NEED FOR MIRRORS - FUTURE FIRST

Longtime V Recordings affiliate Need For Mirrors is one of drum & bass's most distinctive and forthright voices - combining a deep, lived knowledge of the culture's roots and ethos with a zealous fixation on only ever pushing the music forward.

Almost two decades since his first release for Bryan Gee's label, 2025 has seen the New Zealand-born Londoner bring his ever-evolving sound back home, first with February's release of his second 12-track "Dub Pack" USB - and now the "Dalston Strut" EP.

Perfect timing, we thought, to track NFM down for an exclusive conversation, just before he headed off to Tokyo for a gig and much needed family holiday.

In this candid conversation, the outspoken D&B acolyte discusses his latest EP on V Recordings, the evolution of his Soul Motion club night and label - and why, rather than trading on past glories, his focus remains laser-fixed on the future.

DASLTON STRUT

Let's start with your latest EP on V Recordings. Some of the track names are obvious nods to East London, where you"ve been hosting Soul In Motion parties over the years…

"Yeah, absolutely. The track names often come from moments or places that resonate with me.

A lot of the songs are just sitting there, and when I test them out at Soul Motion is normally where the names come from. "Dalston Strut" came from a couple of gigs I did in Dalston; it's about the way people present themselves, strutting up Dalston high street. The song creates that kind of vibe when you're playing it."

"Dalston Strut came from a couple of gigs I did in Dalston; it's about the way people present themselves, strutting up Dalston high street."

"I want the songs to be named like something that's unique to me and to remind me of something. "Pickle Factory" - that was the tune that was going down at Pickle Factory for a couple of years.

Coming from New Zealand originally, having terms used that are unique to England or London is interesting. Someone from South America or Japan who's heard the track might come to London, see the map and go ‘Dalston, huh?""

Another track on the EP is 'red Alert" - a collaboration with rapper Young Gho$t. How did that come about?

"Young Gho$t is a rapper from Wellington in New Zealand. He's got an album out; he's really good. I didn't know about him until he booked me for a gig a couple of years ago and I did a show with him. The next time I came back to Wellington, I was like, ‘Listen man, send me some bars, and I'll write a song."

That's this track, 'red Alert" - it's nice to be able to link someone from New Zealand back to England.

It sat there for about a year, then Bryan [V Recordings boss Bryan Gee] was asking for some music, so I sent him that and he was into it. It's not the most obvious tune. You know, we could have made a hook and all that, but I think it's really strong; just pure consciousness rolling out."

"I don't just do random collaborations like I used to when I was younger. There has to be some connection to make it symbiotic."

LONDON LIFE, NEW ZEALAND ROOTS

"Its a culture. I step out my door and something amazing's happening, non-stop. The influence is different here. You can create sound that travels in a different vibration, I think, just purely because of the weather, the moodiness. It's typically the starting point, the ripple. I couldn't do that if I moved elsewhere.

You're exposed to the art, the culture, the people, the voices, the struggle and everything else. You go out your door, you hear stuff; music, kids, what people are listening to, cars going by. You hear what's hot, what's in the peripheral. That's where it stems from and then you channel that back into your music or how you're feeling.

New Zealand's my heart, man. Aotearoa, through and through. I think about it every day and try to go back there as much as possible. But this is where I am. This is where my family is."

KEEPING IT PERSONAL

"Yeah. The songs on the "Dalston Strut" EP aren't written giving a fuck about anybody else but myself. I'm not thinking about whether the songs have to be hitting this frequency, or if the kicks and snares have to be mixable against other shit. I just have this vibe and I want to put it down.

That then translates into Soul In Motion as a club night. I want it to sit in a certain way; fat, weighty, club music. I want people to dance, but I also want people to listen to it in the car, on radio, streaming and think, ‘That's really interesting music."

Soul In Motion has been the genesis of all my music for the last 10 years. I'm writing for that club night and making sure that it's future music always."

BEHIND THE CURTAIN

"Yeah, the magic, man. That's why I keep it as elusive as I possibly can. If I was a bit younger, maybe I"d approach it differently. I don't even know if I would be attracted to drum & bass now.

It's the heat, the vibration, the way people interact with it. I'm still coming from the perspective of there being a scene or something, but I know my perspective is completely alienated from what it is to be 20 years old and into something.

There are newer people out there flying the flag, playing good, interesting music. But obviously, there are a lot of people that are just groomed from social media and they'll never see it from anything else. It's just for the moment and onto the next; business plans, partnerships, endorsements. None of it is organic."

'there's a lot of people just saying catchphrases and words for social media."

"I come from an era where you're aspiring to this kind of alchemy, thinking; ‘How the fuck did they do that?" Listening to old Dillinja, Marcus Intalex or Calibre, Doc Scott's 'shadow Boxing" and thinking, ‘What the fuck? I don't even know how they would make that."

"I come from an era where you're aspiring to this kind of alchemy, thinking; ‘How the fuck did they do that?""

LEAVING A LEGACY

'talk to people in house or techno or hip-hop beatmakers - the skill set, the time, the library of sounds and palettes, how things pulse; it's all the same. I think with any art, there are visionary people that want to continually be on the cusp of something new, always striving for that. And there are people that are complacent or just follow the pack, who will stay in nostalgia.

This is my legacy at this point now. What's next? Where does it stand up if I'm gone tomorrow? What's gonna be the last piece of music you get from me? I don't want it to be some shit.

People always remember my track "Pagans", but there are other really special moments. I"ve put out two albums, there are more albums on the horizon - really good statements and long plays, testaments to me as a human being and my art.

As the amount of legends remaining in the scene diminishes, you can feel that gap, that void; the breakdown of connections. It's really important to eject ego and just look at it like, ‘Listen, this is what we love. We might not get on personally, but respect the sound."

Right now, I'm just happy to be going out to the club and hearing Doc Scott, Klute, DJ Lee all playing this EP at Soul Motion and watching everyone going bonkers to "Waterbending".

It's fucking amazing. I'm just super blessed and lucky. I still feel like a kid; this shit keeps you youthful."

NEED FOR MIRRORS "DUB PACK VOL. 2" AND "DALSTON STRUT" EP IS OUT NOW
https://www.vrecordings.com/usb/nfmdubs02
https://www.vrecordings.com/download/plv215dd

WORDS: JONATHAN COOK