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How did you two meet and start collaborating? 

 

Clayton and I have been buddies since we were literally in diapers. Our first collaborations were over Star Wars toys. Slowly this turned into hip hop. Clay's family owned a music shop when we were growing up. He learned drums, bass, and guitar at really young age. I started djing at 15 years old – first with hip hop, then later with house and drum 'n bass. The drum 'n bass thing took off for me when I was 17 - so that is what I focused on in my early years. Around that time Clay went to college for art & design while I had a good run producing tracks for Andy C's Frequency label in the UK and touring as a DJ. We didn't see much of each other around that time. 

 

So how did you reunite as White Girl Lust? 

 

Clay finished school and at the time I was getting bored with the strict rules in drum 'n bass. A lot of exciting stuff was popping off at the time such as DFA Records and Soulwax. We started working together and testing a new sound. It took a while to figure out what that sound was exactly - but I think that is a good thing. It makes our label's music a bit more timeless than a lot of the cookie cutter tunes coming out. That is something our fans appreciate. It's fun music that is made for the dancefloor - but it's not forgettable. Our label is as underground as it could be, but the people that find us really ride for us. They follow what we are doing as a collective. We like that. 

 

Tell us about Solid Bump Records. How did it start? What is the sound? 

 

It originally started as nothing else more than a outlet for one project. It was a homage to the west coast 80's synth funk that artist like Dam Funk are championing now – but with a bizarre twist. Surprisingly it got a lot of attention. We decided our next project would be a homage to the French and Chicago 1990's house scene that was dominated by dudes like Roy Davis Jr., DJ Sneak, Cassius, and most notably Daft Punk. That project was a compilation called Pleasure & Pressure. It got even more exposure than West Coast Bump. 

 

We started getting demos from a lot of really talented artist who were also pushing that sound. It was obvious that something was bubbling with a new generation of producers who were building off the ground work the originators laid down. We would have been dumb to not grab onto some of this talent. The time is right to make house fun again. The last few years were strange times for dance music. Tunes were either really hard or really deep - things got kind of serious and it turned a lot of people off from dance music. Now two years later, you have huge hits from people like Riva Starr that are fun and memorable. Things are really turning around and it shows on the dancefloor. It's a great time for the music and for crowds who want to have fun again. The artist we are working with are some of the brightest young talent around. 

 

Who is Solid Bump working with now? 

 

At the current moment it is ourselves, Laberge, Meroz, Ghosts of Venice, Mykill, Alona, and Le Principle. Unfortunately Le Principle is breaking up, but both producers are assuming new monikers and it will be business as usual once that is nailed down. We also have some other artist we are working with such as Sammy Bananas, OCD Automatic, Gingy & Bordello, and Mix Chopin. Additionally most of the artists on the label have projects coming out on some of the biggest dance labels from around the world.  This should give a little more shine to our DIY operation.  

 

Is it a good time for independent music? 

 

Absolutely. Most of the biggest new artist are doing it themselves. You have labels like Fool’s Gold who are getting records on commercial radio. You have people like San Francisco's own Dirty Bird, who have been recognized internationally off their own underground label. You don't need a big label to make a big impact. You just need great ideas and something that sets you apart from the hundreds of other artist trying to get noticed. You also have companies like Scion, who understand what these people are doing and will help expose them to bigger audiences without making compromises to their music. 

 

Any advice for new artists trying to get a break? 

 

Again, it comes down to standing out. It is easier than ever to make music now – but it is also really easy to get lost in the shuffle. You have to avoid making music that is just trendy for the moment. Things change really quickly with the internet now. If you are just imitating whatever producer is hot at the moment, by the time you figure it out, the scene will have changed. You have to work on developing something that sets you apart in the big picture.