(Breakthru Recordings, Passenger USA)

Function: DJ / Producer / Design

Styles: Breakbeat and everything else.

Press: Interview on Newzbreaks #1 [Winter 03], Nominated for SF's Top 10 DJ's [every year] by Nitevibe.com, Interview on The Breakdown [Aug 03], SF Examiner [Feb 03], Feature on NuBreaks.com [Fall 02], Interview on Breaksworld.com [Winter 02], Interview on Bassline FM [web & radio], Interview in Where@ Magazine [June 02], Karma Magazine [Fall 02], blah blah blah...

Contact: adublatbreakthrusdotnet

Background:

I first bought a pair of decks in about 1990. I bought this from this dj for $300. They were a little beat up, but they were Technics. I was actually using some wack ass Geminis before that, with a realistic mixer. I used to work that toggle switch so hard when i was scratching that it broke! So i stuck a thumb tack on the stub of it and it worked like new! I finally got my 2 Technics and a Stanton Scratch Master [which i have kept locked away as we speak]. I used to practice scratching everyday, for hours upon hours - mostly trying to get down my juggle and scratch techniques. I entered some competitions [Manor Music in Pacifica, Sound & Lighting on Geneva St.] and won some and lost some. I played some parties and even some "showcases" at the Westlake Recreational Center in Daly City which was around the time of "housers"! This was a good time to be a DJ/dancer in Daly City. The Shadow [Q, Mike, Apollo] had just won the DMC championships, and the bay area was starting to get recognized on the global map for having wicked djs. It's almost as if we had our own culture out here - whereas in Jamaica and NYC they had "sound systems", we kind of had the same thing - mobile djs crews! This was about the late 80's, early 90's - i was in a crew with some friends called Mystic Dreams [yeah, a lot of the old mobile dj crews had cheesey names]!

Anyhow, i got sick of battling because when i played parties, people wouldn't dance so much, but just all get up in front of the decks and watch. They wouldn't dance, they'd just stare and bug out. It got boring because it would seem like it wasn't making the dancefloor move. In about 93 or so, i stopped completely. Decided to take a break, worry about college, etc. I started going to raves in about 95, and got hooked on jungle, particulary jump-up, because it had that hip-hop flavor to it. I found myself djing again, but this time concentrating on the mixing aspect of djing, rather than just the battle element. I did this for a while, and when jump-up was fazed out in favor of that hard dark tech-step sound, i was fazed out along with it. I moved onto 2-step/breaks, which eventually led to breakbeat. I thought this was a perfect tempo for me. Right in between hip-hop and drum & bass - a middle ground. That was in about 1998-1999, and i haven't looked back since.Today, i play all forms of breakbeat - nu-skool, tech, progressive, funky, tribale, polka whatever the party calls for.

There's only a few djs around who i think are "all around" DJs. Guys who dig [and i mean dig in some smelly basement filled with thousands of records and the dust is so bad you have to wear a dust mask] for sample records, old school 12's, and just basically are into more than "oh, i have to have that new shit on whatever label". I will always be a record collector, first and foremost. I have a ton of records; jazz, soul, rock, disco, heavy metal, hip-hop, freestyle, reggae, dancehall, old school hardcore, breakbeat, drum & bass, downtempo, trip-hop, 2-step...plus a ton more I can't even think of right now. I always have and always will love music. Those DJs out there today who don't know shit about the Incredible Bongo Band or Larry Levan or even bother trying to learn the history of our dj culture are the same kids who will be selling their decks in the future in favor of the next "in" thing.

My advice to all djs: If you take this art seriously, you will take the time to learn about it - where it came from and how it started. True knowledge of your craft can only make you a better dj. And always remember to have fun and don't take yourself too seriously! Peace!

www.ADubl.com

A:Dubl Online Mixes: [Real Player format]

Breakthru Sessions 006 - The latest breaks mix from A:Dubz. [ MP3 ]

Breakthru Sessions 004 - The fourth in the Sessions series. [ MP3 ] [tracklist]

Breakthru Sessions 000 - The first CD of the Breakthru Sessions catalog. Starts out progressive and climaxes to upfront dancefloor bizness. [click here to stream ]

Blurring the Lines - [special unreleased mix] Done in the fall of 2002, this mix has a blend of 4/4 beats and breaks. [click here to stream]

Breaks for a Better Day- Always giving the flavor of different styles of breaks, this one starts out as electro, then smooths out in the end. [click here]

How Breakthru Started:

I started Breakthru in late 2001 as a means of educating people with beats. In the everyday world of trance and house, I felt breaks were a needed ingredient in the electronic community. After blazing up the legendary 1015 several times [Spundae, Fridays @ Ten15, Nikita, Sonic], an opportunity arose to do a monthly breaks party. I looked at this as an chance to bring an underground sound to a mainstream crowd, and maybe even change people's views on music that they didn't know anything about. Three years later, what started out as a party, is now a collective of some of San Francisco's finest breaks dj's, producers, artists and musicians. Breakthru has taken it to another level with a series of CD's [Breakthru Sessions], a record label in the works, and many successful parties under our belts.