Ahead of his headline slot at our Steady Stepping event, we spoke with Denham Audio whilst on a walk through his local areas in West London. Known for his breakbeat-driven productions and wide-ranging DJ sets, Denham Audio blends influences from jungle, garage, hip hop and beyond into a sound that feels both deeply rooted and forward-thinking.
For anyone new to your world, who is Denham Audio?
I'm Denham Audio, West London based electronic music Producer and DJ, I make breakbeat driven dance music that covers a wide spectrum of the dance music world.
If someone’s never seen you play before, what should they expect walking into that set?
I like to think of my mixing style as a method of tension and release, I like long mixing blends of 2 or more tracks and an ever building vibe until we‘ve learnt that moment of relief. The longer the set time the better imo
I like looking for new music and showcasing that, I want to show you your new favourite song and stuff you’ve not heard before.
There’s a real collision of worlds in your music, jungle, garage, breakbeat & hip hop. How do those references come together when you’re building something?
I grew up in a black household of reggae, Motown, and I discovered rap and hip hop and r&b (shout out Trevor Nelson's Saturday afternoon radio 1 show), this then lead me into Grime and that was my sort of first “underground” sound that I had to really dig to discover more of - fast forward to 6th form/university years and getting more and more into dance music, that experience of digging and looking for more music sent me on a wild discovery journey and eventually learning to make music - so I try and bring all those influences over the years into my music in some shape or form, I like the concept of decontextualising things that don't exist in the wool that I do and making them fit or working with artists from other sides of the music sphere but make its something new and interesting - thats what excites me most and feels the most authentic to myself
Your records feel very physical, like they’re built for proper sound systems. How much are you thinking about the dance floor when you’re producing?
Yeah id say a lot of my early club experience was more uk bass routed, that sort of post dubstep sound that the likes of Swamp 81, Hessle, Hemlock etc were pushing - so I've always loved the intricacies of those tunes, quite stripped back but can have such an impact on the dance floor
ATM tho I've been focusing on the breakdown element of the track, I think of my fondest memories or favourite songs and its always the breakdown moment - as I mentioned above, that idea of tension and release that lead to those euphoric moments rather than big drops - think thats where the true essence of dance music really exists
Your collective, Club Glow, feels like more than just a label, what does that project give you that solo work doesn’t?
Club Glow has ever evolved over the years, It started as a platform for us 4 to put our music out when people weren’t interested, at the time there were a small handful of people making the same music we were so naturally we gravitated towards each other - each with our unique take on the sound.
That grew from a label out of necessity to release our music into events, club nights throughout the UK & Europe and Festivals. We held a radio residency on Balamii & Rinse FM and even released music as “Club Glow”. We’ve now opened up the label more and releasing music we love from people we rate highly more frequently.
I think the label has always given us a platform to truly be ourselves and as we’ve benefited from it, now it feels right to use that platform to help showcase emerging artists we like and also still provide a home for our music.
When you’re not making music, what are you usually drawn to and what helps you reset?
I probably spend more time playing video games than I do making music, so i'm pretty glued to my PS5 but I love going to the cinema, watching TV and Films and eating good food!
You’re stepping up for our Steady Stepping event in Manchester next month, what kind of energy are you planning to bring?
Looking to bring a lot of new music from myself and the label, some nice rollers and groovers and some euphoric moments for sure!
