SHAHdjs Mix

We sat down with SHAHdjs to talk about the collective and their history with Bass Coast. Their set was one of the highlights of the festival, listen back to it here. 

You have been longtime fixtures at Bass Coast. This year marked the festival’s 10th anniversary, looking back do any special memories stand out to you?

W: Oh totally, LOTS. First that comes to mind was 2016 when Sabre was playing his solo set at Slay Bay and it was just POURING rain. It was amazing to see so many people not give in and keep raving.  I also remember the year in Squamish when Andrea (Librarian) broke her arm, but came back after getting a cast and then played a killer set with mostly the other hand.  Legend. On a more personal note, playing Main Stage after d-bridge the Mutiny year was one of the greatest moments of my life. 

D: Dancing to Sabre playing Jungle in the rain, dBridge 2012 at the old Squamish location, the incredible flowers for the first Cantina incarnation, watching Subscura's constantly evolving performances, and being the muppets!

A: dBridge in 2012 and Sabre in 2016 are probably my 2 most memorable sets. There’s a couple early mornings hanging by the river that stand out too.

M: Two of my favourite moments from this year were tender performances. Nosaj Thing’s set really captivated me. The music and the minimal lighting complimented each other so well. I kept getting overtones of Blade Runner and Vangelis. The other was the Princess Granny performance that happened during Lion-S’ set at sunrise. It was absolutely breathtaking. I was truly in awe with tears streaming down my face  by the end.

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Your set this year was a major highlight of the weekend. What went in to preparing it? Did you draw on any particular sources of inspiration?

A: As a group I think it came together pretty naturally, we each just did our thing. For me personally, I played old school jungle so I suppose my inspiration was to play tunes that got me into drum’n’bass. 

D: I was inspired by the idea that we would craft a story with distinct chapters, each with its own tale to tell.  

W: The hardest part was agreeing on the order. we'd play in.   We're all pretty in check as far as ego goes, it was just trying to decide what would have the best flow and impact overall, and every option seemed to have pro's and cons.  Once we decided the order we all prepped in our own ways. A few messages calling dibs on tunes that we know other's might want play, but it all just kinda happened in parallel, coming together for the first time live.

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You have been together as a group for over a decade now. In this time each of your individual sounds have evolved but you still remain cohesive as a group. How do you maintain this chemistry?

A: Well we’re all best friends so that makes it pretty easy.

W: Nothing really strategic or deliberate, I think we've just always just encouraged a level of integrity that's kept us all in check.  We've stayed away from chasing trends and made sure to stay true to our own tastes. 

M: I am pretty new to the crew officially, but I've been playing shows with the crew for about a decade. Bass Coast 2017 was my first show as a SHAHdj and it's been fantastic since. Everyone in the crew has great taste. I trust every single one of them to deliver. There is something inside us that drew us together. We each have a unique taste but there is a common thread that can't quite be put to words. As time goes on we keep inspiring and influencing each other and we only get better for it.

D: Being skilled and enthusiastic about drum and bass has been a big part, but the most important thing is that my crew mates are people I love for who they are as human beings.

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Lastly, Drum and Bass seems to be having a resurgence. Are there any artists that are exciting you at the moment? 

W: I recently bought a lot of tunes from Monty, and Actraiser. i will buy almost anything from Bredren. 

M: Right now I am really into 140 stuff. It’s been hard to get my mind off it because there are so many in Canada crushing it right now. Abstrakt Sonance, Substance, L NIX, Weston, Self Evident, Underfelt, Daega Sound, Mages …. there are too many to list! It’s a really fertile time with a lot of creative people taking off.

A:  Sully!

D: Mefjus, Klax, Synergy, Data 3