Hi Ben. Z-Shed's been around for a few years now. How did it all begin?
Hello! Yeah, the Z-Shed started on a rainy Tuesday night in a little pub just off Watford high street. I wish I could tell you it was storming success but it was actually quite the opposite. If I remember correctly nobody turned up. Maybe Watford just wasn't ready?
Apparently you've used some interesting and varied spaces - why do you keep switching it up?
I think it's important to consider your line up and the kind of sound you’re going for. Some artists need a huge space with a gargantuan sound system where others will work much better in a sweaty little basement. Also people/ I get bored and like a change. I think we are really lucky at the moment with the variety of venues on offer but I don’t think it will last forever. I reckon over the next couple of years the powers that be will clamp down and a lot of these places will disappear back underground. They’ll still be there but how people get access to them will be very different. Not that that's necessarily a bad thing, but it’ll definitely be a different vibe to what a lot of people are used to.
And the name's great! Why the name?
Ha! I'm glad you like it. I actually have Noel Edmonds to thank for it. Pre Swap Shop days he did a phone in show for 'kids with problems'. Worried children would ring up and tell him about whatever happened to be bothering them and he would offer his advice agony aunt style. I'm not sure what that has to do with the Z-Shed, possibly bad jumpers and unruly kids?
I've got a Z-Shed flyer on my wall from 2 or 3 years ago now - a very treasured flyer indeed. How do you think the artwork and aesthetic of Z-Shed ties in with its musical ethos? As a promoter, do you think the aesthetic / branding is important?
Really? Which one? The logo is totally stolen from an old metal band who I won't mention and to be honest most of the stuff you see or hear at the Z-Shed has probably been nicked in one way or another. What I'm quite proud of is that, despite the amount of thievery that goes on, we've still managed to create something pretty unique that not many other people are doing. And yes, I do think the aesthetic and branding is important - but if you don’t have the substance to back it up you’ll get rumbled pretty quickly.
And finally, what (or who!) can people look forward to at next Friday's show?
All of it! Yeah, the whole line up is pretty steaming. Obviously Starkey and Murderbot, also Raffertie's latest productions have been more than heavy so I'm really looking forward to whatever he pulls out the bag. On a slightly different tip I think Riffs is going to totally smash it. He's some young dude from Bristol who makes kind of chopped up house with all sorts of different influences thrown in, loads of people have been picking up on his tracks but I think this is his first time in London so it should be pretty special. Oh and he's just done the latest Z-Shed mixtape which you can grab right here.
Z-Shed x Black Butter Records // Tracklisting
STARKEY // civil
RAFFERTIE // ninja tune
MURDERBOT // planet mu
LIL SILVA // night slugs
GREEN MONEY // fools gold
RACK N RUIN B2B WOZ & MC COAST // black butter
WARRIOR ONE // black butter
CINEMATIC & TAKURA // black butter
RUDIMENTAL & MC SHANTIE // black butter
WARLOCK // rag n bone
PIRATE SOUND SYSTEM // heavy warper
RIFFS // jigsore
MUSTARD GUNN // coin operated
SVNBVRN // destroy culture
BUMP N GRIND // dungeon bounce
DAS BOOT // the z-shed
JOSH WEST // dungeon bounce
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