We're excited to bring a new artist into our podcast fold who is passionate about drum and bass music. DJ Tuskan presents his full energy podcast mix including some of the tracks he produces.

Hello, I am Rory aka Tuskan. I’m a Dj and Producer making jungle Drum & Bass. I love the whole spectrum of the genre and have been following it since ‘94 when (what sounds like a cliche!) an older brother gave me a bootleg D90 cassette of a classic jungle compilation. This was the catalyst for what is now an insatiable obsession, collecting and mixing records to building my own studio with a combination of analogue and digital gear to make my own stamp on this music.

So far I’ve had releases with Dread Recordings, AFT, RIQ Yardrock, Nessesary Bass, the Grenfell LP and still awaiting a release on Congo Natty, which Rebel Mc signed off me years ago lol! Also I have new music forthcoming with AFT and Co-Lab records.

I’ve been resident DJ for Virus in Newquay, Bassfunk and Unleashed in Plymouth, plus my own Riddim Up events in Polzeath where I also get to indulge in other genres I love - bashy dancehall and roots reggae.

I’ve also been been lucky to guest at most of the other leading South West brands over the years as well as various festivals and recently enjoyed playing overseas.

For those that haven’t heard me play I try to draw from all elements of the scene. There is so much old and new goodness coming from all corners - from the ‘98 funk resurgence, jungle, halftime, liquidfunk, minimal, and yes even some foghorns and jump up. It’s all Jungle Drum & Bass, if it’s got a vibe I’ll drop it!

Dj style wise, just like the range of tunes I play, I like to mix in different styles too. Ranging from aggressive rapid fire mixes, double dropping and teasing on 3 decks to rolling out and long blends. The crowd and certain tracks often dictate how I play as some tunes need space and others lend themselves as dj tools. I’ll always play a mix of old and new too as I’ve been into this music for a long time now and I like to draw on those historical tracks which still need to be heard in today.

As a Dj I’ve probably had one of the best and busiest summers for shows - seeing my first two international bookings and loads of amazing festivals. Highlights were the summer Masked Ball ’s Laser Shack where I played a 2 hour dancehall to jungle set on that incredible stage sat on the cliff tops. Performing B2B with Darko at the rather emotional final ever Drum & Bass set at Plymouth’s now legendary club, the Hub. Performing on both the Renegade and Hangar stages at NASS fest to one of the biggest crowds I’ve ever performed for. Dropping a debut dancehall set at Leopalloza. The Boardmaster ’s cancellation party, which we hosted with my full soundsystem in Walkabout, with about 700 people through the door - wicked vibes considering all that went down. Frendzyon that weighty RC1 Audio rig with loads of the South West family. Outlook festival in Croatia, which was in an incredible location, in an abandoned coastal fort, right on the Mediterranean. Last but not least, the rather wet and windy Orbital Gathering at the end of September.

My favourite set was probably the AFT records takeover of Cheeky Monday at Melkweg in Amsterdam back in July. This was my first gig overseas, in a city I now love with a crew of absolute legends. They have been nothing but supportive and welcomed me as part of their family. The promoter, club, sound and production were all sick, let alone the vibes from the crowd! This set was also recorded for those that want to check that out too.

Next up for me is on October 19th where I’m back up to Bristol, for another AFT Records event, supporting the legend and D&B godfather, Grooverider! This is special date for me as it’s also the launch party for my first solo E.P featuring 4 of my riddims I’m really proud of, all of which feature in this podcast mixtape.

The tracks I’ve selected for this mix bring together as much of what I’ve played out the past year or so. This is the first mixtape I’ve recorded in way too long due to focusing what spare time I have in the studio. There’s a fair few of my own dubs, a few signature mixes from some of my recent DJ sets. Including tunes that have a certain memory or vibe that take me back to skanking out with my brothers and sisters at events this summer - like Randall’s set at Outlook to Dj Storm’s set at NASS!

There’s so much great new music coming out all the time it’s getting harder to keep up and stay focused on bringing it all together for just an hour. I love playing really long sets going in on a journey with DJ mixes, turning different chapters and vibes along the way, especially as there are always tracks that I find I didn’t get to play.

I hope you enjoy the mix as much as I did putting it together. The D&B scene is in such a good place here in the South West at the moment and it’s so good to be a part of it!

See you in the dance.

One Love.
Tuskan

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