A
brilliant and inimitable producer, Emalkay refuses to define himself by
anything other than his own musical evolution. From his early years
producing grime and garage, right through to 2011 and the imminent
release of debut album ‘Eclipse’, he has continued to break new ground
and move forward with each and every track he makes.
Away from
the hub of any kind of scene, the Birmingham-based producer made things
happen for himself from the start. Early experimental releases on his
own Morphic Sounds label put his name on the map, and it quickly paid
off as he subsequently signed to Boka. Following a string of well
received 12”s for the label, he then found a home at Dub Police, and
hasn’t looked back since.
Following his debut single for the
label, ‘Explicit / Heroes’, things really blew up at the tail end of
2009 when the phenomenal ‘When I Look At You’ was released. Caned by
tastemakers and fans alike, it catapulted Emalkay to the forefront of
the expanding dubstep scene, where he has remained resolutely ever
since. Since then, he has continued to draw listeners with further
releases on Dub Police, as well as its sister label Storming
Productions, with his latest ‘Crusader / Power Tool’ 12” again testing
soundsystems and finding its way into record bags everywhere.
A
handful of carefully chosen remixes for Pendulum, Faithless and Miike
Snow, have opened up the ears of a whole new audience to Emalkay’s
music, and as a consequence, a burgeoning DJ schedule has seen him
bring his music to bigger crowds, taking in a number of festivals on
the way - the last eighteen months alone has seen him tour the US and
Canada twice, smash apart Glastonbury and bring mayhem to the regular
Dub Police nights at the legendary fabric nightclub!
As we enter
2011, Emalkay has his debut album completed and is readying it for
release on Dub Police towards the middle of this year. Summing up the
last few years of his musical evolution, the album is filled with the
kind of hard-hitting and innovative productions that have seen him rise
to prominence. Staying true to this sound, the album is predominantly
at 140bpm, but sees him experimenting with rhythmic, compositional and
sonic qualities.
Unwilling to rest on his laurels however,
Emalkay is already moving forward and looking to new projects, intent
on continuing his evolution. With the album done, he is spending time
working on new material, collaborating with vocalists and just
continuing to keep things fresh in the studio.
With plenty
still up his sleeve and no signing of him slowing down any time soon,
2011 looks set to be the biggest year yet for Emalkay.