VANDAL: Genre-Defying Beatage.

Sheffield-based producer and beatsmith Sam Evans - who also goes by the moniker VANDAL - is a good friend of ours over here at Canoe. An accomplished musician with a proclivity for earth-shattering beats, filthy basslines and glitch wizardry, the man has been tearing up dancefloors the world over - from San Francisco to Shanghai, Moscow, Seoul and back - with his particular brand of beat.

This September, Vandal’s debut album ‘Tonight We Riot’ drops, so we decided to give him a bit of a grilling.

How would you describe your music to someone who doesn’t know?
It’s a mixture of breaks, electro and techno all combined to create big dance floor anthems. A lot of people are calling the type of music I make techfunk, essentially music which draws from different genres but heavily influenced by techno.

What was the first record you ever bought?
The first album I actually remember buying with my own money was ‘Girls, Girls, Girls’, by Motley Crue. Although it was a tape, does that count?

What are your all time, top 5 favourite records?
Always hard to pick a definitive top 5 but here are a few that are definitely up there. Fugazi’s ‘In On the Killtaker’, a quality album from possibly the finest band to grace planet earth. Metallica’s ‘…And Justice For All’, the thrash masters at the peak of their powers. Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Nebraska’, The Boss’ finest hour - a dark, acoustic album which I doubt he will ever top. Also, Orbital’s ‘The Brown Album’ & Underworld’s ‘Dubnobasswithmyhead…man’. The reasons I got into dance music; both absolute classics.

How and when did you start making beats?
After finishing art college in Cardiff I got involved with the Plastic Raygun collective who used to run various nights in the Welsh capital. They owned a studio which they kindly let me use for no money, and even taught me about production. Top boys. This must have been about 11 or 12 years ago!

What’s your production set up?
A MacBook Pro and a pair of decent monitors, that’s my lot. I like to keep things simple; I get confused easily(!)

You seem to dabble in different styles from breaks, to electro, to house and to techno - why?
I seem to be unable to stick to one genre. There’s just so much good electronic music out there to take influence from, it seems crazy to tie yourself down to one particular style.

Where’s the music industry headed?
It’s going through a serious evolution at the moment. The old music industry models where bands and DJs make albums and singles and then tour to promote them will exist for a while yet, but the last few years have seen the rise of the DIY ethos. It’s the time of the independents and the home studios, it’s all about setting up your own labels or working with forward thinking companies who want to push the boundaries.  I keep hearing how the music industry is dying but it’s not - it’s just the old corporate dinosaurs are gradually becoming extinct. There’s still millions of people out there who are willing to pay for music - the industry just needs to up its game and find new and interesting ways to reach out to them.

Does the beats scene in the North differ to that in the South? If so, how?
I don’t think there is much difference to be honest. The same names that fill clubs down south will fill a club up north and the behemoth that is dubstep still rules the land, it takes no notice of geographical boundaries!

Who are you feeling right now that we should be listening to?
The new Underworld material is sounding pretty special. French techno king Popof keeps delivering the goods and the lastest Djedjotronic EP on Boys Noize Records is the dogs nuts! Really looking forward to seeing what he comes up next. The Magnetic Man project keeps catching my ear as well, interested to hear from them.

Tell us about the new album - what can we expect?
It’s an epic, full blooded affair which is rammed full of electronic bangers. It’s the album you put on if you want to go out raving, it definitely gets the adrenaline pumping. Like you mentioned before it’s a real cross over of styles from breaks to techno all with a Vandal twist. There’s even a track on there which is my ode to New Order and Depeche Mode.

What’s in store for Vandal in the future?
There are various singles and remixes due out over the summer. There will be a big promo push for the album so the plan is put together a tour to back it up. I’m teaming up with a production company in Sheffield to work on a video. I’ll also be spending more time pushing my own label, Benefit Recordings. I’ve got great music lined up for release over the next six months. I’ve already started putting together ideas for the next album so now it’s just about keeping up the pressure. Busy times!

Check out Vandal’s ‘Life’ featuring Malcolm Carson (UTKU S Remix):
VANDAL feat Malcolm Carson LIFE (UTKU S REMIX) by Vandal

‘Tonight We Riot’ is out in September on Lot49, and for more on the Sheffield beatmaker, head over to his MySpace.