Our friends at ESP caught up with Boddika. One half of Instra : Mental to discuss his new solo tracks. 

Q. The Boddika tracks that have surfaced so far have all enjoyed strong DJ support, regularly appearing in sets from selectors as diverse as 2562,  Stingray313, Joy Orbison, Scuba, Untold, Martyn, Appleblim, Skream, Loefah, Anthony ‘Shake’ Shakir and Benji B. Why do you think your sound has such wide-ranging appeal?
A. Boddika tracks are DJ friendly and are built for a party. It’s great to hear people are playing them in different kinds of sets.

Q. You've been producing music as one half of Instra:mental since 2000 - is this the first time you've recorded as a solo artist?
A.  I was left to my own devices in the studio throughout July whilst my partner was on tour in Australia, so took the chance to write some tracks on my own for the first time. I ended up working solidly for 12hrs a day and really got into it – when I’ve got music on my mind I just have to get it done and can’t focus on anything else until it’s finished.

Q. What’s the inspiration behind Boddika? Did you have a specific sound or style in mind when writing the tracks?
A. The name comes from one of my favourite 80s movie villains! but the main inspiration is classic electro really, like Drexciya and Underground Resistance. Electro has always been a big part of my life and I feel it’s been kind-of overlooked recently – there’s so much energy in those early productions compared to the modern stuff which is over-produced. I wanted to write music with the same kind of energy but with a more modern, updated sound. I started off each of the sessions with a classic drum kit - maybe the 808, 909 or LinnDrum - setting the tempo and just going for it. All the tracks were recorded through outboard gear which also helps keep some the raw edge you lose when everything’s done inside a computer.

Q. Your first release as Boddika is set for Naked Lunch in October (Boddika’s House b/w Syn Chron) and you’ve already got forthcoming material signed to Swamp81 and Darkestral – how did you get so many tracks signed so quickly!?
A. Micky (Naked Lunch), Loefah (Swamp81) and Rico (Darkestral) are all close friends and I sent them each some of the tracks after the first couple of sessions. Their feedback really blew me away and inspired me to keep going plus I’ve worked with their labels before, so it was only natural to sign some of the tracks to them. With everything I make, I want to keep the quality high – if I’m not 100% into it, I won’t even finish it.

Q. What can we expect from a Boddika DJ set and how’s this different from what you play as Instra:mental?
A. Boddika is all about upbeat, jackin’ electro reaching into house – around 130bpm and keeping the energy high on the dancefloor. With Instra:mental, we cover dubstep, drum & bass and other styles too so our sets can be a bit different but there’s definitely a crossover there.

Q. What’s next for Boddika and Instra:mental?
A. For Boddika, there’s the Naked Lunch single plus a single for Swamp81 (2727 b/w Rubba) which will be followed by more on Darkestral and Swamp81 next year. For Instra:mental, we’ve got the album coming early next year so there’s a lot happening in the next few months!