Interview: Ben Dubisson

This is the first interview I ever did and probably, to date, the best. The subject and the words were important to me on a personal level, not least because it was a face to face that I chased from cold. Ben was, and by virtue of the fact that he is a part-owner in many premier venues in the city, still is an important figure in Bristol music and I was pleased to have the opportunity to speak to someone who knew what they were doing and how they were doing it. I regret not staying in touch with him.


In many ways it's been a busy year for the ever-busy Ben Dubisson, otherwise known as Hundred Strong.

A central figure in Bristol music for over ten years, Dubisson was in the thick of it when the beats scene exploded in the mid 1990's and has been working feverishly throughout as producer for such talents RJD2 and local lads Aspects. He has his own record label, High Noon, which exists to promote a new generation of Bristol beats. A well-received live performance at the Ashton Court festival last month and the release of a new LP, "Basement Blues" on the Altered Vibes label earlier this year marks Hundred Stong's re-emergence.

He describes "Basement Blues" as hip-hop recorded for the listener. "I'm a producer first, not a DJ. I could get on the turntables and make people dance, but people in clubs only want to hear party classics and don't want any depth to it." The result of this quest for depth is twelve tracks of soulful, down tempo hip-hop, all of them instilled with a sophistication that presumably only comes after a decade in the game. What, I asked, was the inspiration behind the album?

"It's what you're feeling really. It's sample based with live stuff over the top. It's about putting together the sound-scapes, and then hooking up with the vocalists - people I knew, people I've worked with in the past, and then they'd send back the acapellas and I'd put it all together."

Joseph Malik, Def Harmonic, Alison Crockett and several others have distance-collaborated on "Basement Blues"; it's a way of working that Dubisson seems comfortable with, recurrent technical complications notwithstanding. Despite going the long way round, there's no hint of disunity on the record, instead the track list comes across as a coherent and thoroughly listenable whole.

Every now and then Hundred Strong takes a break from the studio to do the occasional live performance. A favourite at the Dojo lounge, most recently he put on a lavish show at the Ashton Court festival, an event that he enthusiastically supports.

"It was brilliant, we had three MC's over from Chicago, a local MC who's put some stuff out on my label, and a singer as well. We had some really dynamic people on and off stage, and it was all fully live. The crowd loved it; it went down well. I've played it a lot of times, most years I do something there. It was the busiest I'd ever seen it on the Saturday actually, and I've been going for a long time. It's a good event."

Dubisson is clearly a man who loves his job, but he's keenly aware of the pitfalls; "The future's bleak - it's not like it used to be, it's difficult to shift records these days. Apart from pop, which is obviously throwaway rubbish, only Indie is selling in large numbers. You need publicity, but no one's got the budget for that. So, at High Noon, we just concentrate on getting the good music out, and we always get back the money we put in with a fair amount on top. It's basically just a hobby."

Despite this claim, his speech belies a certain pride for High Noon Records. Indeed he has every reason to be proud: things seem to be gathering pace at the little outfit, which he runs from his basement. "I've got two new 12's on High Noon coming out soon. It's mostly breaks and reggae; we've got Western Breaks who do reggae influenced beats. It's just a way to put local stuff out really; it's all Bristol acts. People might come in from elsewhere but it's all Bristol producers. We're doing a compilation in the new year - all the 12"'s and other bits and pieces."

Dubisson seems committed to the preservation of Bristol's reputation as a breeding ground for musical talent - a reputation that he in no small part helped to establish. I couldn't resist asking him what it was about the city that inspired so many talented and successful acts. The answer was surprising. "I get asked this question a lot. British hip-hop artists have always been making good music. There's good stuff coming out of Birmingham, Manchester, anything and everything's coming out of London, Liverpool's very productive at the moment. I suppose it's a fairly laid back, arty kind of place but there's nothing about Bristol which makes it unique from a musical point of view."

So there you have it, take it from one who knows. Maybe it's best to focus on the future.

"'Dream on Delay' is the next 12", and we're putting a couple of little mixes on that including a Break Reform mix. I've been making new tracks for a new EP, which is also coming out on Altered Vibes in February. We've picked up licences in Australia, France and America; we're going to be putting something out on Geoff Barrow's label, Invader, in Australia. We're also getting the live stuff ready for a tour in February, I could have done one this October but I'm a bit busy with other things at the moment. Hopefully we'll pick up some festivals going into next year, the Big Chill and things like that."

He says that the future looks bleak for the industry, but I doubt the same can be said for Hundred Strong. If "Basement Blues" is anything to go by, his live tour should be a showcase of solid, authentic chilled-out beats. Just don't ask him if he takes requests.