Up-and-coming musician Daniel Hawes has had a lively upbringing into an area which is dominated by modern music creating a huge impact.
Quick-fire Questions
Winter or Summer?
Skratchy 'Summer'
- Drum & bass or dubstep?'Probably dubstep, but it's close'
- Night in or night on the town?'Night out definitely'
- Motown or modern pop?'Motown, it's what I've grown up on'
- Comedy or thriller?'Comedy'
- Skepta or Wiley?'Wiley'
- The Inbetweeners or Skins?'The Inbetweeners'
- Football or rugby?'Football'
- Underground or mainstream?'Underground'
- Practical or stylish?'Definitely practical clothing'
Since the age of when he can remember, Daniel has always had a love for music. Although he wouldn't describe himself as having a passion, he enjoys making music and making his friends laugh. He is a matter-of-fact guy who has lived his life by getting straight to the point, without any hassle, doing what he needs to do to prove his point.
He feels incredibly grateful of his parents as he could not have wished for a better start to life. They always supported him with his ambitions and remain to do so in his adult life. He thoroughly enjoyed his childhood, attending Isleworth & Syon school for Boys' until the age of sixteen. He grew up in the modern South West London culture and it influenced his music and way of life significantly.
The name Skratchy goes back to when he was just five years old. On receiving a scratch on the forehead from his best friend, his newly joined football team started calling him 'Scratch'. As time moved on the name stuck with him, so much that his parents sometimes refer to him by it. He found it to be an ideal, catchy and appropriate name to use for producing.
He is currently ending his A-Levels at Richmond upon Thames College where he is studying Music Technology. The practical knowledge and hands-on experience gained from the course have been vital. He feels that he has learnt 'key concepts of the industry' and 'gained a better knowledge of production techniques'. However, Daniel was never a stranger to the likes of producing music before college and studying it has not changed the way he goes about making music.
To produce his music he uses the programs Fl Studio 9 and 10, while currently learning the ways of Ableton Live and its unique features. Nevertheless, he would not agree that any particular software is better than another; 'they all have their peaks and downfalls, and it's down to artist preference and ability'.
Dubstep drew Daniel instantly as he recalls his first rave: 'as I walked in the DJ dropped Subscape – 'Nothing's Wrong' into Benga & Coki – 'Night'.' He had never heard anything like it before and has been hooked ever since.
Dubstep was founded in London, as we moved into the 21st century, by absorbing and transfiguring elements of drum & bass, techno and dub. Its 'tense, almost oppressively dark sound was built on tightly coiled productions with overwhelming bass lines and reverberant drum patterns, clipped samples, and occasional vocals' (All Music)
Living in London has contributed greatly to his musical tastes with South London artists Skream and Benga beginning their careers there. He doubts that he would be producing dubstep music if it was not for the large exposure to the genre in his area.
Under his DJ name Skratchy, his first release; the EP Up to Skratch, was made available on iTunes on 28th February 2011. It has been released on his independent label 'Solur Beats'.
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| The EP Up to Skratch |
Although he remixes other people's work, he prefers to produce his own music as there is more room to be creative.
He has grown up worshipping musical idols such as Earth, Wind and Fire, Stevie Wonder, James Brown, Kool and the Gang, and a modern icon of his; Benga. He feels that he could forever list his loved musicians from 70s soul and funk.
Playing the bass guitar from a young age, Daniel was influenced by the likes of Marcus Millar and Stanley Clarke; 'two of the best bass players to have ever lived'. He has developed his musical tastes dramatically over the years. He now listens to the likes of Skepta, Wiley and LD. As a fan of drum and bass duo Chase & Status, he believes that 'it's great that we have someone breaking into and competing in the mainstream music world'.
More specifically to his work, he has been heavily influenced by the likes of Benga and LD who he feels 'have kept the dub in dubstep'. While he strongly believes that Shy FX 'owns the jungle and DNB scene'.
He describes his music as 'a fusion between dubstep, DNB and jungle', as he finds it difficult to define his music as any one genre due to his ever changing styles. He believes that it is 'bassy' and 'heavily influenced by dub and reggae, but it may well change.'
Modest Daniel does not believe that he has any 'real musical talent': 'I just love what I do and I hope that people who have heard my music enjoy it as much as I do making it.'
Although he does not feel like he can compare himself to anyone, he tries to keep his music 'true to the definitions of the genre'. He would say his style is similar to electronic producer's Reso, but he tries not to compare his work to others and instead carry on making beats that make him feel good.
He states that he would love to be Matthew Pritchard from the 'Dirty Sanchez' series as he is 'such a likeable bloke and I'd love to know what actually goes through his mind, because I reckon he's a total loon!' In contrast, he would hate to be a politician as they are 'scum bags'.
His greatest ambition in life is to play at leading Bass Music & Soundsystem Culture Festival; Outlook, before he dies. He also aims in going to university and to broaden his horizons by leaving the country. After receiving a degree he hopes that he will be working the social science sector and Djing in Australia or New Zealand.
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| Daniel believes that 'Dreams Come True' |
In ten years time he hopes to still be alive!
Publicising his work on social networking and video channel sites such as 'Facebook', 'MySpace' and 'YouTube' means that his fan base is continuing to grow.
Daniel is hoping to finish his A-levels and get himself known on the music scene. He is starting off by Djing at people's birthdays, hoping to get noticed by a larger audience.
Keep an eye out for the South London DJ Skratchy.
Please follow the links below to hear music from Skratchy:
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