Crate Diggin’: Bruce and Ploy look back on their entry into electronic music

Everyone remembers the moment they first discovered electronic music. While for some people it’s a period they would rather forget or cringe over, somehow those early tunes you discover will always stay stored somewhere in your YouTube history and memory. UK producers Bruce and Ploy share a lot of common ground on this period of their lives. The pair discovered electronic music together during their studies at Bath Spa University, a crucial stepping stone on their path to releasing head-spinning bass-affected rhythms for labels like Hessle Audio and Timedance. Both artists land in Room One for a back-to-back set as part of Leon Vynehall’s DJ-Kicks tour on 9th March, so they revisited some of the key tunes from their study days for our latest Crate Diggin’ feature, summarised as follows: “When we first met at university we were both getting into dance music and spent many hours mixing in each other's bedrooms. Like everyone's first steps into DJing, it was super exciting and really formative. Our list features bunch of tracks that really define that period for both of us, and that we would still play out today.”

MikeQ – Feels Like Feat. Kevin JZ Prodigy [Fade To Mind]

Bruce: Both being fans of Night Slugs, who were smashing it in 2011, Fade To Mind starting up was real exciting. This track off the second release was so nuts I did an edit of it so that it would just repeat itself and just play twice! Ploy: They're definitely saying ‘the C word’ in this aren't they? I'd never really heard anyone riff off the word like that before, sort of like highly explicit scatting?

A Made Up Sound – Take The Plunge [A Made Up Sound]

Ploy: This is probably my favourite track by Dave Huismans, which is tough to choose given that he is as close to genius as it comes in dance music, and all his tunes are excellent. You could still play this today and it would stand out in any set. Bruce: I think we heard Ben [UFO] play this at Motion in Bristol around the time it came out, and it blew both of our socks off. It’s definitely my favourite of his too.

Marco Shuttle – The Vox Attitude (Pangaea’s Remix) [Eerie]

Bruce: This one feels surprisingly unknown, given there's not even a full video on YouTube. But my god, did Pangaea work this track into a monster. Ploy: This one is kind of perfect for me in many ways, an infectious banger. Bags of groove whilst being both deep and a bit rude at the same time.

Pev & Kowton – Beneath Radar [Livity Sound]

Ploy: The first Livity record was a biggie but I had no idea at the time what the label would go on to be. I think Pev’s mix just about wins it for me! Bruce: We had to have both mixes on here, because Kowton’s has always been my favourite of the two.

Paul Woolford & Psycatron – Stolen (Dub) [Hotflush]

Bruce: Of all our picks, this one is probably a bit of a guilty pleasure. I’m still yet to play this one out, but pretty confident it'll go off at the right time. Ploy: I remember hearing Scuba play this on the main stage at Sonar by Night back in 2011. I spent I-don't-know-how-long trying to find out what it was after that. It sounded impeccable in that huge arena – proper big room stuff, and I was (and still am) a sucker for that kind of vocal sample.

Recloose – Can't Take It feat. Dwele (Milton Jackson Remix) [Planet E]

Ploy: This one stinks of nostalgia for me, I’ve probably played this the most out of everything on this list. Soulful but driving, peak-time house music. Bruce: This really brings back memories! Perfect mix of soul and big room hype.

Levon Vincent – Six Figures [Novel Sound]

Bruce: I vividly remember listening to this in Sam's halls for the first time, and totally not getting it at first. Fast forward 6 months and we were singing along to it at the top of our voices as if it was a football anthem. Ploy: This just sounded like a weird slowed-down grime instrumental to me when I first heard it. Those strings are a little bit gritty sounding, but it works so well. It's an anthem, and that melody will never leave your head.