Turn It Up: A Short History of Drum & Bass

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Music Uncovered: Turn It Up: A Short History of Drum & Bass: 5. Xtra Bass!

1. The Birth

5. Xtra Bass!

BBC - Music Uncovered, Turn It Up: A Short History of Drum & Bass, 5. Xtra Bass!

D&B’s 'Mum, we made it' moment comes with the launch of a new radio station - BBC 1Xtra.

D&B’s ‘Mum, we made it’ moment comes with the launch of a brand new station, BBC Radio 1Xtra. UK music festivals explode. Pendulum's influence sends shockwaves through the scene.

When BBC 1Xtra launches in 2002, DJ Flight finds herself at the frontline of a radio station committed to broadcasting 11 hours of drum & bass a week. Music festivals explode in the UK, giving the scene’s talent access to bigger and bigger crowds, and changing the way they think about the music. Into the midst of this, come Pendulum – a D&B trio with a live act destined for the main stage. Their influence will send shockwaves through the entire scene.

Music Uncovered: Turn It Up: A Short History of Drum & Bass

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Music: Dance & Electronica: Drum & Bass

DJ Flight, Storm and other genre-defining contributors tell the story of D&B.

In the mid-1990s, beyond the antics of the Spice Girls and Britpop, an exciting subculture was blowing up. A futuristic kind of music that melded hip hop, rave and dub seemed to appear from nowhere and was suddenly everywhere: drum & bass. Multicultural crowds flocked, often from small towns and sleepy suburbs, to basements in Bristol, London and Coventry to dance to this thrilling new sound. DJ Storm and her partner Kemistry emerged from the Midlands to set up, with Goldie, Metalheadz, a club and record label that stood for D&B's after-hours vibe and the huge cultural influence it went on to have. With the help of fans who were there, she tells the story of a scene that represented the UK more than any 'Cool Britannia' magazine cover, that showed the way for many female DJs, that brought her unbearable tragedy as well as incredible success, and that keeps blowing up, again and again.

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