Bassculture Islands No 5 | Page 56

your mentality. Europeans must learn about the culture whereas, for Caribbean soundboys, it comes from a natural confident ease. When it comes to clashing, European sounds tend to be a bit more organised and prepared since sometimes you might be going up against a sound from the Caribbean with an extensive dub-box with every artist imaginable. When you don’t have this luxury, a well thought out plan is necessary. Again, this is not always the case but it is a characteristic of European sounds. You are a MC of the sound, how imporant is this job in the overall success of the sound? How do you know what the crowd needs to have a good time? The MC is seen as the front man of the sound and the person the public identifies with. I love my role in Herbalize-it because I have a great supporting team each and every time I step onto that stage. A sound cannot survive without a good MC. It’s just not possible and that’s due to the DNA of a soundsystem and the nature of clashing if winning is on your agenda. In Herbalize-it knowing what the crowd needs is the least of my worries with a selector like D-One on the turntables. There are of course moments when I suggest a tune or two but basically my job is to make sure that every tune gets delivered with the right energy. Being aware of the massive is key for us and after doing this for so long you just know how to optimize and get the most out of your performance. The younger team of Carlito (selector) and Dave (MC) are growing with this same blue-print to make sure and hold up our title of “Europe’s Party Machine”.