They will accuse the crossover merchants of selling out and bemoan the entry of new listeners into their coterie. It happened with grunge in the early 90s; it happened with grime earlier this decade. It has been happening again with dubstep, the latest underground sound undergoing overground convulsions. Magnetic Man — a trio composed of three dubstep pioneers, Artwork, Benga and Skream — have placed themselves at the centre of this pop-cultural kerfuffle, having made an album of dark electronic music that expands to breaking point the genre strictures that once defined the carnivorous sound from Croydon.
Track one is a neoclassical string meditation called "Flying Into Tokyo" that signposts this album's non-dubness. The first non-music fans probably heard of dubstep was in when Burial's brooding album, Untrue , was tipped for the Mercury prize. The Sun went so far as to unmask the previously anonymous musician, suddenly making dubstep a populist concern.
The same year, dubstep producer Benga's equally impressive album, Diary of an Afro Warrior , didn't make the Mercury longlist, having somehow not ticked sufficient boxes. Even when dubstep had extremely limited commercial viability, the two longtime Croydon mates made bangers. Though occasionally dabbling in artier terrain, Skream and Benga have always been crowd pleasers.
With that said, Magnetic Man is a valiant hybridization effort featuring two who have earned their keep and deserve their shot at the spotlight. Magnetic Man , conscious as it may be, can no more take credit for any social spiral than Dig Your Own Hole could. Both are good albums in their own right.
Benga: Normally you just do it the next day, you wire it. I was still trying to figure out what had happened. Skream: Ketamine. Do you think the pop world should embrace everything about an artist? And not just the plastic front? Benga: Shall I tell you what? Couple of necks might get broken, people might fall off stage. Benga: But no one really dies. Do you have a strong vision of where Magnetic Man needs to go now? Artwork: Just see how it goes. We know we have to smash this now.
Benga: You can tell everyone does that. You will find something you like in it. Skream: Even to the degree of Anti War Dub. That was like a vocal. It was a chant almost but still. It was like, the vocals have been turned into a slogan, you know what I mean. I remember speaking to Benga about responsibility and moving things forward.
Do you feel even more responsibility on a global level now? If you like dark shit. It is dark. I need Air is pretty subversive in that its pretty formulaic but when the beat drops its going to wrong foot a lot of people. What do you say to haters that say you are ruining dubstep? Benga: Well this is the thing right. For us to come out and do that and not do the same shit how the fuck are we ruining dupstep?
Skream: Not many other people I think could have done it. If you gave them opportunity they probably would have done stuff that they know people would have liked. Do you get what I mean by that? What have we done since the start? Tried to push it right? It may have been more acceptable to a lot of old purists if I Need Air had gone top 10 whilst on Tempa records. Could this have happened or was Columbia vital? Artwork: Listen Tempa Records are going to have a top ten very very soon.
The major labels spread music around. Do you still feel in control? Benga: What we should be in control of is the music, right, whatever happens for them to spread that music.
Just do it. Artwork: No you have done as well. Artwork: I think it freaked the record company out. Skream: Free music. Everyone listens to free music.
Like generally from a bigger name down.
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