tells its own story, but what were your main goals with the album. What message are you trying to get across apart from the obvious?

I left the Jam Thieves wanting to show my minimalist side and of course, be the main thing I always wanted to be, which is a quality drum and bass producer. It took around two years for that to take shape with the DUNK project. I managed to show all my ideas and trademarks on this album I think it represents my style perfectly.

You use a MacBook Pro, M Audio interface fast pro and M-audio Oxygen 25 for making most of your music. Even your studio is minimal! You must be really pushing your equipment to the limits. I guess a huge advantage though is that you can make music on the go?

To be honest, I’m really missing some tools at this point. But here in Brazil things are very expensive. I remember once I was talking to DJ Hype about my studio and he couldn’t believe I was making my music in a small home studio, but I can’t complain because I can do good things and of course, I’m continuously studying in order to learn more.

We can’t believe you make all of your music on such a small set up either! Away from music then, you cite hip-hop and riding your bike as important parts of your life. Tell us a bit about them both.

Well, I’ve always ridden a bike to be honest. I’ve always been different, because my friends all have cars but I never really liked it, so this comes from my childhood really and of course, it’s good for my health.

With hip-hop, it was my foundation in music, my first contact with music. Hip-hop came first, so that explains my passion

You also love cats! We LOVE cats here at INSIDE DNB, and have noticed that this seems to be common throughout the scene. What do you love about them so much?

This is a great question, because my first contact with a cat was 6 years ago. My wife gave it to me, and from then on it was love at first sight. They make me calm and they accept people without knowing what’s in the bank account! In short, they are animals that like us without wanting to exchange something in return.

Before you go then, give us a quick statement about the album and what it says about you both as an artist and a human being.

With the album, thanks to everyone who is supporting. I always say all support is welcome, so I’m very grateful for all things!

Thanks to yourselves,  Big Ups guys, I’m very happy for the opportunity, and of course the Dispatch crew. These guys are really amazing.

I always say let’s all help everyone. Our life is too short and it will all end one day.

A word often helps your friend, forget your ego, your vanity and let’s live with God in our heart, because he saved us to live a full life.

FIND OUT MORE HERE:

Dunk (@dunk_dnb) • Instagram photos and videos

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