Artist Interview: FUTUREBOUND for Soul In Motion

On Friday February 14, 2014, Soul in Motion presents the Decade of Viper Showcase for their Anti-Valentine’s Special. Since their establishment in 2004, Viper Recordings has gained popularity releasing heavy hitters from the likes of the Brookes Brothers, ShockOne, the Prototypes and many more. What better way to highlight the label’s 10 year then to bring in the founder himself, alongside his partner in crime Matrix.

Brendan Collins, aka Futurebound, got his first big break in 1991 after securing a residency opening up for artists such as Carl Cox and Grooverider. A couple of years later, his production work was being released on labels like Moving Shadow and Infrared. Known for creating rolling anthems with catchy vocals, this ten year milestone is a great achievement for Futurebound and the whole Viper roster.

Together with production partner Matrix, aka Jamie Quinn, the powerhouse duo of Matrix & Futurebound have brought their music to a larger global audience. Their latest single, “Control” featuring Max Marshall, has been on top of the UK music charts since its debut, surpassing other mainstream artists such as Eminem and Rihanna. The support from junglists and music lovers alike is immense! The video has already received over 1,000,000 hits which is an incredible feat for a DnB track.

SARAH: You grew up in the UK where drum & bass thrives. While attending 90’s illegal raves, what was the key inspiration and motivator for you to start DJing and promoting at that time?

FUTUREBOUND: Yeh living in the UK at that time as a kid growing up was fantastic. I was in school and I’d been hearing of this new phenomenon taking over called ‘Acid House’ and had been buying bits of it from my local record store 3beat. I loved the sound but as soon as I went to my first warehouse party I was hooked.  It was like I’d entered a different world, a world being controlled by a dj.  Not long after this I had my first taste of mixing on my school mates decks. I took to it like a duck to water and that was that. I knew from those early days that this was what I was going to do.

SARAH: Your name is often linked to Matrix and you two are known as a powerhouse duo. Tell us the story behind how you met your partner in crime.

FUTUREBOUND: Well the last 8 years of my career has been dedicated to Matrix & Futurebound so yeh he’s like my other half ;)  Jamie and myself came through around the same time in the mid nineties and we met a few times at the infamous dubplate cutting establishment ‘Music House’, so that’s where we met really. Then around 2003 we were playing at a show in Belgium and talked about getting on a track together and we made it happen.  We made ‘Strength 2 Strength’ & ‘Crystal Maze’ on that 1st studio link up.  I think as we were finishing that 1st single Jamie said to me shall we start another and one of our most famous tracks to date ‘American Beauty’ was born.  

Jamie’s like myself in that he likes working with people. Some times having someone sitting in the room with you inspires you, getting their feedback as you’re working then switching over at the controls and becoming the listener can add to the creative process.

 We get on like a house on fire and there’s always plenty of banter between us. No successful act will always agree on everything but most of the time we do and as we’ve been working together for almost 10 years then I guess that tells you everything.

SARAH: The name Optical is also a major player in the world of drum and bass, but not many people know that he is related to Matrix. Did Matrix have any influence on the early days of Virus Recordings?

FUTUREBOUND: Optical is one of the scenes true innovators. When you think of people who’ve changed the game; people like Bukem, Photek, Origin Unknown, Dillinja, Roni Size spring to mind and Optical is in that elite category.  For me Jamie (Matrix) was another innovator, he brought that stripped down tech funk sound and him and his brother along with Ed Rush, Fierce and Nico definitely broke new ground with their tech edged sound in the latter years of the 90’s.  Matrix was definitely an integral part of the Virus movement.

SARAH: The Soul in Motion Events crew is getting Toronto buzzing for the Viper Showcase and our annual anti-Valentine’s jam. What are your thoughts on the Valentine’s day show?

FUTUREBOUND: I love playing for the Soul in Motion guys. You just know everything is going to be on point technically and the vibe in their parties is second to none! Viper is 10 years old this year and we’re as hungry as ever for DnB and it’s great to be able to celebrate our sound with the Toronto massive. We’re going to be road testing a lot of new Viper dubs on you guys which will be forthcoming on our new 10 years of Viper album ‘Decade’.

SARAH: Happy 10th anniversary to you and everyone at Viper! What would you say your favourite memory over the past decade would be?

FUTUREBOUND: My favourite memory over the last 10 years. Well I’d always wanted to have my own label, to create something special with like minded artists on board. I knew the right time to start my own imprint was when I had two tracks that the other main labels in DnB would want to sign. This was totally the case when I made ‘Blind Cobblers Thumb’ & ‘Pied Piper’. I had 3/4 of the key DnB labels at the time wanting to sign the tracks and it was quite hard to resist as they would of been good for my profile.

But I decided to stick my neck out and knew it was now or never. ‘Blind Cobblers Thumb’ & ‘Pied Piper’ turned out to be Viper’s maiden voyage and one of the best decisions i’ve made in my life. 10 years on and the dream has become reality. We have a fantastic team who all read from the same hymn sheet and I have to thank my right hand man Tim (Viper) Dudley who is also a native of Toronto. Tim is a massive part of Viper and having him as Vipers label manager allows the likes of me to get on with the creative stuff.

Really looking forward to partying with you guys at the Soul In Motion jam this Friday..See you on the dance floor 😉

The video for “Control” has over a million views, check it out right here! Don’t forget to get your ticket ready for Friday February 14th as we prepare to party with the only love that has never let you down – DRUM & BASS.

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– Interview by Sarah Alexys Y –