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Plump ’n’ chunks

Longtime UK breakbeat duo heads to Whistler for Canadian debut
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Who: Plump DJs

When: Wednesday, Aug. 5, doors at 9:30 p.m.

Where: Maxx Fish

Cost: $20 in advance at Hot Buns and Maxx Fish

Lee Rous and Andy Gardner have been in the music game for a long time, as both DJs and producers, though they're probably better known as simply the Plump DJs. In fact, the duo first teamed up more than 12 years ago, becoming one of the innovators and icons in the world on nu skool breaks in the process.

Gardner had already established himself in his own right as a producer on Freskanova Records, though at the time he was known as Bowser and Cut & Paste. He then started DJing regularly at one of London's hottest club nights, which was promoted by Rous.

On the flip size, Rous was eager to spend a bit more time in the studio. The pair already knew one another quite well from the local music scene and figured their respective strengths and talents would offer a great mutual complement.

"We were listening to house music then, and hardcore, and I think our progression through house music led us down some paths we didn't really want to go," Rous mused. "The music sort of really, in our scene at the time, had lost its attitude, become very sort of cheesy and glam."

They envisioned making music with more attitude, so they began experimenting with old electro and hip hop,and integrating break dance into their live shows. Today, they're still going strong, pumping out fresh, new electronic hits.

"We both grew up with the hip hop of the '80s and our passion for that really was the thing that drove us to the nu skool breaks genre, really, that I suppose that, in part, we were responsible for creating."

They released their first double single, dubbed Plump Chunks/Electric Disco on Finger Lickin' Records back in 1999, immediately garnering support and positive feedback from big names in the industry like Pete Tong and the Chemical Brothers.

"That was amazing, because you never get into music thinking you're going to succeed, you only hope, so to get those great reactions quite early on was super," Rous said.

The very next year, they released A Plump Night Out , their first album on Finger Lickin' and Nettwerk , which stayed locked in at the top DJ magazine breakbeat charts for three weeks. To date, they've released over five bodies of music, which include a mixture of compilation projects for the likes of Mixmag and Fabric, combined with their own independent artist albums.

"We don't make pop music, we make bodies of work and they're sometimes more dance orientated than other times," Rous said.

Their latest, Headthrash , hit stores and clubs in 2008, and featured a collaboration with Jermaine Jackson.

"That was brilliant! Meeting Jermaine was pretty phenomenal and what a really nice guy he was, too," Rous said.

And the pair is already back in the studio, putting the finished touches on their latest project, The Global Underground Compilation , which they hope to release this fall.

Rous emerged from their studio in the UK early this week just long enough to chat about the duo's history, current projects and their first-ever show in Canada, which just so happens to be going down at Whistler's Maxx Fish this week.

"We spend most of our lives in the studio, actually," Rous said.

"Plump is a way of life, you could say."

These guys may spend the traditional workweek in the studio, cooking up new beats, but make no mistake, they still get the party going each and every weekend at club shows throughout the country.

"After last year's tour of Australia, we realized we had a great platform and support for our music was continuing, and we thought we really needed to step things up, so we now do like a four-deck DJ show," he said.

They also still feel a lot of responsibility to come up with fresh, innovative ideas and keep nu skool breaks alive and well, as other genres start to dominate the world of electronic dance music.

"I think breaks have had a little bit of a tough time, worldwide, over the last year or so - I think the bubble on breakbeats popularity burst, somewhat," he reflected. "But it's making way for new genres of music coming through - baseline house and fidget house."

They produce almost a third of the music they play during any given live set, integrating their originals with remixed and edits, which can be a tricky process.

"Basically, it takes a while to get those tunes together," he said. "We make a track and then we play it out, and road test it and we might have to make changes and take it back to the studio again, so it's quite an organic process."

Their approach seems to be working. They are one of the few breakbeat acts to have songs that have broken in to more mainstream radio programs. In addition to producing, they have toured outside the UK to DJ at breaks events around the world.

But perhaps the most exciting recent development for the duo has been their ability to come to Canada. You see, Rous had some legal issues that had prevented the DJ team entry to the country, but now, those problems have been resolved. So far, they have just a week of dates scheduled, but both are excited to get to bring their reinvigorated live show to the Canadian dance floor for the first time.

"It's going to be absolutely brilliant! A lot of fellow DJs have gone out and toured for years in Canada, and for the last 10 years, we've been hearing about great gigs abroad, over in your neck of the woods, and we've been very jealous!"